Submitted by: Submitted by Mulisha149
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Category: Music and Cinema
Date Submitted: 12/11/2010 11:05 PM
Lizbeth Rivera
11/22/2010
Speech VO1
Stacy Sloan Graham
Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt
I. Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt (Swedish Musician)
A. Back in March 2010, Mikael’s progressive metal band Opeth was selling tickets for a show in Los Angeles that was to happen in April, the tickets sold out quickly and I remember being sad for days; because in my opinion, Mikael is one of the greatest musicians alive.
B. He has made a great impact on music and inspired other musicians to be as diverse as he is in the musical sense.
C. Today I am going to be informing you about the early life of Mikael Åkerfeldt, his musical career, and his great accomplishments
II. Early Life
A. Born on April 17th, 1974 in Stockholm, Sweden
1. Originally studied classical guitar in a classical style
a. In his teens, he discovered different kinds of music including: The Beatles, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin
i. He then decided not to play classically anymore and played heavy metal with his friends
b. In 1988, he joined his first band Eruption & did vocals
i. But they didn’t last very long
2. On August 15, 2003; Mikael married Anna
a. They have 2 daughters: Melinda and Mirjam Ebba Maria
i. Melinda was born on September 13, 2004
ii. Mirjam was born on October 28, 2007
B. Mikael’s Musical Career
1. Influences include: classical, jazz, progressive metal, psychedelic rock, songwriters, Ritchie Blackmore
2. In 1990, Mikael joined Opeth
a. Originally as a bassist
b. When vocalist David Isberg insisted Mikael join the band, all other members left
c. David left Opeth 2 years later because of creative differences, Mikael replaced him as the vocalist
d. Opeth has recorded several albums and live DVDs including:
i. Orchid- 1995; was their first album.
ii. Morningrise- 1996; The only Opeth album where each song exceeds 10 minutes
iii. My Arms, Your Hearse- 1998; All songs are shorter than 10 minutes
iv. Still Life- 1999; Concept Album; He...