(Gibson) Opeth frontman Mikael Εkerfeldt says the band's new album, Heritage, takes inspiration from an unlikely place for a band primarily known for progressive death metal band: 1970s-style jazz fusion.Εkerfeldt told I Heart Guitar the album was influenced by John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra, Billy Cobham, drummer Alphonse Mouzon, Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters although those influences mingle with Ronnie James Dio, too. The track "Slither" is a blatant tribute to Dio and his former band Rainbow.
"We're all massive fans of Rainbow and massive fans of Ronnie," Εkerfeldt said. "When he passed away it was like a member of my family. He'd always been there. And I was insanely affected by his passing. I was really down and he really meant something to me. So I wrote this song as a tribute to him." more on this story
