BLACK METAL UNDERGROUND PROMOTION is now moved to a new site since 1st August 2013. New URL is: http://bmugpromotion.blogspot.com
Thursday 1 August 2013
MOVE TO NEW SITE
BLACK METAL UNDERGROUND PROMOTION is now moved to a new site since 1st August 2013. New URL is: http://bmugpromotion.blogspot.com
Wednesday 31 July 2013
ARTWORK: DEATH ON THE PALE HORSE (REVELATION)
Death on the Pale Horse (Revelation) by Gustave Doré
Used by Emperor for their album "Emperor" (1993)
Tuesday 30 July 2013
INTERVIEW: VENOM
Anyone with any sense knows that when you get right down to it there is only one band to thank for black metal, death metal, thrash metal, speed metal and all such glorious creations. That band is, of course, Venom. So when the godfathers of extreme metal release a new album it’s a momentous event and when that album is as downright awesome as Fallen Angels...well, you get your arse down to the Universal Records building in Hammersmith and talk to them about it. MTUK were lucky enough to be given an audience with all three members of the band, so read on for words of wisdom from legendary front man Cronos, guitarist Rage and new drummer Dante.
MTUK - First things first, I just wanted to say congratulations on the new album, it’s probably the finest Venom album in years.
C “Thank you, we feel that. We really feel that. It’s the whole way we approached this. We solidified this line-up in May 2009 and we said ‘let’s not think of albums, let’s not think of labels, deals, money, bullshit, publishing and all that crap. Let’s do it the way we did in the early days, as a band. Let’s get to know each other, let’s get out there and get the gigs done and we’ll take it from there’. And things have just gone from strength to strength you know? We get on great and the whole sort of writing process was just so natural – very much like it was in the early days. One of the things that I think has made the album so special is the way we approached the recording as well. From Resurrection onwards we did go down that Pro-tools, drum triggered thing...you know, just trying to make better productions for the band. I kind of scratched me head and thought ‘let’s go back. Let’s get the microphones on the drum kit, let’s get the Marshalls plugged in, let’s get the fuckers cranked up and let’s play as we do on stage. Let’s play like a fucking live band, like what Venom’s all about and we’ll see what we get out of it.’ And I was blown away by the way these tracks came out.”
R “It lets the songs speak for themselves doesn’t it?”
C “Absolutely.”
MTUK - One of the most pleasing things about Fallen Angels is the way it has captured so much of the old atmosphere and magic compared to recent albums.
R “And it’s not like we sat there and said ‘let’s write another ‘In Nomine...’ or stuff like that. It helped us in 2009 when we did the South American stuff, the 30 Years of Venom you know? Because it wasn’t like ‘go and listen to the old albums’, the vibe was already there – it was ingrained. It was like ‘let us speak, let the songs speak, let’s just write a good fucking Venom album’.”
C “I told these guys from day one that Venom is not a parody. Venom is a band that changes year after year after year. We’re not reliving 1984, Venom are a different band today than we were back then. I’m not looking for a new Mantas or a new Abaddon – I’m looking for a great Venom drummer. I’m looking for a great Venom guitarist who stands up on his own, who’s got his own ideas, his own look, his own identity. I’ve never believed in that parody thing, I think it doesn’t work.”
R “The fans are that clever and savvy now that they just see through it.”
C “That was what happened when, back in the day, we replaced Mantas when he got sick on that US tour and we got those guys in. The kids were throwing things at them and shouting ‘you’re not Mantas!’ Because that’s who they were trying to be and that’s where the first mistake was. But with these guys, from the 2009 South American tour, we said we’re going to make the live set a full thirty years of Venom, so a song off every Venom album – plus the singles – so even Calm Before The Storm is in there, stuff off Possessed and everything. Get them in there. We’ve come up with these medleys where we go from one song to the next song to the next song, so these guys have got this great understanding of how the band has progressed. But because it’s all on a live stage where we’ve got the same sound, songs from thirty years ago to now have all got the same sound and it comes together – which shows how good the songs are.”
D “Yeah, nothing sticks out like a sore thumb, like it sounds like it was recorded fucking thirty years ago. It all comes together like one great sound.
” C “As an example – and no disrespect to the band, because I think Saxon are a fantastic band – but when you hear their first stuff, ‘Wheels Of Steel’ and then you hear the stuff they do today, it would be very different for them to do a thirty year thing like that because their songs have radically changed – whereas Venom haven’t. We’ve stayed within the essence of Black Metal you know? In there is thrash metal, power metal, speed metal, death metal...it’s all part of that Black Metal stamp and I think we’ve kind of retained that, which I’m really proud of.”
MTUK - Is it difficult for you to find a balance between progressing and moving on and staying true to your original sound? Especially when there’s so much pressure on you to keep sounding like the early days?
C “Yeah it is a challenge, but I believe the honesty of the songs will tell me if it’s right or wrong. Of course I write things where I think ‘that’s not fucking Venom’, and in a way that’s why I went off and did the Cronos thing back in the day. I had all this material but I knew it wasn’t Venom so I wasn’t going to call it Venom. It was quite heavy but it wasn’t Venom. I think a Venom song tells you it’s a Venom song. It’s got to have the ‘x, y and z’, you know? It’s got to jump out at you and punch you in the nose.”
D “Or stab you in the bollocks!” (Dante making a quick reference to the lyrics of new track ‘Nemesis’)
R “It helps with me and Dante’s background. We like classic rock, Glenn Hughes (he points at my Hughes t-shirt), we like that sort of stuff. I’m not into new music. It wasn’t like I was into Lamb Of God and trying to bring that into Venom. I’m into the sort of stuff that Cronos is into.”
C “I think that’s another learning thing that Venom have had to go through. We did get a nu-metal drummer in at one point and it didn’t really work...”
MTUK - Antton?
C “Antton yeah. At first, on Resurrection, he was trying to stay within that black metal theme but you can hear by Hell that he was basically a nu-metal drummer and it wasn’t working. That’s why we parted company. Whereas Dante’s got a rock drumming background...”
MTUK – With ex-Sabbath man Tony Martin’s band.
D “Yeah.”
C “Yeah, so he’s coming from the same background as Abaddon, he’s a rock drummer who’s learnt metal.”
D “Your Sabbath, your Purple, Cream...all that’s my bag.”
MTUK - So how did you end up playing with Venom then?
D “I was playing in Germany with Tony at a festival, Bang Your Head, in 2006, ’07 maybe, and a guy I was chatting to backstage who was working at the venue was working three months later at a venue where Venom were playing. They (indicates Cronos and Rage) were chatting to this guy and asking him who he’d been working with and he reels off all these bands, including ‘Tony Martin from Black Sabbath’. So they were like ‘bloody hell, what’s he doing now?’ And the guy says ‘he’s got a drummer from Newcastle, where you’re from’. So ears pricked up...”
C “A lot of people who were auditioning were like ex-Cradle and this, that and the other but I thought ‘that’s not Venom really. We need somebody who knows about Zeppelin and Purple, the bands that Abaddon loves’. Then we’ve got somebody who’s coming from the same place and can approach the drums with the same mentality.”
R “You don’t have to explain when you’re going to do a new album. ‘Right mate, this is what you need to do...’”
C “Dante was straight up from the get go. He turned round and said ‘I’m not a thrash drummer, I don’t get this blast beat thing...’ and I said ‘you don’t have to. Abaddon developed that from the old ‘boom whack boom whack’, big hitting drumming. We’ll take it from there and you just listen to what’s going on and take it from there’ and he got it like that – because it does make sense. These guys who are going ‘tippy-tappy-tippy-tappy’ that’s not us.”
D “When you’re going a hundred miles an hour you can’t play with the intensity that the big rock drummers have got. Drumming that means something when you hit a cymbal or play a drum fill. When you’re going a zillion miles an hour it’s fast and it’s ‘fucking hell look how fast he goes’...but it doesn’t really mean anything. You think ‘this is great’ for five minutes but you get bored of it and end up thinking ‘I’m off to the bar’.”
C “I think out of all of the main bands that came up after Venom, the only drummer that I personally like is Lombardo cos he’s a hitter. I’ve stood right beside him at gigs when he’s been playing and I’ve thought ‘you’re a fucking drummer, that’s how you hit the fucking drums’. That’s what I like to hear.”
D “Basically you get your foundations down with your drums and then get your guitar on top and your vocals. If you can’t get that right then there’s something wrong.”
R “He’s not just a great drummer though (indicating Dante), he’s an entertainer as well. Sometimes I turn round and see him and his arms are going and it gives you energy cos you’re playing along.”
C “You know people do think that that’s all show but with him it’s a lot to do with timekeeping as well. He’s counting his beats as he’s doing it. You can see the concentration in the playing and it just makes everything so tight. I’ve always said about this music – thrash, power, black, death – the tighter you can make it, the heavier it gets. I’ve heard the critics who will turn around and say ‘it’s just loud to hide the mistakes’ but no; you hear the mistakes more when it’s loud.”
D “Especially when you’re a three piece; you can’t hide behind walls of guitars.”
C “I think it’s one of the testaments to this band, because of the work we’ve put into it. One of the last shows we played last year was in the Ukraine. They were young kids who’d put the festival together, it was not the best run festival but love them, they’d tried their best and I love a tryer. They were very young and they didn’t have a clue. It was terrible and sounded atrocious but because we had so much work under our belts we just looked at each other and said ‘fuck it all, let them deal with their shit, we’ll, as a band, nail our shit. The reviews came back and nobody spotted a thing. It was all ‘Venom were amazing, it was fantastic’ and I just thought ‘job done, there you go’. We just sort of looked at each other and kind of like telepathically just fucking went for it. We could stand here and cry, we could stand here and go ‘oh we’re not happy with this’ but no – these people are doing their best, let’s just get on with it. I actually enjoyed it at the end of the day...it was funny as well.”
D “You know I said how we’re a three piece? But there was always another bloke on stage, putting a mic stand back up or unplugging a monitor and signalling to the guys at the back of the tent.”
C “When I went on the bass backline was all feeding back so I went over and turned it down and the guy came straight back on and turned it back up...’no, you must be loud!’ I think they’d watched a video. They must have watched some Iron Maiden video and seen a roadie run on and change a mic and thought ‘that’s what you must do!’ So these guys kept running on and changing mics and it was like ‘there’s nothing fucking wrong with the mic!’”
R “I introduced him as the new member of the band at one point.”
C “It was great though. There was this young guy and his girlfriend there who filmed the show and they gave us the tapes after the show – the little hard drives out of their cameras – and it doesn’t look that bad. We’re putting this live DVD together and we can use the footage. We’ll give them a little credit and big them up, you know? At the end of the day it was good to be able to turn that show round, cos it could have been a disaster. The kids don’t want to know about the problems, they don’t understand. They’ve paid for their ticket and they just want to see a fucking great band – so let’s give ‘em what they came for.”
MTUK - Have you got any touring plans in place to support the new album?
C “This year, now that we’ve got the album under our belts we can start looking at getting back out there. We’ve got Germany on 26th November, it’s the Christmas festival and we’re doing the first day which has also got Immortal on before us. We’re headlining. The next day has got Saxon and Hammerfall and that. That’s going to be great – it’s one of the biggest German in door festivals and we’re going to get the full pyro show and walkways and everything. They’re really going to pull out the stops for it. Then two weeks before that we’ve got a show in Bucharest, a Rock Legends festival. We’ve never been to Bucharest so that’s really good for us. Then next year we’ll hopefully get some of the bigger festivals.”
MTUK - But will you be here?
C “Well this is one of things we’re talking about. There are a couple of venues we’re in discussions with, we’d really like to do it but we really want to put on the show. I mean we did that Mean Fiddler gig – great gig, don’t get us wrong – but for me, with England, I really want to do something a bit special. We’re going to try and get the Bloodstock gig and if we get the Bloodstock gig we should be able to put the pyro show on. Failing that would be a London show somewhere. We’re looking at somewhere like the Roundhouse because I think we could still put a show on there. But we’re still looking at all these new territories as well. We’re never been to Ireland, never been to Spain...there’s Australia, you know? We’re busy talking to all these people and then there’s the return to South America. The promoter is trying to get the timing right for us there but he wants us to go back every two or three years. There are other places now opening up there. We did Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Argentina and Brazil and he says now there’s Venezuela, Bolivia and Peru. There are places opening up all the time as governments are becoming more broad minded.”
MTUK – So did you guys find South America to be as crazy as most bands report?
D “It was like Beatlemania! The first gig was in Mexico and I’ll never forget this...we were getting our suitcases off the belt and this guy, security guy, he says ‘just two minutes, I’m going to go and check out what it’s like’. He went through to Arrivals and when he came back his face...he was like ‘we’re not going through there til we’ve sorted it out. There’s about two hundred kids screaming VENOM! VENOM! VENOM!’ It was great! They were all outside banging on these glass windows with coppers trying to drag them away.”
R “And me and Cronos were standing there going ‘right Dante, welcome to Venom’.”
D “The people were just so enthusiastic.”
R “We had to stop playing at one of the gigs because we couldn’t hear anything.”
C “They were doing this football chant but for Venom. We had to stop the gig because they were that loud. We just stood there and let them do it, and then we applauded them and got back on with it. Afterwards we asked one of the security guys what that was and he translated it for us – ‘oh Venom you are our soul and we’re really glad you’re here’ blah blah blah. It was really emotional. ‘We are you and you are us’, all this sort of stuff. They knew all the stuff as well. People have been saying for years ‘Venom is Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon’...what a load of shit. Those guys are in the minority now. The kids that are coming to our shows now, it’s all about the new stuff – they’re singing along to ‘Antechrist’, ‘Burn In Hell’, ‘Metal Black’...and they know all the fucking words as well. I mean these albums are the ones that they’ve bought now, they’re important to them. Yeah they’re familiar with Welcome To Hell and Black Metal and they understand the history of the band but they weren’t there when they were released. Of course we get the older guys at the back waiting for the ‘Countess...’, ‘Witching Hour’, ‘Bloodlust’...great, we’ll always do those, not a problem, it’s all part of the set. But those kids are so enthusiastic for the new stuff...and they’re the majority.”
MTUK - Is it hard fitting new material into the set when there’s so much from the past that you have to play?
C “Yeah, because we like to be controversial as well. We are also looking at songs that have never been played live before, songs that have only ever been played in the studio, never made it on to a stage before. We’ve been rehearsing things like ‘Manitou’...and I was quite surprised, it sounds alright, you know? I think that might creep in for a gig or two. When we did this thirty years thing we said ‘we want to do something off every album and some of the singles and that’ so now it’s like ‘At War With Satan’ going into ‘Too Loud (For The Crowd)’ going into ‘Nightmare’ going into ‘Live Like An Angel...’ blah, blah, blah. Cutting these songs together is fantastic because you see the look on the kids faces and they’re like ‘fucking hell!’ At first they’re like ‘which one’s this?’ and then they’re like ‘fucking hell!’ It’s great seeing the anticipation on their faces. And it also just shows you how good the song writing is as well that they can fit like that, that you can merge such radically different types of songs together really well. You wouldn’t think you can put something like Live Like An Angel...’ with ‘Calm Before The Storm’...but you can.”
R “The new songs as well are just slotting in because they’ve got almost the same vibe, you know? You hear stuff like ‘Pedal To The Metal’ and it just fits right in...”
...and that is where the lovely Nina from Universal stepped in and called time on our chat; a long queue of other journalists were waiting for their time with Venom. Hopefully I’ll be seeing them again soon – next time in a UK venue where I’ll get to hear some tracks from that fantastic new album, Fallen Angels, live.
For more on the band check out http://www.venomslegions.com
Interviewed by Chris Kee / MTUK Metal Zine
Monday 29 July 2013
DIMMU BORGIR - Gateways (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)
Video by: Katapult Films / Director: Sandra Marschner
Guest vocalist Agnete Kjølsrud (Djerv, ex-Animal Alpha)
The core principle of freedom
is the only notion to obey
The formulae of evolution and sin
leading the way
the rebirth is near completion
as we slowly awaken from slumber
as we slowly awaken from slumber
The malpractice of the spirit ends
GATEWAYS!
when the gift is once again attained
GATEWAYS!
no rules or restraints are longer valid
GATEWAYS!
when the ancient future is reclaimed
GATEWAYS!
no rules or restraints are longer valid
GATEWAYS!
when the ancient future is reclaimed
GATEWAYS!
it's all there for the eye that can see
the blind ones will always suffer in secrecy
for it is the omen
of what lies submerged - breeding
untouched within us - bleeding
The core principle of freedom
is the only notion to obey
The formulae of evolution and sin
leading the way
the rebirth is near completion
as we slowly awaken from slumber
to receve the light that shines in darkness
the light that shines forevermore
forevermore!
be the broken or the breaker
be the giver or the undertaker
unluck and open the doors
be the healer or the faker
the keys are in your hands
realize you are your own sole creator
of your own masterplan
be the broken or the breaker
be the giver or the undertaker
unluck and open the doors
be the healer or the faker
the keys are in your hands
realize you are your own sole creator
OF YOUR OWN MASTERPLAN!
Source: http://youtu.be/_jw7yk8hm_0
Monday 22 July 2013
BURZUM’S VARG VIKERNES SPEAKS OUT ON RECENT ARREST FOR SUSPICION OF TERRORIST PLOT
Burzum‘s Varg Vikernes has recently run into some major issues with French police. Suspected of potential terrorism for plotting a “massacre,” Vikernes and his wife were arrested on July 16. The couple have since been released from French jail and the Burzum musician has used his personal blog to detail the ordeal with great detail.
Varg Vikernes is well-known for his music, but the Norwegian artist is possibly more infamous for the 1993 murder of Mayhem bandmate Øystein ‘Euronymous’ Aarseth. After Vikernes was released from prison on 2009, he has led a quiet life as a family man, although Vikernes’ racist beliefs and support of the French National Front have prolonged Vikernes’ controversial reputation. Vikernes also received the personal manifesto of mass murderer Anders Breivik, which acted as the origin of Vikernes’ 2013 investigation. After spending two days in jail, Vikernes has finally told his side of the story.
Vikernes posted the following statement on Thuleanperspective.com:
Thuesday I woke up a bit earlier than I normally do. Yes, I normally wake up because the dog wants to take a leak on our lawn, around 7:00, but this morning I woke up because of a loud bang. I more or less jumped out of bed and saw that somebody was breaking into our home. Thankfully I immediately saw that it was actually the police, so I did not reach for any means of defence, and instead just raised my arms and waited for the police to enter. “Ah, it’s just the police”. My second thought was “What on Earth are they up to? Are they actually smashing our entire entrance area just because of my blog?” I was not sure whether or not they were shooting into our living room or actually flashbanging our living room. After a total of three explosiones (that later turned out to be gun shots) and a lot of breaking of glass and door frames they entered.
My pregnant wife, not yet aware that it was actually the police, tried to cover our youngest son and — she told me later — was about to reach for her 22 LR Browning lever action rifle, when she understood from my reaction that it was the police. Our youngest son, who was sleeping in our bed during that night (because my mother-in-law was visiting), and was therefore directly behind me and in front of the muzzles of the police’s assault rifles.
Sorry to digress, but some times when you buy underwear you get three underpants in one package, and for some reason at least one of these are always in some horrible colour, and of course I was wearing such a pair of underpants on Thuesday morning. A pair of strikingly orange underpants. Having been repeatedly dragged out into the street or prison hallways or similar in my underwear before, by the Norwegian police or prison guards, I thought to myself that this was going to repeat itself and I would be photographed with my little belly, my thin hair, my tanned arms in great contrast to my pale body and — wearing horribly orange underpants. (Everybody would believe that I was actually Dutch…)
When I had completed my little intelligent string of thoughts, about orange underpants and everything, the police had climbed the staircase and — simply put — arrested me, laying me face down in the bed with hand cuffs on my back. To my great surprise they also arrested and put hand cuffs on my pregnant wife, leaving my shocked youngest son sitting there alone without his mother’s protection. A whole lot of DCRI police officers in civil clothes arrived and the apparent chief said “Yes, that is Vikernes”.
This is only part of Vikernes’ statement. Head over to Thuleanperspective.com to view Varg’s entire set of ‘Terrorism in France’ blog posts.
Monday 1 July 2013
INTERVIEW: GORGOROTH
Here’s an interview with Norwegian Black Metal giants Gorgoroth. All answers by Infernus.
Thank you for extracting out time for this interview. First of all, how have you people been?
“Thank you for showing interest in my band. As of now, we are back from a relatively speaking extensive Latin-American tour. I was a bit stressed due to the sudden need to replace our vocalist just two weeks prior to the tour. But it all went well and we had a great time there. As for now the main focus is back on studio work for a while. Meaning that me and Asklund working on pre-productions etc. in his studio at the outskirts of Stockholm, Sweden.”
We were really keen to know the literal meaning of the word ‘Gorgoroth’. Share with us the significance behind the band’s name. What made you guys choose ‘Gorgoroth’ as your band name?
“Well, sure. Back in the early 90′s, I was a bit more interested in fantasy literature than I am now. When Tolkien described the plateau of Gorgoroth in his Lord of the Rings, this made a certain impression on me. Leading to the conclusion that a description of a place inhabited by the powers of terror and fear – fear of the powers of darkness – would fit as a name for my musical project.”
Tell us the story behind the formation of the band? When and how was Gorgoroth established?
“I formed the band together with my first drummer and my first vocalist in 1992.”
Also, tell us how did you start playing Black Metal?
“Yeah. I realized that I was a Satanist and I realised I had a somewhat passionate stance towards metal music and the idea of partaking in shaping its future direction.”
What was the reason behind Gaahl leaving the band?
“He excluded himself through disloyalty through conspiring with an enemy counterworking mine and my band’s will.”
Has the band got that ‘expected’ support from the fans lately? What else would you want the fans to be like?
“I am not sure if I understand what you mean. But, I do not like the description of our audience as that of being merely humble and easy-to-direct ‘fans’. I prefer the term ‘audience’. Well, our audience has at all times been both critical and supportive. I know to appreciate that both in times of difficulties and otherwise.”
Black Suicide: Tell us about the controversy the band faced in Krakow in 2004 during the DVD recording of your live concert ‘Black Mass Krakow 2004’.
“Why?”
So, what are your future plans?
“Instinctus Bestialis has been in the making since the day the Quantos Possunt Ad Satanitatem Trahunt mastertape was delivered to the record company. And it is still not finished. As mentioned earlier, we just returned from Latin America two weeks ago. Now my focus is on studio work, pre-productions, the final arrangements for the upcoming album, and on management work. Plus, the booking duties, as I, to a large extent, do this myself. As for live appearances, I aim at and hope we will reach an agreement for doing some eight shows in south-east Asia in February. Then there will be some smaller projects before we most probably will be doing the longest tour ever back in Europe, covering ALL European territories by the end of 2013.”
Tell us about your influences? What influenced Gorgoroth the most when you were working on the first track ever?
“The spirit of Heavy Metal and a firm belief in Satan as my guide towards true light and goodness.”
Well, what do you have to say about ‘Satanism’? What does Satan is for Gorgoroth?
“Satan is the foundation whereupon we carry out our work.”
Tell us about your stage-act styles?
“No, why? Some things presented better speak for themselves. So, you shall find an answer to this when you see us live.”
Well, coming to the themes again, how would you explain Black Metal- is it about Anti-Religious trends, or is it more about Satan? How important is it to involve such themes in Black Metal?
“It has nothing to do with any kind of anti-religiosity at all. Rather the contrary. I am not sure about your background and context, but where I come from, the devil is at work in times of slumber. And this for a reason.”
What are your views regarding various subgenres originating out of Black Metal like DSBM, Progressive etc.?
“Let’s just say that I don’t know it. I am plain simply just not interested in checking it out.”
