Swedish progressive rockers Opeth dropped an official music video for their song “§7” today, January 22nd. That song is taken from their 2024 outing, “The Last Will And Testament“, and served as a daunting piece of music for the band to bring to the stage. Frontman/guitarist Mikael Åkerfeldt had the following to say about it in conjunction with the debut of this video:
“That track was scary to play live at first. Most of our songs are challenging, I suppose, and this one is no exception. I believe we all love playing this one. There are a myriad of details that could go wrong though, but it’s fun. It keeps you on your toes. And of course, then there’s Ian Anderson‘s narrations, which is the only thing in our set that isn’t ‘live’.
Since we don’t play to a click track, it’s dragging or pushing depending on the tempo of the evening. Again, it’s fun and I love the unforeseeable character of this song in a live setting. That’s a bit odd since I normally want to feel completely secure and really know what I’m doing. I generally don’t like surprises on stage.”
Opeth will be back out in North America next month for a run of headlining shows with direct support from Katatonia.
02/05 Montclair, NJ – The Wellmont Theater
02/06 Boston, MA – Orpheum Theatre
02/07 Philadelphia, PA – The Fillmore Philadelphia
02/10 Detroit, MI – Masonic Jack White Theatre
02/11 Chicago, IL – Riviera Theatre
02/12 St. Louis, MO – The Pageant
02/14 Dallas, TX – The Bomb Factory
02/15 Houston, TX – Bayou Music Center
02/16 San Antonio, TX – Majestic Theatre
02/18 Colorado Springs, CO – Pikes Peak Center
02/20 Las Vegas, NV – The Pearl
02/21 Riverside, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
02/22 Sacramento, CA – Channel 24
02/24 Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre
02/25 Vancouver, BC – Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre