Legendary artists Darkthrone, who began in death metal before embarking on a black metal period that ended with Total Death, now begin to show signs of their punk-influenced era moving into something more like the epic rock and metal that inspired them back in the day.
28 CommentsTags: Black Metal, darkthrone
Darkthrone riff overflow project Isengard, which released two albums back in the day, announced that its third compilation of material, Vårjevndøgn, will be released in October on longtime label Peaceville Records, giving us more of the Celtic Frost and Bathory fusion inspired black metal for which Darkthrone is known.
No CommentsTags: Black Metal, darkthrone, fenriz, isengard
American drama has spilled over to Australia and New Zealand as Destroyer 666 have been scrapped from their Oceania tour with BÖLZER that are now headlining the tour. This is probably due to the hysteria surrounding the Fortnite inspired Christchurch shooter. Who through his actions has managed to shift public opinion towards certain values seen in the left and with media hysteria creating a parallel narrative to the anti-Trump narrative espoused by the histrionic rejects of America, the American tradition of attacking metal bands for no reason has been transported halfway across the world. Soundworks Touring who are responsible for the organization, have sidestepped this whole issue without announcing why KK Warslut and his team were kicked but chose to push all their efforts into promoting BÖLZER with this phrase.
11 CommentsTags: Bolzer, christchurch shootings, darkthrone, destroyer 666, hardship of the scots, hysteria, idiocy, leftists, Oceania
This article attempts to pseudophilosophize on religious awe and its connection to black metal through the analysis of two songs that are connected beyond time. Herein, we shall Enter the Eternal Fire and Walk the Infernal Fields in pursuit of the archetype of the first romantic hero, that is, Satan. (more…)
8 CommentsTags: Bathory, Bridge of Death, darkthrone, enter the eternal fire, manowar, nietzsche, Paradie Lost, Satan, walk the infernal fields, will to power
“Neptune Towers” is a song from Darkthrone’s death metal album, Soulside Journey. In this song the artist’s goal is to paint an alien landscape and tell a story, by intertwining riffs and lyrics until they reach an eldritch keyboard climax, which leaves the listener with a sense of awe for the unknown.
19 CommentsTags: analysis, Black Metal, darkthrone, music theory
Image Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
While it may appear pandering to many that we constantly bring certain albums to the forefront of our discussion, the reason for doing this is that the state of maturity which metal as a whole attained was only able to knock on the door of the mysterious experience transmitted through music. Different albums discovered different doorways, uncovered overgrown pathways, and scaled mountains. Ildjarn found contemplation of the absolute in the eye of stormy rage through elated freneticism. At the Gates reached hitherto unmatched heights of craft and musicality. All rasping and scratching while blindfolded, a crossing of the threshold by different means and interpretations. Fewer still are the music albums, metal or otherwise, which struck at a purity of sound that needed no interpretation.
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Tags: burzum, darkthrone, Hvis Lyset Tar Oss, morton feldman, Rothko Chapel, the elusive sound, Transilvanian Hunger
Studies have shown that listening to instrumental music while writing, studying, doing accounting, or any other productive task can increase stimulation without the distraction that the words of vocals provide. But for Hessian, Templar, Heathen and other true metalheads instrumental works can be difficult to come by as extreme metal has not dabbled much into the realms of instrumental savagery. But thanks to the necrophiliac obsession that many have had with Norwegian black metal and its culture, there are a few enjoyable demos and early rehearsals from Norway’s finest that can provide a motivational grim instrumental experience without demanding too much from the attention of the listener.
Join me if you will for a vocal-less adventure through some of Norway’s best kept foreboding hidden secrets.
2 CommentsTags: 1990s, Black Metal, Blackthorn, burzum, darkthrone, death metal, demo, Euronymous, Grymyrk, hellhammer, instrumental metal, low fidelity, mayhem, norway, Norwegian Black Metal, rehearsal tapes, Thorns, varg vikernes
Once upon a time, musicians needed to have a fat budget for a decent studio recording (and therefore, a record label to front the bill on the onset). But even with one, many extreme metal recordings in the 80’s, 90’s and 2000’s still sounded like complete ass. Even insanely popular death metal bands like Cryptopsy, who have sold over half a million records, have had albums with production so shitty that I can’t hear most of the riffs. Aside from a few innovators, most audio engineers (back when it was possible to make a career out of it), simply did not know how to record and produce metal.
However the industry has changed mightily over the last 15 years or so, and in today’s music world the phrase “everybody’s an engineer” is deeply rooted in truth. Whereas high end recording software was once closely guarded and outrageously priced, the freedom of file sharing as put many high end tools in the hands of the public at no cost and without the need for professional training to use. No longer do you have to shell out $10,000 for an album that sounds like it was recorded in the prior decade, nor do you need take out a ludicrous college loan for audio engineering school. Instead, all you need to do is make a few quick downloads to successfully arm yourself for a quality recording (assuming, of course, you have done your homework in practicing your instruments and listening).
This change in landscape greatly benefits the type of music personalities we saw in Darkthrone, Burzum, and Graveland- top-tier musicians more concerned with their art and ideology than pandering to a room of idiots via live performances (yes, I know Graveland and Darkthrone both played live: it was only at microfractions of their careers). And given that lefties are regulating and policing which bands are allowed to play live shows, there’s all the more reason for defiant metal musicians and bands to forgo live performances and focus their energies on quality studio recordings. With narcissism, attention seeking, and fan expectations removed, the opportunity for quality recordings to flourish is undoubtedly more abundant.
It is an honor and privilege to present to you, the readers of this infamous site, the favorite battle-tested software and tools from a road-tested veteran who began a career in metal when freeware first became widespread some 15 years ago:
25 CommentsTags: Audio Engineering, burzum, darkthrone, DAW, death metal, Digital Audio Workstation, EZDrummer, freeware, graveland, Guitar Rig, Izotope, mastering, metal, metal recording software, metal software, Midi, Mike Kyre, MikeMetal, one man bands, Pirate Bay, pirating, Reason, recording, remasters, software, Tabs
The thankfully short lived Canadian metal scene was another low in the attempt to blend death metal with tough-guy hardcore. Through a gross cocktail of taking a technical death metal template, squeezing all of the feeling and memorability from the riffs, breakdowns, and linear “riff salad” song structures with no repetition or thematic continuity, the Canadian metal scene gave us the foundation for the horrendous abomination that was deathcore- the ugliest perversion of death metal the genre had seen since Six Feet Under collaborated with Ice-T. Ultimately, we remember Canadian metal as the musical version of a shit post- something so autistic and obnoxious that it made everyone around the world quickly realize that Canadian metal bands were something to be mocked and avoided.
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Tags: 2018, canadian metal, darkthrone, day of the rake, death metal, death metal general, leaf metal, leafs, metal, ministry, morbid angel, news, satyricon, trey azagthoth
The blast beat has had a very unlikely journey through its relatively young lifespan in music. Rooted in a jazz technique of an alternating bass drum/hi-hat and snare 16th note pattern (though played at much slower tempo in jazz music), it found a unique identity in the early 1980s when underground hardcore punk bands like Siege and Asocial began using it at aggressive speeds to enhance their violent bursts of rebellion. This made it a close friend of metal when the middle of the decade saw a fledgling death metal movement getting its hands dirty with hardcore punk speed and sound in an effort to push its own extremity. Over the next 15 years, several drummers would rise to prominence with their clever use of the blast beat to either push these combinations to extreme speeds or to utilize them enduringly for an effect similar to trance music. Suddenly, every metal band that wanted to play fast or play simplistically HAD to play blast beats, and we eventually reached a point where blast beats were the most dominant part of every death and black metal song’s drum composition.
For the future of death and black metal to establish themselves distinctively, they must abandon what has become routine and keep only what is necessary to preserve their underlying spirit. And with this understanding comes an unfortunate truth- the beloved blast beat must be laid to rest, so that new life in metal can grow.
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Tags: Black Metal, blast beats, cannibal corpse, conditioning, darkthrone, death metal, fenriz, metal, metal drumming, mind control, repulsion, sepultura, Trendkillers, trends