What is your say on ‘Shoegaze’?
“Eh?”
Most of your fans in India were keen to know about your views about Varg Vikerenes. We would love it if you could share something about Varg Vikernes and Burzum.
“What would that be? He is a grown up man and I guess most of you are too. Why not let him talk for himself?”
Before we wrap up the interview, is there anything you would want to share with your fans and the readers?
“As of now, no. I’d love to go there someday. Either as a tourist or performing live (which again would mean both). A friend of mine once lived in Kolkata some months while doing a degree in comparative religions at the University of Bergen. I was invited there, but missed out on the opportunity. That bothers me a lot. If we’ll do it, I’ll make 100% sure to have some days off while there. Thanks for your time!”
Infernus - guitars (1992 - present)
Bøddel - bass guitar (2007 - present)
Tomas Asklund - drums (2007 - present)
Tormentor - guitars (1996-2002, 2008 - present)
Atterigner - vocals (2012 - present)
Saturday 29 June 2013
MEMORIES OF THE PAST - Siberian Life (EP 2013)
Minimalistic Ambient from Russia! Another project by VII Drone (Nebula VII)
1 - Noctilucent Cloud - 6:00
2 - Morning 30.06.1908 - 3:22
3 - Second Sun - 3:08
4 - Smoke Of The Southern Swamps - 4:29
5 - When The Smoke Vanished - 3:44
Download from this links:
> http://www.mediafire.com/?v1mzyd7365cy74a
> http://rusfolder.com/37026376
> http://rghost.ru/47059572
Contact:
> http://www.facebook.com/vii.drone
Thursday 20 June 2013
VARIOUS ARTISTS - Forsvunnet Filosofem (A Tribute to Burzum)
Forsvunnet Filosofem - A Tribute to Burzum. A Black metal, Dark Ambient, Acoustic, Ethereal, Electronic, Experimental compilation album that pays homage to the Norwegian Black metal legend Burzum and the music of Burzum. An international effort! Released 02 June 2012. All songs recorded between 2009 and 2012 in various places worldwide. Compiled by Marc Azrael Hoyland. Album Artwork marc Azrael Hoyland. All tracks composed by Varg Vikernes. All rights remain with Varg Vikernes and Burzum.
01. Symbiosis – Dauði Baldrs 05:56
02. Æþelruna – Ðæt þe Hwilum Wæs; Wearges Leoþe (Det Som Engang Var) 14:37
03. Uruk-Hai – The Crying Ork 01:25
04. Waldschrat – Black Spell of Destruction 06:14
05. Tamerlan – Die Liebe Nerþus 02:50
06. Hrafnblóð – War 02:39
07. Hoyland – Jesus Tod 08:12
08. Vørgum – I Heimr Heljar 03:38
09. Forgotten Land – Moti Ragnorokum 07:49
10. Melankolia – Det Tod Wuotans 06:59
11. Frostwork – Dunkelheit 07:34
12. Almófar – Han Som Reiste 05:48
13. Werther – Erblicket Die Töchter Des Firmaments 07:54
14. Soufferance – Hermoðr á Helferð 02:40
15. Garden of Grief – Glemselens Elv 11:53
16. Walden – Hvis Lyset Tar Oss 02:46
17. Nordfolc – Stemmen Fra Taarnet 06:53
18. Gorthorn – Illa Tithandi 09:22
19. Winternight – Balferd Baldrs 04:32
20. Alvheim – Et Hvitt Lys Over Skogen 09:13
21. Arboretus – A Lost Forgotten Sad Spirit 06:14
22. Skygge – Lost Wisdom 04:37
23. Dysonsphere – Channelling The Power Of Soul Into A New God 03:27
24. Antecantamentum – My Journey to the Stars 07:39
25. Kzag Bhat – Feeble Screams From Forests Unknown 07:45
26. Wrapped in a Sheet – Ea, Lord of the Depths 05:35
27. Plaguewielder – Tomhet 14:43
Free Download:
http://mirkwoodproductions.bandcamp.com/album/forsvunnet-filosofem-a-tribute-to-burzum
BURZUM - Rundtgåing Av Den Transcendentale Egenhetens Støtte
"The well of the region is no longer a dark depth, in which we stare, but a living stream, that fertilely flows through the lands of the North. Yes, to the highest visions of essence, this life can now elevate itself into development of it's true power and particularity, elevated to the father of all, who is up high in Valhalla, to him, the true god..."
Background
Varg Vikernes recorded the first four Burzum albums between January 1992 and March 1993 at the Grieg Hall in Bergen. However, the releases were spread out, with many months between the recording and the release of each album. During this time, Vikernes became a part of the early Norwegian black metal scene and befriended Mayhem guitarist Euronymous. He also took part in burning down four churches, along with other members of the scene. In August 1993, Vikernes stabbed Euronymous to death outside his apartment in Oslo. He was arrested a few days later and, in May 1994, was sentenced to 21 years in prison for both the murder and the church arsons.
The opening track on Filosofem, "Burzum", was the first song Vikernes wrote as Burzum. It had been recorded in September 1992 for the Hvis lyset tar oss album, but Vikernes was unhappy with it and re-recorded it for this album six months later. According to a statement made by Vikernes on burzum.org, the master tapes for the version of "Burzum" meant for Hvis lyset tar oss were lost by the Norwegian prison system.
The album was recorded under purposefully bad conditions. No guitar amplifier was used; Vikernes plugged his guitar into the amplifier of his brother's stereo and used an old fuzz pedal. He also asked a sound technician for the worst microphone he had and ended up using a headset as the microphone.
Music and artwork
The music of Filosofem continued Vikernes' experimentation with minimalism, repetition and ambient music within black metal. The tracks are all quite long (the shortest being just over seven minutes), and are typically composed around very few musical motifs. For instance, "Jesu død", a track of over eight-and-a-half minutes, is primarily based around variations of a single riff. Opening track "Burzum" features a prominent melody played by a synthesizer, and the two "Decrepitude" tracks consist of sound effects over very sparse guitars. The album also included Burzum's longest ambient track to date, the twenty-five-minute "Rundtgåing av den transcendentale egenhetens støtte".
The album cover and booklet contain artwork by Theodor Kittelsen. The front cover is named Op under Fjeldet toner en Lur (Norwegian for "up in the hills a clarion call rings out").
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Varg Vikernes.
1. Burzum (7:05)
2. Jesu død (8:39)
3. Beholding the Daughters of the Firmament (7:53)
4. Decrepitude I (7:53)
5. Rundtgåing av den transcendentale egenhetens støtte (25:11)
6. Decrepitude II (7:52)
Personnel
Count Grishnackh (Varg Vikernes) – vocals, synthesizer, rhythm and lead guitar, bass guitar, drums
Sources
Monday 10 June 2013
DIMMU BORGIR - FORCES OF THE NORTHERN NIGHT
Dimmu Borgir - Forces Of The Northern Night (HD)
Live At Spektrum, Oslo 2011 [Full Concert]
SETLIST:
01. Intro
02. Xibir
03. Born Treacherous (04:02)
04. Gateways (09:20)
05. Oving Med KORK (Documentary)
06. Dimmu Borgir (20:04)
07. Vredesbyrd (25:45)
08. Rigging av Spektrum (Documentary)
09. Progenies of the Great Apocalypse (33:45)
10. The Serpentine Offering (39:20)
11. fans fra hele verden (Documentary)
12. Puritania (47:30)
13. Mourning Palace (50:30)
VIDEO DETAILS:
Resolution: 1280 x 720
FPS: 30/s
AUDIO DETAILS:
Bit rate: 224Kps
Channels: 2 (stereo)
Sampling rate of audio: 48kHz
SOURCE:
http://youtu.be/-YC4WJcvd7Y
Sunday 9 June 2013
Underground Attitude: Fenriz Of Darkthrone Interviewed
Toby Cook speaks Fenriz about keeping it real after all these years – March 19th, 2013
The worst interview you’ll ever do is with Lou Reed, so they say; hearing experienced, respected journalists swap tales about ‘the time they interviewed Lou Reed’ and got verbally shat on is almost like hearing veterans recounting their war stories. And yet, however many times he may have issued only mono-syllabic grunts, or answered questions by way of withering sarcasm, one particular defence of Reed occasionally appears: that he’s just a music geek and that all he really wants to do is sit down and talk about effects peddles and processors. But people don’t want to hear about it because they think it’ll be about as interesting as Lulu. Granted, this may be true, but isn’t that why musicians are musicians, because their passion, their obsession, is music?
