MusicRadar's best of 2018: When the phone rings, Mikael Åkerfeldt is busy fixing up one of 11 chairs he recently acquired in an auction. It seems like a fitting past-time for a man who has furnished our ears with some of the most majestic and diverse musical portraits in recent times through his band’s work – a true modern-day master crafter.

“I was just finishing off some gluing,” reveals the Opeth leader, in between his duties attending premieres for new concert film Garden Of The Titans in his native Sweden. Filmed last year in the historic setting of Denver outdoor stronghold Red Rocks, the footage is every bit as mesmerising as you’d expect – mixing their more recent progressive hard rock crunch with the earth-conquering death metal that established them as game-changers in heavy music.

“We’ve played amphitheatres before, but when I think of them it’s usually a Greek/Roman empire kind of thing,” admits the singer/guitarist. “It can sometimes feel like you are playing in the middle of an antiques collection, but this one was cut into stone…

“It was beautiful up there. There are some places where you walk out and go, ‘Wow, that’s cool…’ It can almost have a relaxing effect. Like playing the Royal Albert Hall, the experience feels bigger than just playing songs. I don’t think they’d had many shows of that kind, showcasing our genre of music. I guess you could say it was a lot noisier than your average Red Rocks performance!”

That noise didn’t just come from the band, either – it’s one of those live recordings where you can sense the sheer amount of electricity in the air. Considering it was the band’s first live release not to be filmed in the UK, the American audience certainly did their best to make their presence felt…

“In America, crowds are loud,” says Mikael. “They are very expressive there! It’s like that in the UK too, actually; it’s like slight piss-taking and appreciation mixed together. I’ve found London crowds to be a lot louder, closer to the American audiences who are always like, ‘Fuck you… yeah!’ And to be honest, that makes the gig more fun. I always think, ‘Whoa, they’re alive out there!’ Sometimes when you play in Sweden, crowds are so reserved. There aren’t really any emotional outbursts, you don’t quite get that reaction. America is always loud, so it worked out well!”

The release marks the end of the quintet’s Sorceress album cycle, and naturally, attentions are turning to what will be their 13th full-length. For this bunch of progressive trailblazers, it’s full steam ahead.

“The songs are virtually done; we’ve picked a studio and who will engineer it,” teases Åkerfeldt. “The other people surrounding the recording haven’t been settled yet, but everything else is ready to go. As it looks, we are even going to rehearse a bit. We’re starting… very soon!”

Here, the Opeth mastermind picks his favourite live releases of all time…