o p e t h — t h e s u bways
Heritage is album number ten for Opeth, and musically it’s a little different to previous releases. Going into pre-production for this one, was the direction something that was talked about? Mikael [Åkerfeldt, vocals/guitars] started off writing two songs and they were more or less a continuation of Watershed and then he deleted those tracks. He felt that he needed to do something new; he wanted a new, fresh angle. He said that he didn’t want to do so much of the growling and I said, “whoa, are you really sure about that?”. I went over to his house and listened to the songs and there just wasn’t any room for growling on these tracks. And then I realised that [the new sound] was Mikael’s mission for this record, which I thought was really cool. I felt the album had a more straight-70s hard rock feel to it — less distortion, no growls, just a whole different vibe overall. Was that something you wanted to explore? Yeah, exactly. We wanted to do a different recording, no sound effects. We wanted a more organic album, not a wall of distortion. We recorded the bass and drums live and we did spend a lot of time getting some really good takes together; the guitars were done pretty fast; the keyboards we used were older Hammonds and an old piano, we didn’t use any modern keyboards at all. This particular studio that we recorded in had an echo chamber, which is a room with different wall angles and the reverb is really cool to add to the feel of the music. How long did it take you to lay down all your parts in the studio? For the heavy guitars, Mikael and I played one guitar on each side and that was pretty fast — it took us just one day. I think also one day to lay down the acoustics. We
Mikael can still hear the vocal lines when he lays the drums. So he can add to certain parts or hear if anything is going to clash with the vocals. You’ve been to Australia a couple of times now, with Arch Enemy and Opeth. What memories do you have of your previous visits? All good ones really. The crowd is always amazing and intense. The weather is always nice and usually we get a couple of days off and it’s always nice to have a day off and relax in Australia. I’ve played in five different Australian cities so far.
Rock Heritage In mid-September, Swedish metallers Opeth will release their tenth studio album, Heritage, via Roadrunner Records. Not only does this mark the band’s return to the studio following up from their critically acclaimed 2008 masterpiece, Watershed, it also represents a musical move away from some of the band’s better-known albums. CAMERON EDNEY spoke to guitarist FREDRICK ÅKESSON. spent a little more time working on solos and improvising on different parts, but all up maybe three or four days. Considering Heritage is a little left-field when you look at Opeth’s previous work, do you think that created extra pressure in the studio or was it a relief to get in there
and do something different? It was exciting. The process was really smooth, and we didn’t actually rehearse as much as before. Mikael does really good demos; everything’s really thought out when it comes to rhythm parts and melodies, so when members start to record with the bass and drums they play along to the demo. This way
Over the years you’ve shared the stage with many great artists. Who’s given you the best advice and what was it? I think it may have actually been one time when I was playing with Arch Enemy, no it was with Opeth, and I was talking with Doug Aldrich from Whitesnake. I was so nervous that day and usually I don’t get nervous but he turned to me and said “just go up and have fun”, and he’s right, just go up and have fuckin’ fun! Heritage is released this month and you guys will be hitting the road hard in support of that. What other immediate plans are in place for yourself and Opeth? Doing this massive tour - I think we’re going to tour for 18 months. We will be doing the American tour in September, then after that back to Europe, then cross our fingers we will be down in Australia to play and maybe Japan, then probably another American run, then we have the summer festivals next year, Europe again, hopefully Australia again too! Heritage will be released September 16 through Roadrunner Records.
Back In The High Life “We’re in between festivals and I’m excited to get back on stage for what will be a long tour,” says Cooper. “It’s all about the experience of playing live for us.” An experience that won’t be too far off for Australian fans of The Subways raucous live shows, says Cooper, who assures me if all goes to plan we can expect The Subways on our shores by the time the Big Day Out or Soundwave roll around early next year. “When we sit down and talk about tours it’s always, ‘when can we go to Australia?’ she says.” In case you were wondering if you’ve heard these guys (and girl) before, cast your memory back to a time when the hottest teenage soap on air was The OC. The Subways were glimpsed in the background of one dramariddled episode, belting out ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Queen’, which (along with their impeccably addictive live show) helped The Subways arrive in a big way, becoming a mainstay on UK and US festival bills and a happening thing for thousands of fans, young and old. Not bad for a group who would’ve been sneaking their riders into their guitar cases for years. With most of the band still only around 25-years-old, it’s been an impressive
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magazine issue #062 — September 2011
The Subways’ CHARLOTTE COOPER has been in the game for more than a third of her life, with band-mates, Billy Lunn (guitar, vocals) and Josh Morgan (drums). But the charming 25-year-old English rocker is showing no signs of fading after a day of interviews to publicise the Subways’ upcoming run of shows and festival appearances. She chats to JAMS GALLAGHER. ride. “We just started out playing Nirvana covers and now it seems like 10 years has gone so quickly. It’s crazy,” says Cooper. “I think when you spend as long as we have on the road and writing together you realise that
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you didn’t know what you thought you did in those early days. We thought we knew it all back then and I’m still learning, I don’t think it stops.” With the longer turnaround between their last LP, All or Nothing, and their new album, Money & Celebrity, The Subways have taken the time to find what really sets them apart. “We tend to write with our live show in mind. The songs on the album are all ready for the live circuit — we’re just keen to get back on stage again.” Cooper’s energy will no doubt be an asset when the band embarks on their mammoth tour, that basically continues until next year (when those Australia dates arrive). Money & Celebrity should be in all the good record stores, and it’s everything you can expect from The Subways with a few
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surprises thrown in, thanks in part to producer Stephen Street (The Smiths, Blur, The Cranberries). Cooper can’t hide her excitement over working with Street. “I love the sounds he creates,” she says. Less predictable for a rocker like Cooper is her taste in female performers .”I really like Kylie Minogue and Madonna which I think sometimes has a bit of stigma to it, but the arrangements are fantastic,” she says. “Especially Kylie, it’s great workout music,” she laughs. And with another album just begging to be let loose on Australian audiences, Cooper might be channelling Kylie for some time yet. Money & Celebrity is out now on Cooking Vinyl through Shock Records.
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