Shouldn’t we be interested in their core motivations and their ability to coalesce all their influences, experiences and feelings into a tangible – and occasionally enthralling – expression of them?
In the early 90s Gylve Fenris ‘Fenriz’ Nagell as one half of the then black metal band Darkthrone, along with cohort Ted ‘Nocturno Culto’ Skjellum, helped lay the foundations for the sonic and aesthetic principals for what would eventually become one of the most controversial and misunderstood music scenes in history – with a trio of LPs often referred to as the ‘unholy trinity’, 92’s A Blaze In The Northern Sky, 93’s Under A Funeral Moon and 94’s seminal Transylvanian Hunger, Darkthrone found international recognition and went on to become one of the most influential bands to emerge from the Norwegian black metal scene. Nearly 30 years after forming, and having just released their 15th studio album in the shape of The Underground Resistance, they have traversed and almost totally left behind the black metal sound with which they are so synonymous erring more towards lo-fi crust punk and out-and-out heavy metal, yet they continue to command a large and dedicated fan base as well as continuing to influence countless bands not just sonically, but through their musical ideals and unshakable DIY attitude. Despite all this though, Darkthrone don’t ever play live; they record everything themselves using as basic equipment as possible; as a drummer Fenriz says he is actively trying to “un-learn” the drums and never plays except to rehearse and record; and they do virtually everything in their power to remain outside of a mainstream that becomes ever more obsessed with the cult rather than the music of black metal.
Fenriz doesn’t really want to talk about all this though; he doesn’t want to talk about black metal and a scene he no longer feels a strong attachment to, he wants to talk about heavy fucking metal. He is, to all intents and purposes a music geek; his insatiable hunger for acquiring, consuming and digesting music is legendary and has even led to him creating the celebrated Band Of The Week blog from which all the acts for the Live Evil festival are sourced. He is a musician because music is his passion, his obsession, and he Really knows his shit – as anyone who has watched his History Of Heavy Metal lecture on YouTube will no doubt attest. Would you want to continually talk about things that happened 20 years ago? Would you want to continually talk about the myths surrounding your dead or incarcerated friends? Or would you want to talk about your passions and the work that forms the most current, tangible expressions of them?
The new album is titled The Underground Resistance, which is something you have alluded to before – on the inside cover of Circle The Wagons For example – but for you who or what is the underground resistance?
Fenriz: Those who kept bands like Manilla Road and Cirith Ungol alive; those who have spread and showed interest in the NWOBHM movement in the last years; everyone holding a true sounding piece of recording high instead of championing plastic crap.
The sound and style of the album, especially when compared to the last two, is probably the least punk you have sounded in a while – to me it sounds like there is a lot more of early 80s, proto-thrash influences in there – is that fair to say? What was the reason behind slight change in style?
F: Proto thrash, as you called it, was all the bands playing fast heavy metal – sometimes called power metal, more often now called speed metal since power metal was co-opted by some increasingly flashy guys over the years and during the 90s; the first two Helloween albums were good power metal, but you might just want to call that speed metal today. Anyway, almost no metal bands played only fast metal (or ‘speed metal’) and by today’s standards it’s mid paced, not fast at all; it’s got that gospel d-beat speed, y’know? That’s what I’m into making and have been for years. But there was a punk band in the mid 80’s mixing up the fast NWOBHM and punk called Puke, from Sweden, and I put a lot of that vibe into my songs the last year, so as to not just make retro speed metal. As usual, about 0.1% of our ‘audience’ understood this. Fabulous. Anyway, I went more for the total speed metal style of Agent Steel’s first, 1985, full-length this time, but actually also returned to the typical 1985 Celtic Frost at some point too; this mystified even me!
‘Valkyrie’ especially is a particularly un-Darkthrone sounding track (if there can be such a thing!) – what’s the story behind its creation? Was it always intended to sound so epic?
F: The refrain came to me in spring 2010 – I actually had to hum it into my mp3 player! – it was kind of akin to the refrain in Helloween’s ‘How Many Tears’, from Walls Of Jericho. I’ve been die hard into Helloween and Agent Steel since they came out, at one point it reached critical mass and I just had to go there. (Well, I suppose I already did with the circle the wagons title track). Anyway, nothing happened with the Valkyrie song for a long time until I woke up with the first riff in my head in September 2011, then it sounded like the start of ‘The Ides Of March’ by Iron Maiden in my head, and I had to rearrange it and with a second, driving guitar and a beat like in ‘Gypsy’ by Uriah Heep circa 1970; it started sounding good in my head and then I just had to make the verse parts which were just inspired by myself and tons of speed metal (just yesterday I received another speed metal vinyl gem for my collection, the first album from Poland’s Turbo, from 1982, so you can see I’m still living the speed metal life, but this doesn’t mean that the album has only speed metal; of course many normal paced heavy songs are great too!) and Bob’s your uncle. It is very typical of what I would write in 1988, only I didn’t have the skills back then, neither playing skills nor writing skills, and I also mixed up my influences too much then – I feel I’m pretty much back to start with the same kind of freedom, only now with 25 years of experience on my back and in my mind.
Is there any scenario in which you could see Darkthrone playing live again?
F: We are setting up a four month tour of Bristol if we can get Richard Clayderman on bass and James Last as head stage-diver; we need that for the show.
What do you have to say to those ‘fans’ who continually cry and moan that “Darkthrone aren’t a black metal anymore”?
F: We weren’t at first either!
Is there still such a thing as ‘true black metal’?
F: Listen to The Return… by Bathory. How hard can it be, I still don’t think anyone has listened too much to 80’s black metal, and the more you do it the truer you fucking get!
How do you feel about the way the genre has gradually become fetishized by people more interested in the aesthetic and the controversy rather than the music?
F: It’s been like that for nearly 20 years... I liked the 10 years before that.
Even if black metal becomes like punk, where so-called ‘punk’ bands like Green Day are selling out arenas and going on MTV, how important is it for you that the ideals of black metal – the dedication and the DIY attitude, for example – are what survive?
F: Black metal already sold out arenas and did far worse things than MTV, they did, and do, The Eurovision Song Contest with crap like Keep Of Kalessin and the even more ridiculous Gromth. It’s embarrassing for everyone. Everyone. There are countless bands that always brought black metal to where it needs to be, like Aura Noir, Faustcoven, Deathhammer, but also the other side of it, like with the Nidrosian scene right now: Vemod, One Tail One Head, Mare, Black Majesty, Dark Sonority – countless bands really. But black metal didn’t need a push, not post 93, since then it’s needed more obscurity and hasn't got it. In the 90s it was heavy metal, the old way, that needed a push, and slowly we have pushed it forwards again; the underground resistance did that, not the big magazines, not the malls with their nu-metal sections, not the radio stations playing Volbeat and Rammstein. No. the underground resistance pushed heavy metal forwards since it was dying from 87 till 97.
What are your thoughts on bands like Liturgy or Winterfylleth who ostensibly ‘play’ black metal but don’t ‘live’ black metal – bands who use it as just another stylistic choice?
F: No problem. Ha ha! Do you prefer bands that look like they're from Twilight going to the circus and think that they are underground because their Cradle Of Filth/Dimmu Borgir rip off style doesn’t sell? Underground is an attitude, a Rammstein cover band will forever have an overground mentality even if no one comes to their shows. It’s about wanting to do some plastic style that others have success with, it’s disgusting.
Your Band Of The Week blog has achieved near legendary status – how do you manage to keep it up? What is the quality control like – do you find that as it has become more popular you get sent more and more shit?
