Jethro Tull singer and flutist Ian Anderson makes a guest appearance on Opeth’s new song “§4.”
The track – featured on Opeth’s new album, The Last Will and Testament – runs more than seven minutes in length and includes a flute part and spoken word vocals from Anderson.
In a press release, Opteh frontman Mikael Åkerfeldt revealed how the Jethro Tull legend wound up contributing to the song.
“We ended up with a flute solo by Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, which was kind of an accident in a way, because I asked him to do a narration, not flute,” the Swedish rocker explained. “As he was doing the spoken word bits, he asked me ‘do you need a flute solo?’ I was like, ‘yes, please!‘, while I didn’t really have a part for a flute solo! I had to shuffle through the songs quickly in my head before he would change his mind. I had him on the hook, of course I was gonna find a piece! So, he played almost like a common response type flute solo in ‘§4.’”
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Åkerfeldt further described “§4” as “an oddball song” that was “written by instinct.” “I’m not a clever guy when it comes to writing music,” he continued. “People call us ‘thinking man’s metal,’ I think that’s laughable. I listen to music from so many different genres, it’s impossible to me to stick to one genre.”
Listen to “§4” below.
‘I’ve Cried to Jethro Tull’
Elsewhere on The Last Will and Testament, Europe singer Joey Tempest makes an appearance. In a conversation with Prog Magazine, Åkerfeldt explained his criteria for collaborations.
“I wouldn’t have guests on the records unless I felt that they could contribute something that I couldn’t,” the singer noted. “In this case, I don’t have that gravelly old-man voice like Ian. It just made everything so much better.”
“I’ve cried to Jethro Tull. Ian’s given me so much joy over the years, it’s incredible,” Åkerfeldt admitted. “Just to mention his name in the same sentence as this band is incredible. Joey Tempest is the same.”
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Gallery Credit: Ryan Reed