Karl Fredrik Henrik Åkesson is a Swedish heavy metal guitarist. He is a current member of Opeth. He is also active in Krux, Monsters of Metal and Talisman.
Åkesson has been playing guitar since the age of 12. His early musical influences include Michael Schenker, Uli Jon Roth, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Norum and George Lynch. Marcel Jacob, founder of Talisman, held auditions in 1992 to find a new guitar player after Jason Bieler left them to play with Saigon Kick; the 19-year-old Åkesson was selected for the position. He spent almost four years with Talisman and after five records decided to leave them for a heavier outfit.
On 17 May 2007 the progressive death metal band Opeth announced that Åkesson would replace departed guitarist Peter Lindgren. Åkesson’s first tour with the band was the Progressive Nation Tour with Dream Theater and Between the Buried and Me. Åkesson’s first album with Opeth was Watershed (2008) in which he co-wrote the song “Porcelain Heart” with Mikael Åkerfeldt. The album Heritage was released in September 2011, also with one song (the bonus track “Pyre”) co-written by Åkesson.