F: I don’t have, like, an official address of course, I get enough tips to drown in from my carefully selected friends out there; friends of new and old who are trustworthy. I don’t really manage to keep it up though, it’s like it almost ends every week because I don’t have the time, although it’s not a lot of work once I have decided on a band/sound – as I hate writing about music I often just throw the link out or write a couple of lines. Arjan from Holland helps me immensely with the other pages like BOTW on Facebook and so on, I just do the little ditty on MySpace and he takes it from there. I couldn’t do it any other place than on the Darkthrone MySpace alone to be honest – I don’t even have time for a Facebook or Twitter account; I have to turn down fabulous offers weekly. Just earlier someone offered to make us a music video and all I had time for was to write back: “I just don’t want any modern shit”. Fact.
Who are two bands that everyone reading this interview should immediately go and check out, and why?
F: If you’re reading this because you want 91-94 Darkthrone maybe check out One Tail One Head. If you’re reading because you like metal just check out Demontage, a real cult forgotten band, I believe I made them a Band Of The Week as well; only for die hard and cult heavy metallers!
Source: thequietus.com
Wednesday 29 May 2013
IN MEMORY OF QUORTHON: 1966 - 2004
Source: http://youtu.be/v8UpLL4KWf8
Quorthon (born Thomas Börje Forsberg February 17, 1966, Stockholm, died c. June 7, 2004, Stockholm) was a Swedish musician. He was a multi-instrumentalist and the founder and songwriter of the pioneering Swedish black metal band Bathory. He is also credited with creating the Viking metal genre. He composed the music and wrote the lyrics on all of Bathory's albums.
Quorthon formed Bathory in 1983 when he was 17 years old, after briefly playing in the Oi!-band Stridskuk. He recorded his early albums together with the help of his father, Börje Forsberg, the head of the Swedish record label Tyfon Grammofon, who also released most of his albums on the Tyfon imprint Black Mark. The first album was recorded in the garage of famed schlager writer Peter Himmelstrand, dubbed Studio Heavenshore.
Around this time (in the mid-late 80's) live performances by Bathory were rare. Albums from this period helped the then-burgeoning black metal sub-genre, and rare photographs of the band helped in part to define its image. Quorthon at this time claimed to have stressful experiences dealing with over-zealous fans, receiving letters written in blood and dead/mutilated animals in the post, amongst other things. This behaviour, along with Bathory's image and style of music, cemented Quorthon's unfortunate image, as he put it, as "the baby-eating, blood-drinking God of the bat-cave" in the popular imagination as well as popular metal press, much to Quorthon's disgust and anger.
Beginning in the 1990s, Quorthon took full control of Bathory, choosing to forgo performing live in order to spend time recording music with hired musicians, as well changing style from the black metal of the 80's to a slower, heavier style dubbed "Viking metal", due to its lyrics being focused on Norse mythology. From this point onwards, he also played bass guitar on almost all of his albums, and mostly used a drum machine or a session drummer. Quorthon also personally paid for the production of Bathory's only ever music video, for the song "One Rode to Asa Bay", taken from their second Viking metal album, Hammerheart. The video was shown on MTV's Headbanger's Ball, though Quorthon had not yet seen it at the time he was interviewed for the program.
In 1993 Quorthon set Bathory aside and recorded and released three albums under the name "Quorthon". The first, called Album, was released in 1994, and then in 1996 Quorthon released Blood on Ice, a Viking metal concept album which he began recording in 1989 but did not finish.Then the final two albums which came under the title of Quorthon were released which were Purity of Essence and When Our Day Is Through and both were released in 1997. The albums were more rock oriented than Bathory's black / Viking /Thrash style. While working on these albums he found new inspiration to continue composing music for Bathory. Bathory's next albums were in a retro-thrash metal style, unlike previous releases. His next albums followed in that vein, before he veered towards his Viking metal style once again especially on the Nordland saga. It was planned as a four-album set, but only two were finished. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quorthon
Sunday 19 May 2013
BLACK METAL: A BRIEF GUIDE
This is an article intended as a short yet informative guide for people who are generally familiar with metal but are largely unacquainted with black metal. At the end I have provided mini-reviews of what I consider to be the ten most influential and essential black metal albums. – by: Quentin Kalis
Definition
The exact definition of
"black metal" is a hotly contested subject: a quick perusal of the
archives of any metal message board will reveal the extent to which even today it
remains a hotly contested topic of debate. One can find entire threads
dedicated to the question whether the new Satyricon and Enslaved can be
considered black metal. Two main camps have emerged over the last few years:
1. One school of thought, which I
will call the "Purist" view, claims that the term "black
metal" refers only to underground acts (in this context a "mainstream
black metal" act is one which is signed to one of the larger independents,
such as Nuclear Blast or Candlelight). These underground acts tend to have a
rawer and noticeably simpler style.
2. The second school of thought,
which I call the "Inclusive" view, permits a wider definition which
includes more mainstream acts, such as Emperor, and also bands such as Marduk,
Dissection or Dimmu Borgir. These bands tend to have superior production values
and are often more technical then their underground counterparts. These bands
tend to be more melodic then their cruder sounding peers, and may also have a
stronger focus on keyboards. Sometimes this categorisation becomes overbroad
and Viking metal bands (such as Mithotyn or Einherjer) are lazily and
erroneously considered as black metal. I have even heard Children of Bodom
being called black metal, which is pushing the boundaries too far.
Black metal is notoriously hard
to define, and vague, pretentious statements such as 'black metal is the
nihilistic audio representation of all the misanthropic evil inherent in man'
are unhelpful. But perhaps the following exposition, taking into account both
of the viewpoints above, is the best:
Black metal is an extreme
subgenre of metal characterised by snarled or shrieked vocals and raucous
tremolo riffs. The bass tends to be, for all intents and purposes,
non-existent. Production tends to be trebly and raw. Most bands adopt a
relatively simplistic style, though some of the more mainstream acts (Emperor
is a notable example) are more technical. Generally, technicality is frowned
upon and soloing is infrequent and hardly ever used. A clearer, more discernible
but atonal vocal style is often used, usually in conjunction with a harsher
shrieking style. Keyboards are frequently adopted. Usage of folk, neoclassical
and, to a lesser extent, ambient elements is frequent.
Unlike genres such as thrash or
death metal, black metal has an underlying philosophy behind it, and no
definition of black metal is complete without a consideration of its ideology.
Lyrically, black metal bands are at the very least violently anti-Christian if
not outright Satanists. It must be noted that the idea of Satanism is not cast
in stone and ranges from a relatively medieval style of Satan worship through
to the more intellectual strains of Anton LaVey's notorious Church of Satan
The astute reader will have noted
that I refer largely to tendencies rather than hard and fast rules. This is due
to the musical diversity of black metal and the near-impossibility of
constructing a definition that would incorporate albums as disparate as _Det
Frysende Nordariket_ (Ildjarn), _Panzer Division Marduk_ (Marduk), _La
Masquerade Infernale_ (Arcturus) and _With No Human Intervention _ (Aborym).
Despite assertions to the contrary, black metal is an incredibly varied genre
-- certainly more so than death metal.
The Origins of Black Metal
Although many believe that black
metal started in Norway
during the late Eighties / early Nineties, its true origin was much earlier.
Many accept Venom as the first black metal band, and thus the band's debut
album, _Welcome to Hell_, released in 1981, can be considered as the true
genesis of black metal. Other notable albums from this period include Celtic
Frost's _Morbid Tales_, Bathory's _Bathory_ and _Apocalyptic Raids_ by
Hellhammer.
It should be noted that none of
these acts were regarded as black metal in the beginning. On the eve of his
sophomore effort, Bathory's Quorthon described his music as "heavy
metal"; Celtic Frost have, depending on what you read, been described as
being both thrash and death metal. Venom is firmly rooted in NWOBHM. Their
music was described as being "black metal" well after the most
influential black metal albums were released. It is a term which only became
widely used with the rise of the second wave.
