It finally happened… Opeth has gone back to gutturals. Mikael Åkerfeldt caught tons of hell when he gave up the vocal style beginning with 2011's Heritage, and he probably never stopped hearing about it until 2024, when "§1" dropped and sent Opeth fans into celebration. "§1" is just the first track from Opeth's upcoming The Last Will and Testament, which will be released October 11.

For this list, we tried to limit Åkerfeldt's performances to one song per album, and we're going deep into both Opeth and Bloodbath's discography. If you need your fix of Åkerfeldt gutturals, here's your goddamn buffet.

"Bleak"

Åkerfeldt ascended to a new level of screaming on Blackwater Park. Throughout Opeth's '90s discrography, there was a raspiness in Åkerfeldt's throat that made him sound like a dude doing some of the best gutturals you've ever heard. On Blackwater Park, Åkerfeldt turned into the literal voice of Lucifer. His voice felt like it emanated from another realm, with "Bleak" best representing how otherworldly Åkerfeldt's voice became. His vocals on the album's title track are just as incredible, but with "Bleak" being the more vocal-heavy track, this is our Blackwater Park pick.

"The Grand Conjuration"

"The eyyyyyyyyyeeees! Of the Deeeevvvvvil!" This has got to be the most epic guttural moment in Mikael Åkerfeldt's career. The quiet-to-brutal slow build on "The Grand Conjuration" is absolutely perfect. Ghost Reveries is filled with incredible harsh vocals ("The Baying of the Hounds" / "Ghost of Perdition") but the songwriting on "The Grand Conjuration" brings Åkerfeldt's performance to the next level.

"Heir Apparent"

*slaps cover of Watershed* "This bad boy can hold so much fucking evil in it." This was the peak of guttural Opeth, wasn't it? "The Lotus Eater" and "Hessian Peel" are incredible, but Åkerfeldt's gigantic growls over those mid-tempo licks on "Heir Apparent" is unbeatable. This was the most demonic stuff Opeth fans had ever heard, and also, arguably not even the best gutturals Åkerfeldt released in 2008. 

"Blasting the Virginborn" 

Mikael Åkerfeldt in 2008 was like Michael Jordan in 1998 — on a different wavelength than everyone else in the league. On Bloodbath's perfect 2008 EP, Unblessing the Purity, Åkerfeldt laid down 15 minutes of nothing but godlike gutturals on top of pure Swedish death metal. It was either going to be this song or "Weak Aside," but Åkerfeldt's intro scream of "Nazareeeeeeeene!" made the choice for us.

"The Moor"

Sorry we couldn't include "Serenity Painted Death" and "The Moor." It was a real Sophie's Choice situation, so we naturally had to give up the uglier baby. Still Life is a tad unheralded compared to masterworks like Blackwater Park and Ghost Reveries, but it's truly the moment when Opeth began to make break into generational territory. The prog and death metal pieces of Opeth came together seamlessly on Still Life, and Åkerfeldt's mishmash of high and low screams turned "The Moor" into a classic.

"The Apostle in Triumph"

This is the heaviest Renaissance song Opeth ever made. It was definitely a different era of Åkerfeldt, with the Opeth frontman shrieking with black metal deep in his vocal cords. Åkerfeldt's high screams are so great on "The Apostle in Triumph," especially when he belts out lyrics like, "In this forest, where wolves cry their agony unto the moon!" Nordic as fuck.

"Omnious Bloodvomit"

A love letter to classic death metal, Bloodbath formed to make this brilliant EP at the turn of the millennium. It's disgustingly produced thanks to the legendary Dan Swanö, and he really made Åkerfeldt sound like he was recording his vocals from the depths of Hell. You've never heard Åkerfeldt sound this cold on tape. 

"Master's Apprentices"

This song feels like you're face-to-face with Åkerfeldt's gutturals. "Master's Apprentices" is so riff-based in its first half that Åkerfeldt's voice becomes punctuated in that classic Morbid Angel style. Its vocal-centric craftsmanship makes "Master's Apprentices" unique for the Opeth catalogue, letting the Åkerfeldt faithful really geek out on his voice. 

"Iesous"

This may be a controversial pick, because it's not Åkerfeldt's most versatile performance. However, it's an absolute beast when it comes to his low growls (along with guest growls from Christian Älvestam). He annunciates perfectly throughout Bloodbath's "Iesous," hitting each punchy verse with the exact right tone and timing. Who else makes perfect gutturals sound this easy?

"Demon of the Fall"

For My Arms, Your Hearse, it's gotta be "Demon of the Fall." You can really hear Still Life and Blackwater Park creeping up on this song. Åkerfeldt was forming his deep vocal vortex, tapping deep into a sonic brutality that most are incapable of touching. The instrumental parts are so damn good on "Demon of the Fall" that they almost overshadow Åkerfeldt's vocals… it's just a win-win for the listener in every way. Same goes for "April Etherial" and "When."