Fredrik Åkesson
Encyclopedia
Karl Fredrik Henry Åkesson is a Swedish
heavy metal
guitarist. He is a current member of Opeth
. He is also active in Krux
, Monsters of Metal and Talisman
.
, founder of Talisman
, held auditions in 1992 to find a new guitar player after Jason Bieler left them to play with Saigon Kick
; the 19 year-old Åkesson was selected for the position. He spent almost four years with Talisman
and after five records decided to leave them for a heavier outfit. Åkesson, Mats Levén, John Levén, and Rickard Evensand formed a band called Eyeball who would later change their name to Southpaw. In 1998 Åkesson was appeared on two albums: Southpaw's debut album and Naïve by Clockwise. He also recorded a version of Journey's classic "Send Her My Love" with Clockwise for a tribute album that was never released.
In Åkesson he returned to record and tour with Talisman
. They worked on two new studio efforts: Cats and Dogs
(2003) and 7
(2006) plus a live album called Five Men Live
(2005) which was released on DVD as World's Best Kept Secret. In 2004, Åkesson filled in for Tiamat
guitarist Thomas Petersson on tour and was featured in the The Church of Tiamat DVD release in 2006. He also appeared on the Sabbtail album Night Church, again with Mats Levén.
Åkesson co-wrote two tracks on the album Optimus
by John Norum
and appeared in the recordings. He also played with melodic death metal
band Arch Enemy from 2005 to 2007, having been recruited when original Arch Enemy guitarist Christopher Amott
took a 18-month break from September 2005 until his return in March 2007. Åkesson also played on the Krux
album II
, released in 2006. In 2007, he appeared with Krux
in the Sweden Rock Festival
.
On May 17, 2007, the progressive death metal band Opeth
announced that Åkesson would replace departed guitarist Peter Lindgren
. Åkesson's first tour with the band was the Progressive Nation Tour with Dream Theater
and Between the Buried and Me
. Åkesson's first album with Opeth was Watershed
(2008) in which he co-wrote the song "Porcelain Heart" with Mikael Åkerfeldt
. The album Heritage
was released in September 2011, also with one song (the bonus track "Pyre") co-written by Åkesson.
which continued into 2007. He also had his own signature model. http://www.espguitars.co.jp/oversea/customshop_gallery/fredric.html Since joining Opeth, Åkesson switched to PRS Guitars
with Marshall JVM 410 amps and cabs. In the "Porcelain Heart" videoclip he can be seen using a PRS Mark Tremonti
Signature guitar. As of 2009, Fredrik has switched to Blackstar Amplification, using the Series One 200. In addition to his Blackstar amps, Fredrik also uses Fractal Audio's Axe FX effects processor. In 2011, PRS guitars produced his signature model PRS.
With Opeth
With Krux
With Talisman
CD singles and promos with Talisman
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
guitarist. He is a current member of Opeth
Opeth
Opeth is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. Though the group has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force throughout the years...
. He is also active in Krux
Krux
Krux is a Swedish doom metal band, created by Leif Edling after Candlemass fell apart for the second time preceding their reunion tour.-Members:* Leif Edling - bass guitar* Mats Levén - vocals* Peter Stjärnvind - drums* Jörgen Sandström - guitars...
, Monsters of Metal and Talisman
Talisman (band)
Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
.
Biography
Åkesson has been playing guitar since the age of 12. His early musical influences include Michael Schenker, Uli Jon Roth, Yngwie Malmsteen and George Lynch. Marcel JacobMarcel Jacob
Marcel Karl Jacob was a Swedish musician, best known as the bassist in the hard rock bands Talisman and Last Autumn's Dream.-Biography:In 1978, Jacob formed the band Rising Force together with guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen...
, founder of Talisman
Talisman (band)
Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
, held auditions in 1992 to find a new guitar player after Jason Bieler left them to play with Saigon Kick
Saigon Kick
Saigon Kick was an American rock band from Miami, Florida that formed in 1988.-History:Saigon Kick was formed by lead vocalist Matt Kramer and guitarist Jason Bieler along with bassist Tom Defile, and drummer Phil Varone. They gained a following on the local club scene and generated enough of a...