The second wave was constituted
of Norwegian black metal, which started in the late Eighties and reached its
peak between 1991 and 1994. Many of the most important albums were released in
this period, including Mayhem's _De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas_ and Darkthrone's _A
Blaze in the Northern Sky_ .
Burzum, Darkthrone, Immortal and
Mayhem are the most important and influential bands of the period. However,
these bands were just the tip of the iceberg when it came to the nascent
Norwegian black metal scene, and contributions by bands such as Emperor,
Thorns, Satyricon and Ulver, amongst many others, cannot pass by unnoticed.
Originally, the aim was to forge
a return to what they considered to be the true death metal sound and was a
reaction against what they perceived to be the commercialization of death
metal. This 'true death metal sound' later became what is now known as black
metal. Death metal bands in this period tended to perform in everyday clothes
and appeared on stage in tracksuits and sneakers. This was unbearable for the
likes of Euronymous, who adopted a more 'shocking' and 'anti-social' image.
The Norwegian acts spurred on the
rise of black metal's third wave. The two most significant albums, both of
which were instrumental in accelerating its spread and popularity, are
Emperor's _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ and Cradle of Filth's _Dusk... and
Her Embrace_.
Emperor was one of the original
Norwegian bands, but it was their sophomore full-length that drew widespread
interest and attention. _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ showcased an
unprecedented degree of complexity and technicality. It was well received, and
placed highly on virtually all "Best of 1997" lists.
Another noteworthy album was
Cradle of Filth's seminal _Dusk... and Her Embrace_. Whether Cradle of Filth
can be considered as black metal is one of the most highly debated topics,
though it has subsided in recent years as Cradle of Filth have veered towards a
more obvious commercial sound with each subsequent album. Whatever you may
consider Cradle of Filth to be, there is no denying that impact that _DaHE_ has
had on the scene, and its influence can be felt in many bands commonly
considered to be black metal, such as the (early) works of Hecate Enthroned and
Agathodaimon, which at times border on outright plagiarism. Even Ancient, who
were part of the nascent Norwegian scene, were clearly influenced by Cradle of
Filth on some of their later works.
Alongside Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of
Filth were to become one of black metal's crossover bands, gaining fans from
the nu-metal / commercial (Pantera, Metallica) metal crowd as well as attention
from the goth community.
Black metal was no longer
confined to Scandinavia and bands started to emerge across the world, from
countries as culturally diverse as Japan
(Sigh), USA (Judas Iscariot)
and the Czech Republic
(Maniac Butcher). Scenes started to become established across the world.
Perhaps the most significant scene was the "Legions Noires" or
"Black Legions" of France ,
which gave birth to legendary bands such as the short-lived Vlad Tepes and
Belketre. Although the Black Legions collectively only released a handful of
ridiculously limited albums, they nevertheless had a huge impact on the
development of black metal.
Some black metal bands became
more experimental, and bands such as Arcturus, Sigh and later Solefald released
albums that can be best described as black metal avant-garde. Bands such as
Aborym and ...And Oceans borrowed from dance and EBM.
The third wave was further by its
rapid increase in popularity within the underground (and by underground here I
mean bands that are not signed to one of the major labels, such as EMI or
Virgin) selling more albums than any other underground genre. Labels scrambled
to sign black metal bands and a lot of unoriginal nonsense was released, but in
the end the imitators and hangers-on either found some new ideas or
disappeared. Black metal reached its apex in 1997, after which sales started to
decline. Given the rapid increase in bands and its splintering into various
scenes and subgenres, it is hard to select the most influential albums of this
period. (As mentioned earlier, Emperor's _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ and
Cradle of Filth's _Dusk... and Her Embrace_ are probably the most important
albums in terms of influence from this period.)
The Future
The decline did in no way affect
the progression of black metal, and only the most naïve would believe that the
relative loss of popularity of the genre would mean its demise. All the major labels
have several black metal bands on their rosters, and many smaller labels (such
as No Colours Records and Drakkar Productions) specialise almost exclusively in
black metal.
A lot of would-be Nostradamuses
predict that black metal with a strong electronic influence -- think Aborym or
latter day Dodheimsgard -- will be the future of black metal. I've read
predictions about that in respect to almost any rock and metal subgenre you
could care to name -- and they have all been wrong! At best a new sub-genre
will be established, but this will in no way supplant the more traditional
forms. In addition, the widespread adoption of electronic elements in black
metal is made unlikely by a strong and pervasive focus on the ancient past for
a futuristic genre such as EBM or industrial to exert a noticeable influence on
a significant number of bands. Nor are the above mentioned 'black metal
avant-garde' acts such as Arcturus the future of black metal: some bands are
simply too idiosyncratic for their basic style to be espoused by others.
The future of black metal is
dependent on a fourth wave emerging. Most of the first wave are no longer
active, and the Norwegian veterans have either broken up (Immortal, Emperor) or
have changed their style to the point where it is debatable whether they can be
considered black metal at all (Satyricon, Enslaved). Few notable bands have
emerged from Norway
since the mid-Nineties; clearly the impetus behind the fourth wave will
originate elsewhere. Although various scenes have been established around the
world, the one that I believe will be the force behind the impending fourth
wave is the Eastern European scene. Already Poland 's
Graveland and the Ukraine 's
Nokturnal Mortum are probably the most popular acts amongst the black metal underground,
and their names are familiar to many whose tastes are more mainstream.
Musically, there is a tendency
towards a greater clarity in production as well as a more epic vibe with these
bands, sometimes combined with a folk influence. The overt Satanic tendencies
of their Norwegian counterparts have been abrogated in favour of a strong
nationalistic slant, usually accompanied by a neo-Pagan spirituality.
However, the rise of Slavic black
metal has been accompanied with a rise in National Socialist beliefs, which,
although not exclusive to Eastern European bands, does appear to be most
prevalent there. This is also a possible inhibiting factor preventing its
widespread adoption -- the larger, more commercially orientated labels usually
refuse to sign bands that are overtly racist, and the smaller labels simply do
not have the funds to promote their bands as strongly as the bigger labels. In
addition, some smaller labels such as Voices of Wonder refuse to sign National
Socialist black metal (NSBM) bands. Even if they had the funds, many countries
have hate speech laws, which inhibits more widespread promotion.
The reasons behind the adoption
of National Socialism in black metal form a complex hydra-headed affair which
can become the basis of a doctoral thesis, and I cannot possibly consider all
of them here. However, it is worth noting that from the earliest days of the
Norwegian scene, a strong nationalist creed was present -- and is still
present. In addition, the line between racism and nationalism / patriotism is
an extremely thin and perilous one: if one is strongly nationalistic, whereby
one is proud of belonging to his origins and of belonging to a particular
social group, then it is no great leap to start seeing other groups as
inferior.
The 10 Most Influential Black Metal Albums
Criteria: The following albums
were chosen because of the impact that they have had on successive bands. A
fair amount of personal preference has also affected the bands chosen, and in a
list this short it is sometimes the only way to make a choice between two bands
who are arguably equally important. For example, can it be said that Satyricon
are more influential than Thorns or Ulver? I have focused exclusively on the
first and second waves of black metal. The reason for this is simple: these are
the bands most often cited by current black metal bands as being their biggest
influence. Ratings are not given, as I wouldn't mention them unless they were
worth 10 out of 10. However, they are of more than historical interest and
stand in their own right as classic black metal albums that should be in every
fan's collection. If you don't have them, start saving!
Venom - _Black Metal_ (Neat
Records, 1982)
Although relatively tame by
today's standards, they certainly weren't when they released their debut back
in 1981 -- at which time they were one of the first bands to explicitly and
unambiguously espouse a Satanic outlook. The genesis of black metal was Venom's
seminal debut _Welcome to Hell_. Any one of their first three albums could have
been chosen, as they are all classics, but the reason _Black Metal_ was chosen
was largely because it has the quintessential Venom song "Countess
Bathory" -- as well as being the album that provided a name for the
developing genre. Venom's simplistic, raw sounding and sloppily played songs
were to be the blueprint from which all others would follow in one way or
another. Although they superficially don't sound like most black metal bands,
virtually all of the basic audio characteristics are present; the major
difference lies in the vocals, which are sung in a clear and decipherable
voice, having little in common with the shrieked vocal style of almost all
black metal bands. Their Satanic aspect may have been a gimmick, and it may not
have been. Either way, it ushered in one of the most potent metal subgenres.
