Tatiana Shmailyuk on Opeth’s Damnation

Jinjer frontwoman Tatiana Shmailyuk says Opeth’s Damnation — which she first heard around 2003 — helped form both her singing and the gloomy imagery she paints, and she later watched the band live at Rock The Coast on 15 June 2019 without daring to meet Mikael Åkerfeldt. That combination of influence and fan‑struck reticence matters: it shows how a single record can shift a performer’s technique and taste, and how reverence still shapes modern metal culture.

Why Damnation mattered

Shmailyuk told Prog (reprinted by LouderSound) that a friend’s mix CD introduced her to Damnation when she was about 16–17, and that the album left a lasting mark on her voice and artistic mood. She called Damnation her favourite Opeth album and said she used to listen to it “all the way through, as one long song” while making “very gloomy and dark paintings” — a creative habit she credits to the record (Prog, Issue 101; LouderSound).

Vocal influence and taste

Shmailyuk singled out Mikael Åkerfeldt’s dual approach — soothing clean singing plus very deep growls — as an inspiration that pushed her to “growl as deep as I can,” even as she avoids direct imitation. She also mentioned later Opeth work such as 2016’s Sorceress as a calming listen she sometimes plays to fall asleep (LouderSound).

The Rock The Coast encounter

Both Jinjer and Opeth appeared at Rock The Coast festival in Fuengirola, Spain on 15 June 2019; the festival timetable lists Jinjer at 15:45 and Opeth at 19:20 on that date (JamBase; festival timetable PDF). Shmailyuk says she watched Opeth from the side of the stage and sang along, but didn’t approach Åkerfeldt afterwards — partly out of deference and partly out of nerves.

“I don’t think he needs to hear what I think about his music,”

— Tatiana Shmailyuk, as quoted to Prog and republished by LouderSound

For fans, the short story is straightforward: Opeth’s mood and Åkerfeldt’s voice continue to ripple through a new generation of metal performers, and moments of live proximity still leave even professional singers tongue‑tied. The exchange also underlines how influence in metal often arrives via listening rituals — mix CDs, late‑night albums, paintings — not just stages and press quotes.