assuming the conflict of interest was that he no longer wanted to make boring prog rock?

I would imagine that would be it as well

Too bad he wasn't a guitarist cause then I could say "his axe has been left to rot"

o7

Eager/anxious to see what comes next

My guess is that he refused to get vaccinated.

Martin Lopez was the best drummer Opeth has ever had imo. Dude was fucking sick.

Vax is a good guess. Hard to imagine he would leave the band due to musical direction on such short notice before a tour (and making a handful of bland albums in a row)

Strangely worded. Conflict of interests is usually meant in a financial sense.

"Martin Lopez was the best drummer Opeth has ever had imo. Dude was fucking sick" [2]

Sad news, beast of a drummer. However, agree that Lopez was the best fit for them. I wonder if the door is open for a return?

Martin Vax-em-not

heard he banged mikael's wife

Now he can just rip it up full time in bloodbath, opeth hasn’t put out anything worthwhile in like 15 years, seems like a win win to me

Martin Lopez was the best drummer Opeth has ever had imo. Dude was fucking sick. [3]

He had such a unique groove.

Thanks for Heritage Axe, I'll miss you in the band! 💚

Well, if you can't tour for whatever reason nowadays, you cannot be in a band like Opeth, simple as that.

Lest we forget that Lopez and Lindgren left because they couldn't tour nonstop, a condition routinely prompted by the bands' management.

This sounds less than happy.

Be interesting to see if they make an official statement of the reasons beyond "conflict of interest" but probably not based on the tone of this.

It does not sound amicable no.

Hopefully whoever they hire to replace him nudges them toward playing good music again.

Sami Karppinen from Therion is playing with them at the moment

Vax is a good guess. [2]

Martin Lopez was the best drummer Opeth has ever had imo. Dude was fucking sick.


Uruguay some incredible talents...

And then there's the Bjork's stalker.

Martin Lopez was the best drummer Opeth has ever had imo. Dude was fucking sick.


Uruguay some incredible talents...

And then there's the Bjork's stalker.

Sad news, as he is an incredible player. That last line in the statement (sounding like the vocal equivalent of a shrug) does make me suspect it's due to something on his part that they can't help, like not getting vaccinated.

Martin is a colossal drummer who will have massive shoes to fill. Very unfortunate but the change-up will be interesting to see how it goes, I don't think it will impact Opeth's current prog rock style realistically.

Lol all this love for Axenrot, y'all need to branch out more.

Lopez was actually something special, his departure was felt. Axe is replaceable.

How dare you besmirch the name of Axenrot in that horrible way?

You absolute monster.

I'll never forgive Axe for taking liberties with the fill at 00:52 of Under the Weeping Moon on 2007's The Roundhouse Tapes. Never!

In fact, I think that digression is the "conflict of interest" this is all about!

Lopez still prob my fav drummer, but Axenrot went crazy on Heritage can't lie

I used to think that everyone aside from Akerfeldt was more or less dispensable, but I've gotten to the point where I'd give a ton to see the classic lineup form their own band to see the direction that they'd take. They're all incredibly skilled players, and I feel like they'd be capable of making a fantastic album.

^ I'd argue that Peter Lindgren was almost as important to Opeth as Akerfeldt when he was in the band. He helped a lot with the guitar parts and performed a bunch of the solos, as well as co-writing several songs. Once Fredrik Akesson replaced him, though, that was when Akerfeldt took full control (or even more than he already did, lol)

I wish I could care about this band, though Axenrot is a pretty black metal name ngl.

Peter's exit was because of that element of control from what I've gathered, given that Akerfeldt wanted such a drastic change of direction. It's unfortunate for sure, because Opeth post-GR has effectively been an Akerfeldt solo project.

As much as i love Lopez and how well he fit with the band, it's tough for me to say he was better than axe. Axe had chops for days and also complemented the songs very well. His performances on watershed and heritage are outstanding. After that, they began reining in the technicality in favor of a more classic prog style

sami make opeth go symph metalllll

Axe proved himself with Heritage and anyone talking shit about his playing is just wrong.

damn sucks

good luck to everyone involved though o7

I guess we'll always have Heritage. Shame.

well that's a bummer, axenrot is a beast. if there was any reason to listen to the last few opeth albums it'd be for his drumming

Mikael comments and you will never guess what they play afterwards!

https://www.reddit.com/r/Opeth/comments/qw0t6p/mikael_always_a_class_act_making_light_of_the/

To Bid You Farewell?

Aw that would be sweet

Axe deserves to go play actual metal somehwere, he wasn't born to rehash 70s prog

Sad to hear, wish him well though

martin axolotl

axolmao lolol

StormC untrue! His Heritage performance is totally heartfelt and genuine. Too amazing not to be his thing.

Well I love his performance and the album is cool, but shortly after that Mikael started wearing fedoras

'Axe deserves to go play actual metal somehwere, he wasn't born to rehash 70s prog'

is that because 'Axe' sounds metal? - only reason to agree. His performance on Heritage is definitely an easy counterpoint.

