From extreme metal to Camel and Genesis, to collaboration with Steven Wilson, Opeth frontman, guitarist and chief composer, Mikael Åkerfeldt's career is surely one of the most progressive. The following is an excerpt from a new feature at Louder Sound.

With so much groundbreaking and obscure music flowing through his veins, it should never come as a surprise to Opeth fans that Åkerfeldt is reluctant to be pinned down to any one particular style. As much as his band established certain sonic trademarks with albums like 2001’s much-lauded Blackwater Park and 2006’s monumental Ghost Reveries, the Opeth catalogue tells a different story: one of constant evolution and an invigorating disregard for pandering to anyone.

As if proof were needed, last year’s Heritage album neatly encapsulated the way Åkerfeldt operates as a songwriter. Despite knowing full well that certain elements of the faithful would be horrified by the abandonment of death metal vocals and an almost wholesale leap into non-metallic, progressive rock territory, Heritage was still very much an Opeth record both in terms of design and execution. The tour that followed, wherein the band played lots of new material and other older tracks that fitted musically with the Heritage songs, polarised fan opinion. But good prog soldiers are trained not to give a flying fuck what anyone else thinks. Making music that dares to dream is about satisfying the composer’s artistic desires and nothing else. In that regard – not to mention the fact that it was also utterly magnificent – Heritage must surely be regarded as a triumph.

“A lot of people don’t have the need for change,” Åkerfeldt shrugs. “A lot of people see their favourite band as a McDonald’s restaurant – you go in and you get your fix of the same old shit. I will never be able to understand that. Even if we tried, we wouldn’t be able to make those fans happy, but they don’t realise that. People will always have their favourite record. I remember thinking when we made Ghost Reveries, ‘Everyone’s gonna love this album!’ but no they didn’t! So we made Watershed and I thought ‘Wow, we did it!’ and some people hated that record too. I’ve never deliberately tried to write for our audience. Even if we try to please the fans, they won’t be pleased. So we try to piss them off instead!" [Laughs]

To read this full feature, head to LouderSound.com.