Satan wears many guises, but I think we can all agree that none are more excellent than the ones he dons in heavy metal music. Some of Satan's metal prophets are significantly more serious than others, and I'm sure some of these artists wouldn't especially like to be on the same page together...! However, in the spirit of embracing the lurid and the weird in a multitude of forms, I choose to enjoy each of these acts for the uniquely sinister pleasures they provide.
Bathory
Oh my god, BATHORY. This face-meltingly heavy Swedish metal band was one of the first (if not the first) to record in the quintessential under-produced, not-of-this-earth black metal style, incorporating Satanic imagery and a confrontational attitude into their work. Their 1988 album "Blood Fire Death" is equal parts black metal fury and Viking epic, and is one of the most intense listening experiences that I can still actually enjoy.
Darkthrone
I'd talked about Darkthrone a bit when reviewing the documentary on Norwegian black metal, "Until the Light Takes Us." The band is controversial for any number of reasons, from their connection to musician and murderer Varg Vikernes to their strict (and arguably elitist) stance on the definition of true black metal. Fans of the band seem to squabble about the difference in sound between their early albums, which epitomize the traditional primitive black metal aesthetic, and their newer sound, which has more in common with crust punk and hardcore. While I do dig the lo-fi psychedelia of 1994's "Goatlord," 2010's "Circle the Wagons" has become a go-to aggressive album for me, and "Dark Thrones and Black Flags" includes a song called "Witch Ghetto." Fucking "WITCH GHETTO." It's so good, it damn near inspires a scream-along.
Ghost
These Mercyful Fate-worshiping ghouls from Sweden are making music that blends earworm-worthy power metal with over-the-top, theatrical evil. The members of the band refuse to share their names and will only appear for interviews in full-on ritual garb, but I suspect that tongues are planted firmly in cheeks, as they mention Zlad's "I Am the Antipope" as one of their inspirations in the Vice Magazine interview linked below. It takes a special kind of genius to make songs about human sacrifice and the Antichrist sound so damn singable. (Also: HAMMER OF DOOM IV is a thing that happened. Hearing about that just makes me really excited to be alive.) Ghost is on tour right now supporting their first album, "Opus Eponymous" and will be appearing in the US in New York and at Maryland DeathFest.
Acid Witch
Believe me when I tell you that Acid Witch is relevant to your interests. Their love of gruesome horror movies and consciousness-altering substances combines with a sternum-crushing heavy, punk-metal sound. This band has a true fright flick sensibility, never taking themselves overly seriously even as they lay down their doomy sound. Bonus points: their 2010 release "Stoned" uses so many clips from "Witchcraft '70" that I think it qualifies as a tribute album.
4 comments:
Thanks for these posts! By the way, this is relevant to your interests as well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gUcnUjhRX0
No love for the early works of Venom in this context?
OMS (Oh my Satan)
I LOVE Bathory! I was playing Bathory on the radio (and tons of other metal bands) back in my metal days. I was digging what passed as extreme metal back in the 80s (before the Black Metal really took off) and everybody at the radio station thought I was nuts. They just didn't understand...
Also love Psychocharger! When Joey Z and I saw them at the Drop Dead Fest, it was love at first sight! I never laughed so frickin' hard! They were awesome.
And thanks for introducing me to Ghost. never heard of them before, but I like them. There sound kinda reminds me of bands like Running Wild and Cloven Hoof.
But the make-up is Merciful Fate meets the Misfits (Michale Graves).
Thanks for the musical round up!!
On Darkthrone, don't forget the fan talk about their first album (which I got when it came out, and then promptly ignored them for ten years or more) - which was excellent, clean death metal.
The Trve Kvlt Blak Metul fans don't like it, of course, but it's excellent.
(Myself? Never saw the point in their later crust work. But that's life.)
And Bathory? Man, that first album has insane potential, but even by black metal standards the mastering for eg. Necromancy is just painful.
The Kvlt Kidz would cry bloody murder, but oh what a little remastering would do there...
I also humbly suggest to you, as I don't think you mentioned it earlier in the week - Burial Hex. Not black metal in any reasonable sense, but of a similar spirit combined with electronic music.
(Cf. also Silvester Anfang and Sylvester Anfang II, which has Mr. Ruby of BH as a member.)
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