After searching for a bit to see if the antivax rumours are true, I think it might just be that: a rumour. I saw on Per Wiberg's instagram a comment saying that they're making an album with Axe, and also that Αxe's planning on opening a small coffee place with his wife. So maybe he's in a different point in life than touring/recording? Anyway, the antivax thing has been heavily circulating and it might be unfair to judge someone based on sth we have literally no evidence.

Amen Myth! Super true, 100% agree. People should know better by now.

And if it was an antivax thing, what, would it be cool to throw whatever judgement people wanted toward it?

That's a great question, as well. I am against calling out people on their antivax stand. I don't get it too, I'm fully vaccinated, and I find the arguments dumb most of the times. BUT, antivax is a proof a system failing its people, not the other way around. But before I get carried away and be all political - I know some people would mind - let's just focus on having no evidence other than a bitter statement from Mikael

@Trif ❤🧡💛

Perhaps not, Assemblage, good point. But throwing all sorts of accusations his way without even one sliver of proof is even worse.

@Myth 😍💕

'And if it was an antivax thing, what, would it be cool to throw whatever judgement people wanted toward it?'

yeah it would...

but given this is all based on idle speculation/rumour, then of course we can't. Honestly I saw some of the comments ^ and decided not to get involved because it was a) possibly unsubstantiated and b) ascertaining the validity of the accusations would require effort on my part, effort I wasn't willing to give.

I'm here because Opeth. The underlying reasons for Axe being axed aren't really my concern.

I like being a little careful with dealing out judgement online though. Especially from a distance, when we cannot look at the situation closely and most of its aspects are hidden from us (as is certainly the case here).

But 'I'm here because of Opeth. The underlying reasons for Axe being axed aren't really my concern.' is 100% true as well, even including a little play on words, even more points.

Appreciate the replies, I'm glad my comment didn't come off too much as a stick in the mud, but I'm curious of the general perception now and then and I get an itch. I agree with the majority of the sentiments expressed, just curious. It can be a lengthy (and intriguing) discussion when appropriate.

For sure. Sadly, most of the time, the internet is not the place for this kind of conversation. Conditions aren't suitable: too much screaming going on! But this was nice, Assemblage.

Most definitely, m/ m/. Cheers!

He will be missed in Opeth, dude was a beast behind the kit. Maybe now more time devoted to Bloodbath?

Also yeah Lopez returning would be unreal.

Ι don't think Lopez would be remotely interested in that. Soen's a great band where he actually gets to do whatever he likes

yeah true, very unlikely he'd wanna rejoin. just a cool thought is all

is that because 'Axe' sounds metal? - only reason to agree. His performance on Heritage is definitely an easy counterpoint.

Lol, that would be amazing, but no, it's kind of because of his resume before Opeth and during his time playing there

...but speculating is the fun part

Speculation: fine!
Accusation: silly!

The difference between
Oh my he could have received a rare disease from his hamster and be too embarrassed to tell!
And
That stupid bastard doesn't want to be vaccinated I'll delete my entire Opeth library!!!!!

stating speculation as fact is the issue, it starts off as a rumour and suddenly gets blown out of all proportion - that's 'Chinese whispers' in the age of the internet for you

P.S. I wonder if that phrase is frowned upon now?

I mean are people really triggered by other people not being vaccinated even on a semi anonymous music site?

no it makes much more sense to be triggered by someone screwing up an 'Opeth ranked' list or a negative review for your fave artist, because that shit is waaaaaay more important

In the context of this website damn straight it is

Preach demon

I’m glad the anti-vax thing is just an unsubstantiated rumor. Weird that as soon as the news broke people started saying that, but I guess it was just hearsay, at least for now.

It is a pretty normal phenomenon these days, so I feel some speculation is warranted.

After all, we are anonymous weirdos. Can't expect too much.

Martin Lopez stands as the best Opeth drummer IMO. He was a puzzle piece for their sound that fit just right.

Axe is a weird dude, not in a bad way, but in like an eccentric way, it's hard to say what went down. He's done stuff before like intentionally flood an entire floor in a hotel, for example. Mikael said he has like ADHD or something.

How does ADHD explain flooding a floor?

Idk Mikael said it not me. He did say Axe was a really nice guy and a good friend of his, too but that he was a bit odd. Which is accurate. It's somewhere in that 2009 concert documentary they did, it's on YouTube, he mentions it there. ''Opeth royal albert hall interview - Mikael Akerfeldt''

He also mentions there that one time he called axe, and axe told him he had to call back bc his apartment was on fire lmao.

apparently the flood story is that he turned on all the faucets then went to sleep. btw correction apparently it flooded 4 floors of the hotel haha.

he's doing alchemy

are the any alchemy-themed prog-rock/metal bands out there?

Probably.

https://www.sputnikmusic.com/bands/Alchemy-Room/136172/
https://www.sputnikmusic.com/bands/The-Alchemy-Index/60833/
https://www.sputnikmusic.com/bands/Alchemy-of-Flesh/140616/

oh sweet, i'll check if they also tackle alchemy in the lyrics but it should suffice for axen! >:]

I feel alchemy is safe speculation, so go ahead, please.