Opeth was formed in Stockholm, Sweden in April 1990, initially as a death metal outfit assembled by vocalist David Isberg alongside a handful of friends from the local scene. Opeth was formed as a death metal band in April 1990 in Stockholm, Sweden, by David Isberg, with some friends from Täby, Isberg was the lead vocalist. The band's name came from a novel. The band name was taken from the Wilbur Smith novel The Sunbird, in which Opet is the name of a fictional city. Isberg soon brought in a teenage guitarist named Mikael Åkerfeldt, and after a chaotic reshuffling of the original lineup, Isberg departed in 1992, leaving Åkerfeldt to take over as vocalist, guitarist, and the band's primary creative force, a role he has held ever since. Early releases like 1995's Orchid and 1996's Morningrise established Opeth's blend of death metal aggression with progressive, folk, and classical influences, long dynamic compositions, and a mix of guttural growls and clean singing.
The band's breakthrough arrived with their fifth album, Blackwater Park, released in 2001. Widely regarded as one of the greatest progressive metal records of all time, 2001's Blackwater Park was the album that saw Opeth step out of the underground and into the limelight, establishing themselves as one of the most exciting prospects in heavy music. The album was produced by Porcupine Tree's Steven Wilson, a collaboration that began after Blackwater Park, thanks largely to the inlvolvement of Porcupine Tree's Steve Wilson. Akerfeldt, a huge fan of PT, managed to strike up a friendship with Wilson, who agreed to produce Opeth's next album. The classic lineup of that era featured Ã…kerfeldt alongside guitarist Peter Lindgren, bassist MartÃn Méndez, and drummer Martin López. Following Blackwater Park, Opeth continued their ascent with albums like Deliverance (2002) and the largely acoustic Damnation (2003), before Ghost Reveries arrived in 2005 as, a return to form that further cemented their reputation as leaders of progressive metal.
Opeth's career has been marked by significant lineup shifts even as Åkerfeldt remained the band's constant center. In 2006, drummer Martin Lopez left the band and was replaced by Bloodbath's Martin Axenrot; the following year, guitarist Peter Lindgren also left, and was replaced by Arch Enemy's Fredrik Åkesson. This retooled lineup recorded 2008's Watershed before the band took a dramatic artistic turn in 2011 with Heritage, largely abandoning death growls in favor of a warmer, retro progressive rock sound that would define albums like Pale Communion and Sorceress. Keyboardist Joakim Svalberg joined in 2011, and in 2021 drummer Waltteri Väyrynen, formerly of Paradise Lost, took over behind the kit. Their 14th studio album The Last Will and Testament (2024) won the Swedish Grammis award for the Best Hard Rock/Metal category. Opeth remains highly active today, having returned to growling vocal territory for the first time in 16 years on The Last Will and Testament, a concept album released in November 2024 that surprised longtime fans by reintroducing death metal elements. The band has since toured extensively worldwide, with a busy 2025 schedule including their summer festival run, the second proper European leg of their The Last Will And Testament tour in Autumn, and a 9-date journey to Australia, New Zealand and Japan , alongside further North American and Latin American dates stretching into 2026. Nearly thirty-five years after their formation, Opeth is still regarded as one of progressive metal's most influential and enduring acts, having shaped the genre's fusion of extremity and beauty for multiple generations of musicians.
For this archive, Opeth holds a lasting place in Wayne Dennon's photographic record. Wayne photographed the band across three shows between 2004 and 2008, spanning two different cities, a window that captured them right at the height of their post-Blackwater Park ascent and through the lineup shifts that brought Ã…kesson and Axenrot into the fold. The 112 photographs from those nights remain among the collection's most visited, drawing 83,770 views from archive visitors who return again and again to relive Opeth's ferocious yet meticulously crafted live performances through Wayne's lens.
