Nach der Trennung von ihrem langjährigen Schlagzeuger Martin Axenrot im November letzten Jahres, haben Opeth nun mit Waltteri Väyrynen einen neuen Mann an den Drums. Der Finne hat gerade erst Paradise Lost den Rücken gekehrt, um umgehend bei Åkerfeldt und Co. anzuheuern. Er verdrischt die Felle außerdem bei Abhorrence und war Schlagzeuger für die nur kurz bestehende Formation Bodom After Midnight. Opeth hatten als vorübergehende Lösung für Konzerte mit Sami Karppinen gearbeitet, allerdings war bekannt, dass dies lediglich eine temporäre Angelegenheit sein würde.

Mikael Åkerfeldt kommentiert den Neuzugang wie folgt:

"We just had our first rehearsal with Walt yesterday and it went incredibly well! We were all very nervous beforehand, but Waltteri completely killed it! Pure delivery! We went through 16 songs (!) from start to finish and didn't have a single correctional comment. It's quite remarkable! I was astounded, and so were the rest of the band. He has everything, really. From the required laid-back sensitivity an Opeth drummer needs, via the classic rock, prog rock, metal grooves and onwards to downright mega-intricate technical virtuosity. On top of that, he knows the songs extremely well (already) both from the recorded versions as well as the sometimes modified live versions. We were hearing drum rolls and beats that we hadn't heard since the songs were recorded. The audience are certainly up for plenty of air-drum moments connected to their favourite Opeth songs. Walt has got it down, to put it mildly.

I'd also want to take this opportunity to thank Sami for saving our asses when we most needed saving. If it hadn't been for his efforts, friendship and care we'd probably been 'on ice' as we speak. We're furthermore happy to keep Sami as part of the Opeth family. His contribution to Opeth is beyond words, and he'll continue to help make our performances as good as possible. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you, Sami!"