Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt (Swedish: [ˈmîːkaɛl ˈôːkɛrˌfɛlt]; born 17 April 1974) is a Swedish musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of progressive metal band Opeth, and the former vocalist of death metal supergroup Bloodbath. He was also guitarist for the "one-off" band Steel, and is part of the collaboration Storm Corrosion with Steven Wilson.
Åkerfeldt is known for his progressive rock-influenced songwriting style and his frequent use of both clean baritone and growled vocals. Åkerfeldt was ranked #42 out of 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists of All Time by Guitar World, and #11 among "The Top 25 Modern Metal Guitarists" on MetalSucks.
A native of Stockholm, Mikael Åkerfeldt was the vocalist for Eruption, a death metal band that he formed in 1987 at 13 years old. After Eruption came to an end in 1989, he joined Opeth, ostensibly as a keyboardist. When their original bassist left Opeth two years later, Åkerfeldt replaced him as bassist; Isberg then assumed guitar duties. When Isberg left Opeth three years later, Åkerfeldt replaced him as the vocalist.

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