; the 19 year-old Åkesson was selected for the position. He spent almost four years with Talisman
Talisman (band)
Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
and after five records decided to leave them for a heavier outfit. Åkesson, Mats Levén, John Levén, and Rickard Evensand formed a band called Eyeball who would later change their name to Southpaw. In 1998 Åkesson was appeared on two albums: Southpaw's debut album and Naïve by Clockwise. He also recorded a version of Journey's classic "Send Her My Love" with Clockwise for a tribute album that was never released.
In Åkesson he returned to record and tour with Talisman
Talisman (band)
Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
. They worked on two new studio efforts: Cats and Dogs
Cats and Dogs (Talisman album)
Cats and Dogs is the sixth studio album by Swedish hard rock band Talisman released on 12 May 2003 on Frontiers Records.The release of the album was followed by a tour in Europe, which included a headlining slot at Gods of AOR Festival in the UK, a performance at Frontiers Showcase in Italy, a new...
(2003) and 7
7 (Talisman album)
7 is the 7th and last studio album by hard rock band Talisman released on 20 October 2006 on Frontiers Records.It was recorded under the working title of "BAR", which stood for "Bitter-Angry-Resentful", basically a joke referring to the guys’ outlook on certain life events. It was dropped in the...
(2006) plus a live album called Five Men Live
Five Men Live
Five Men Live is a Talisman live record edited at 21 March 2005 and 25 May 2005 as part of a double package that Frontiers Records released with the band....
(2005) which was released on DVD as World's Best Kept Secret. In 2004, Åkesson filled in for Tiamat
Tiamat (band)
-Biography:Initially, the band played straightforward black metal under the name Treblinka. After having recorded the album Sumerian Cry in 1989, vocalist/guitarist Johan Edlund and bassist Jörgen Thullberg parted ways with the other two founding members, and subsequently changed the name to Tiamat...
guitarist Thomas Petersson on tour and was featured in the The Church of Tiamat DVD release in 2006. He also appeared on the Sabbtail album Night Church, again with Mats Levén.
Åkesson co-wrote two tracks on the album Optimus
Optimus (album)
Optimus is the sixth solo album by John Norum, the guitarist in the Swedish hard rock band Europe. It was released in 2005.-Track listing:# "Chase Down the Moon" - 3:50 # "Nailed to the Cross" - 3:32...
by John Norum
John Norum
John Norum is a rock music guitarist and founder of the Swedish band Europe . Concurrent to his role with Europe, he also maintains a side solo project...
and appeared in the recordings. He also played with melodic death metal
Melodic death metal
Melodic death metal is a heavy metal music style that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with elements of death metal. The style was developed during the early and mid-1990s, primarily in England and Scandinavia...
band Arch Enemy from 2005 to 2007, having been recruited when original Arch Enemy guitarist Christopher Amott
Christopher Amott
Christopher Amott is a Swedish guitarist and vocalist, younger brother of Michael Amott and founding member of the Swedish metal bands Arch Enemy and Armageddon.-Biography:...
took a 18-month break from September 2005 until his return in March 2007. Åkesson also played on the Krux
Krux
Krux is a Swedish doom metal band, created by Leif Edling after Candlemass fell apart for the second time preceding their reunion tour.-Members:* Leif Edling - bass guitar* Mats Levén - vocals* Peter Stjärnvind - drums* Jörgen Sandström - guitars...
album II
II (Krux album)
II is the second album of the doom metal band Krux, released October 20, 2006. Released on the Swedish label GMR Music.-Track listing:#"Serpent" – 5:12#"Devil Sun" – 7:33#"Sea of Doom" – 6:23...
