Many music information sites, and perhaps even your local band store, categorize this group from Sweden as a heavy metal band. An Opeth album owner and fan however may beg to differ because the group does sometimes fall outside the box. For two decades, the band has been infusing its metal sounds with folk and jazz. It is not unheard of to find tracks filled with acoustic sounds. Despite the presence of the usual growls, one can also hear clear, spine-tingling vocals.

The one person often cited to be the primary author of the band’s musical direction is current front man Mikael Åkerfeldt. He was not the founder of Opeth but he eventually took the lead and pushed for a pronounced transition from strong metal to a mixed sound that is made even more original by its effusiveness.

Opeth’s real founder was David Isberg who took in bassist Åkerfeldt in 1990. This was to mark line up difficulties that would plague the band. The other members that had already been previously called together walked out when they learned of Åkerfeldt’s inclusion mainly because they were not informed early on that he would become a member.

With just two people in the band, they had to resort to recruiting more members. This was when Andreas Dimeo, Anders Nordin and Nick Doring came in. Sadly member issues continued and both Doring and Dimeo abandoned the group even before Opeth albums could be made. New members were recruited again but Kim Petersson and Johan DeFarfalla left too and were replaced by Peter Lindgren. Isberg, who should’ve stayed on if only because he was the founder eventually also gave up and left. This kept the field open for Åkerfeldt to take the lead.

It is perhaps because of the strange line up developments that the band didn’t produce a debut album until a couple of years. It was only in 1995 that Orchid was released. By this time the variety of musical influences was already apparent in the album. The work was not an absolute chart topper but it did introduce a unique brand of music that was strangely alluring because of its moments of clarity and depth.

Morningrise came in second after one year. This piece of work stands out from all the rest because of a song in it that is twenty minutes long. Although this was even more unusual than the band’s first release, it did get the group the much needed attention for an excellent launch outside their home country.

The good reception for the first two releases created the foundation for more releases. In twenty years, the band was able to dish out a total of nine studio albums. Following the first and second albums were Still Life, Blackwater Park, Deliverance, Damnation, Ghost Reveries and Watershed. Albums one to eight were already actually quite popular in Europe. The band was only able to reach success in American soil with Watershed which took number 23 in the Billboard 200.

It isn’t easy to listen to an Opeth album. To truly be able to appreciate and listen to their long pieces, you have to be a solid band fan with a knack for original Opeth merch. There is no way you can listen to their songs in a casual way.

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