Bathory - _Bathory_ (Black Mark,
1984)
Any of Bathory's first five
albums can rightly be considered a classic and have collectively had the
biggest impact on the development of black metal -- selecting just one as the
most influential is an exercise in futility. The best option was to simply go
back to the beginning where it all started: on his short and nasty self-titled
debut. Most of the songs struggle to attain the three minute mark, the music is
simple and sloppily performed and the lyrics are laughable. At another time and
another place, this might have been seen as juvenile and doomed to obscurity.
But the sheer uncompromising violence of the music -- which was pretty much
unrivalled in 1984 -- meant that this album couldn't simply be dismissed. Like
many other black metal classics, the end result was greater than the sum of its
parts. Later albums would show considerable growth and progression, but none
would replicate the 'take no prisoners' attitude and youthful aggression of
_Bathory_.
Celtic Frost - _Morbid Tales_
(Noise, 1984)
It is significant that while
Celtic Frost do not fit comfortably into either death, thrash or black metal,
each genre has tried to claim Celtic Frost as one of their own. Their debut
album was a relatively raw and simplistic affair, unburdened by the avant-garde
accoutrements that would be experimented with at a later stage. The abrasive
sound was probably due more to lack of funds than design, but would nonetheless
serve as a blueprint for future bands. Their signature riffs have been much
copied and their influence can be felt almost everywhere, in bands as diverse
as Samael and Darkthrone. Their signature song, "Circle of the
Tyrants", is probably the most covered song in extreme metal, with
everyone from Obituary to Mystic
Circle having a go at it. Although they were never
one of the more technical bands, their unique and original sound, combined with
a desire to experiment, meant that they would be remembered long after their
demise.
Immortal - _Pure Holocaust_
(Osmose, 1993)
Immortal got off to an
unpromising and noisy start with _Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism_, barely
recognisable as an Immortal release in comparison to later efforts. But its
successor _Pure Holocaust_ was an entirely different beast: gone were the death
metal overtones, replaced with the characteristic cold production that came to
be known as the Norse sound. _Pure Holocaust_ sounds less noisy than its
predecessor, but infinitely more hateful, with more angry songs. Immortal are
one of the more unique black metal bands both in terms of sound and appearance,
thanks largely to Abbath's unique croak and grim frostbitten appearance. If it
were any other band attempting this image, it would probably be extremely
cheesy; but with Immortal it somehow just seems right.
Satyricon - _Dark Medieval Times_
(Moonfog, 1993)
_Dark Medieval Times_ is a noisy
affair, drawing on folk music and the Middle Ages for inspiration -- a sharp
contrast to the more urbane image Satyr is currently cultivating. The use of
folk elements and the 'floating' guitar sound combine to create an incredibly
atmospheric album. While the insubstantial sounding guitars may be considered a
flaw by some, it provides the album with a unique sound largely unduplicated by
the black metal community. Indeed without this sound, _DMT_ would lose a lot of
its potent ambience. Along with Ulver, Satyricon were one of the first acts to
utilise folk elements and were possibly the first 'trollish' bands. Many bands,
such as Wyrd and Nokturnal Mortum, have since then successfully merged folk
instrumentation and melodies with black metal.
Burzum - _Hvis Lyset Tar Oss_
(Misanthropy, 1994)
While _Hvis Lyset Tar Oss_ is
superficially similar to its predecessors, the stronger song writing as well as
the inclusion of the amazing "Det Som Engang Var" meant that this
album stands out (albeit only slightly) from his other work. This album
features all the Burzum trademarks, namely droning guitars and minimalist
drumming, all accompanied by Vikernes' unique wail. _HLTO_ also features the
obligatory ambient track, "Tomhet", which showcases Burzum's skill in
creating ethereal ambient music, present throughout and an integral part of his
black metal period, although sadly much ignored.
Darkthrone – _Transylvanian
Hunger_ (Peaceville, 1994)
Fenriz and company took the basic
black metal outline that they had helped pioneer on the amazing _A Blaze in the
Northern Sky_ and stripped it of any and all
frills, resulting in a sparse, hateful album. The thin production later became
known as the "necro’" sound. The raspy croak that passes for vox and
the stripped down guitars are the very embodiment of black metal simplicity,
while the practically non-existent production resulted in the bass being
totally inaudible and the drums dissolving into an undifferentiated sludge.
These are far from being negatives, as _Transylvanian Hunger_ embodied the very
spirit of black metal and formed the seed from which it was to grow. Much
imitated, but never equalled, _TH_ stands above almost all others.
Enslaved - _Vikingligr Veldi_
(Voices of Wonder, 1994)
Unlike most of their peers,
Enslaved eschewed Satanism in favour of a neo-Pagan world view, focusing
heavily on Norway 's
Viking heritage. Many bands would advocate similar ideas, but Enslaved were
probably the first to do so (barring Bathory's Viking era material).
_Vikingligr Veldi_ is a delightfully lengthy and repetitive affair, utilising
the same cold Norse production as Immortal's _Pure Holocaust_. But instead of
playing furious black metal, a greater emphasis is placed on creating
atmosphere, inducing an almost trance-like state in the listener. Like all
other albums mentioned here it is a unique album, yet it feels necessary to
draw attention to this fact here, as it tends to be in the shadow of most of
the other bands / albums mentioned in this section.
Emperor - _In the Nightside
Eclipse_ (Candlelight, 1994)
One could not imagine a more
suitable name for the creative entity centred around the duo of Samoth and
Ihsahn, as at the time of their premature demise they were the undisputed lords
of black metal. Although it was _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ that brought
them widespread acclaim, _In the Nightside Eclipse_ ensured that they already
could be considered as one of black metal elite. Emperor fortunately dropped
the fuzzy guitar sound of the _Emperor_ EP in favour of a more focused and
infinitely more intense sound. Although the lyrics are inferior to those on
_AttWaD_, they were nonetheless already superior to those produced by the vast
majority of their contemporaries. While they were not the first black metal act
to use keyboards, they were probably the first to adopt a more majestic and --
pun unintended -- imperial sound, and helped pave the way for the more melodic
and symphonic black metal acts.
Mayhem - _De Mysteriis Dom
Sathanas_ (Deathlike Silence Productions / Century Black, 1994)
This album was the result of a
mixture of chance, luck, skill and talent. Dead's suicide resulted in the
recruitment of Attila (Tormentor) for session vocals, whose unique, weird
vocals provided the perfect backdrop to Euronymous' furious riffs. While
Euronymous' guitar style was widely influential, Attila's unorthodox vocals
didn't exactly set the scene ablaze. The bass (performed by Varg Vikernes or
Hellhammer, depending on which story you choose to believe) is unusually
prominent and sounds particularly ominous on tracks such as "Pagan
Fears" and "Life Eternal". The drumming is impeccable, provided
by black metal's best drummer, Hellhammer. All of these factors combined to
form one of the definitive black metal albums, one which remains a classic ten
years after its first release. This album also proved to be the albatross
around Mayhem's collective necks, as while it was massive progression from
their primitive death metal roots, such was the import of this album that all
of their subsequent work was doomed to be in its shadow, irrespective of the
quality.
Concluding Thoughts
It will be interesting to see
what the next few years will bring to black metal. As I mentioned earlier, I
strongly believe the impetus behind black metal's fourth wave will be in Eastern Europe . This may be somewhat muted, as the
National Socialist tendencies will act as a dampener on more widespread
adoption. Nonetheless, Slavic black metal will come to dominate black metal in
years to come. Scenes in France
and Germany ,
as well as in many other countries, will obviously continue to develop and
coalesce; however, eyes will be trained further east.
This will not result in the
disappearance of any black metal subgenre -- there will be a place under the
sun (moon?) for the raw shameless Bathory copycats as well as the more
futuristic acts.
Source: www.chroniclesofchaos.com
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