, released in 2006. In 2007, he appeared with Krux
Krux
Krux is a Swedish doom metal band, created by Leif Edling after Candlemass fell apart for the second time preceding their reunion tour.-Members:* Leif Edling - bass guitar* Mats Levén - vocals* Peter Stjärnvind - drums* Jörgen Sandström - guitars...
in the Sweden Rock Festival
Sweden Rock Festival
Sweden Rock Festival is an annual rock/metal festival held in Sweden since 6 June 1992. While having a clear rock/metal focus, the festival is noted for its diversity across these genres, having featured southern rock bands such as Molly Hatchet to death metal legends like Obituary.The first...
.
On May 17, 2007, the progressive death metal band Opeth
Opeth
Opeth is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. Though the group has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force throughout the years...
announced that Åkesson would replace departed guitarist Peter Lindgren
Peter Lindgren (musician)
Peter Lindgren is a Swedish musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former guitarist of Swedish progressive death metal band Opeth...
. Åkesson's first tour with the band was the Progressive Nation Tour with Dream Theater
Dream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of their studies to further concentrate on the band that would...
and Between the Buried and Me
Between the Buried and Me
Between the Buried and Me is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. They have released a total of five studio albums, as well as a cover album, an EP and a live DVD/CD...
. Åkesson's first album with Opeth was Watershed
Watershed (Opeth album)
Watershed is the ninth full-length studio album by the Swedish progressive death metal band Opeth. Published by Roadrunner Records, the album's special edition was released first as a music download on the Italian iTunes Stores on May 19, 2008.Watershed is the first studio album by Opeth to...
(2008) in which he co-wrote the song "Porcelain Heart" with Mikael Åkerfeldt
Mikael Åkerfeldt
Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt is a Swedish musician who achieved fame as the lead vocalist, guitarist and songwriter of progressive death metal band Opeth as well as the lead vocalist of death metal band Bloodbath. He was the vocalist and guitarist for the band Sörskogen and the guitarist of the band Steel...
. The album Heritage
Heritage (Opeth album)
Heritage is the tenth studio album by Swedish progressive metal band Opeth, released on 13 September 2011 by Roadrunner Records.The album was recorded in early 2011 at Atlantis studios in Stockholm, Sweden. It was produced by Mikael Åkerfeldt, engineered by Janne Hansson and mixed by Steven Wilson...
was released in September 2011, also with one song (the bonus track "Pyre") co-written by Åkesson.
Endorsements
Fredrik Åkesson had an endorsement arrangement with ESP GuitarsESP Guitars
, located in North Hollywood, California, is an American-based, Japanese-owned manufacturer of electric guitars and basses.- History :In 1975, Hisatake Shibuya opened a shop called Electric Sound Products in Tokyo. It provided custom replacement parts for guitars. In 1976, ESP gained a reputation...
which continued into 2007. He also had his own signature model. http://www.espguitars.co.jp/oversea/customshop_gallery/fredric.html Since joining Opeth, Åkesson switched to PRS Guitars
PRS Guitars
PRS Guitars is an American guitar manufacturer headquartered in Stevensville, Maryland. PRS Guitars was founded by guitarist and luthier Paul Reed Smith in 1985. The company is one of the leading manufacturers of high-end electric guitars.-Materials:...
with Marshall JVM 410 amps and cabs. In the "Porcelain Heart" videoclip he can be seen using a PRS Mark Tremonti
Mark Tremonti
Mark Thomas Tremonti is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the American rock bands Creed and Alter Bridge. He is a founding member of both bands...
Signature guitar. As of 2009, Fredrik has switched to Blackstar Amplification, using the Series One 200. In addition to his Blackstar amps, Fredrik also uses Fractal Audio's Axe FX effects processor. In 2011, PRS guitars produced his signature model PRS.
With OpethOpethOpeth is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. Though the group has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force throughout the years...
- HeritageHeritage (Opeth album)Heritage is the tenth studio album by Swedish progressive metal band Opeth, released on 13 September 2011 by Roadrunner Records.The album was recorded in early 2011 at Atlantis studios in Stockholm, Sweden. It was produced by Mikael Åkerfeldt, engineered by Janne Hansson and mixed by Steven Wilson...
