Shooting a video with Opeth

I’m sure no one gives a flying arsehole about what’s going on in my life, both now and over the past 2 years, since I stopped being really active on Hive..

But hey, I’m jumping back in to kick off talking about some recent video work I’ve done for a band called Opeth.

For those unfamiliar with Opeth, they’re a Swedish progressive metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990 who have made 14 studio albums.
They’re simply stunning, with out of this world musicianship.

So the pressure was on when I got the call to shoot a performance video for them, which was to happen on the day-off between their UK tour dates.. and I didn’t have long to get it together.

The video was shot in February 2025 at a studio in Birmingham UK, and then was eventually released in June 2025 on all the social channels.

I was asked to do the whole video thing - produce (find the right studio, book the crew, budget) direct, shoot and edit the performance video.
I wanted a video that felt real.. no over-produced effects, or crazy lights with millions of edits. Just something that felt organic and relaxed, like a session.

You can check it out here if you’re interested.
The track is called Paragraph 1.

It was a one day shoot with a very early start and a late finish with a super small team (only four people, including me)

The band were brilliant - super courteous, professional and very funny.

I really enjoy making these kind of videos.
It’s what I seem to be quite good at I guess; delivering under the pressure of time, money and resources 😆
That’s why people hire me 🤷🏼‍♂️
I get shit done.

The album the video supported is called ‘The Last Will and Testament’, and it’s a genuinely stunning concept album.

These guys are considered the best of the prog-metal for a reason. Absolutely sublime.

I took my wife out to see them live in Manchester a week later at an unusually small and intimate venue for them, and they didn’t disappoint.

❤️