(2011) - In Live Concert at the Royal Albert HallIn Live Concert at the Royal Albert HallIn Live Concert at the Royal Albert Hall is a live double album by the Swedish progressive death metal band, Opeth. The DVD was recorded on April 5, 2010 and was released on September 20, 2010 in Europe and on September 21, 2010 in the rest of the world...
(2010) - WatershedWatershed (Opeth album)Watershed is the ninth full-length studio album by the Swedish progressive death metal band Opeth. Published by Roadrunner Records, the album's special edition was released first as a music download on the Italian iTunes Stores on May 19, 2008.Watershed is the first studio album by Opeth to...
(2008)
With KruxKruxKrux is a Swedish doom metal band, created by Leif Edling after Candlemass fell apart for the second time preceding their reunion tour.-Members:* Leif Edling - bass guitar* Mats Levén - vocals* Peter Stjärnvind - drums* Jörgen Sandström - guitars...
- He Who Sleeps Amongst The Stars (2011)
- IIII (Krux album)II is the second album of the doom metal band Krux, released October 20, 2006. Released on the Swedish label GMR Music.-Track listing:#"Serpent" – 5:12#"Devil Sun" – 7:33#"Sea of Doom" – 6:23...
(2006) - Live (DVD) (2003)
- KruxKrux (album)Krux is the self-titled debut album by the Swedish doom metal band Krux. It was released on the Dutch label Mascot Records.-Track listing:All songs written by Leif Edling.# "Black Room" – 5:51# "Krux" – 7:05# "Nimis" – 3:57# "Sibiria" – 2:11...
(2003)
With TalismanTalisman (band)Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
- 77 (Talisman album)7 is the 7th and last studio album by hard rock band Talisman released on 20 October 2006 on Frontiers Records.It was recorded under the working title of "BAR", which stood for "Bitter-Angry-Resentful", basically a joke referring to the guys’ outlook on certain life events. It was dropped in the...
- 2006 - Five Men LiveFive Men LiveFive Men Live is a Talisman live record edited at 21 March 2005 and 25 May 2005 as part of a double package that Frontiers Records released with the band....
- 2005 - Cats and DogsCats and Dogs (Talisman album)Cats and Dogs is the sixth studio album by Swedish hard rock band Talisman released on 12 May 2003 on Frontiers Records.The release of the album was followed by a tour in Europe, which included a headlining slot at Gods of AOR Festival in the UK, a performance at Frontiers Showcase in Italy, a new...
- 2003 - BESTerious (Compilation) - 1996
- Best of... (Compilation, different from above) - 1996
- LifeLife (Talisman album)Life was the 4th studio album by hard rock band Talisman released on 23 August 1995 on Polydor Records.This album was written in Jeff Scott Soto's house over a couple weeks time in March 1995...
- 1995 - Five out of Five (Live in Japan)Five out of Five (Live in Japan)Five out of Five is a live album by hard rock group Talisman, recorded in Kawasaki, Japan on September 27, 1993.-Track listing:# "Mysterious "# "Standin' on Fire"# "Comin' Home"# "If U Would Only Be My Friend"...
- 1994 - Humanimal - 1994
- Humanimal Part II - 1994
- GenesisGenesis (Talisman album)Genesis was the 2nd studio album by hard rock band Talisman released on 7 July 1993 on Dino Records.Drummer Jake Samuels had left them to join Zinny J. Zan's band and then Marcel Jacob made all programmed drums used on the recording with an Alesis SR-16....
- 1993
CD singles and promos with TalismanTalisman (band)Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
- Frozen (CD Single) (1995)
- All + All (CD Single) (1994)
- Todo y Todo (CD Single) (All + All Latin American market release under nickname Genaro) (1994)
- Colour My XTC (CD Single) (1994)
- Doing Time With My Baby (CD Single) (1994)
- Time after Time (CD Single) (1993)
- Mysterious (This Time is Serious) (CD Single) (1993)