The North

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1rdH2fO1ezWQznWzZv1KlL?si=VKqz5lw2TW23rZUn4H2IeQ

Tracklisting:

01. Abigor – “Gomorrah Rising - Nightside Rebellion” (from “Totschläger (A Saintslayer’s Songbook)”, 2020)

02. Walknut – “Motherland Ostenvegr” (from “Graveforests & Their Shadows”, 2007) [Submitted by Ben]

03. Melechesh – “Rebirth Of The Nemesis: Enuma Elish Rewritten” (from “Emissaries”, 2006)

04. Sadness – “I Want To Be With You” (from “I Want To Be There”, 2019)

05. Moonsorrow – “Huuto” (from “Varjoina kuljemme kuolleiden maassa”, 2011)

06. Negură Bunget – “Ţesarul de lumini” (from “OM”, 2006) [Submitted by Ben]

07. Svrm – “Мовчання” (from “Розпад”, 2020)

08. Transilvania – “Opus Morbi” (from “Of Sleep & Death”, 2021)

09. Altar Of Plagues – “Neptune Is Dead” (from “Mammal”, 2011) [Submitted by Ben]

10. Nagelfar – “Schwanengesang” (from “Hünengrab im Herbst”, 1997)

11. Emperor – “The Loss & Curse Of Reverence” (from “Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk”, 1997)

12. Serpent Column – “Violence Aesthete” (from “Endless Detainment” E.P., 2020)

Serpent Column's "Endless Detainment" is a really chaotic little E.P. full of short stop/start style blast-fests with shrieking, unintelligible vocals & a dense & inaccessible production. It's almost unimaginable to think that it might have been produced by just the two musicians to be perfectly honest. I don't think anyone will be too surprised that this release was right up my alley though given my love of both black metal & mathcore & to their credit Serpent Column have done a splendid job at combining the two genres in a fluent & exciting way with neither style taking the ascendancy. If pushed I'd suggest that the mathcore component might slightly outweigh the black metal one as I think you'll struggle if you don't enjoy mathcore but could probably still get by if you're not into black metal. There's a considerable amount of complexity to a lot of this material & the duo deserve full credit for managing to keep it all together. It's interesting that I've seen little mention of the significant grindcore component too as it's pretty obvious across a number of the nine tracks. The short run time certainly helps to make this a more palatable experience & I ended up playing it three times in a row without feeling like I needed a break to recover this morning. Perhaps "Endless Detainment" might have been better served as a The Revolution feature but I got a lot of enjoyment out of it & think it was a worthy inclusion.

For fans of Deathspell Omega, Plebeian Grandstand & Krallice.

4/5

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5OywTbqO5b300LG2iRw9h4?si=CBV1kSlvTN6q6tQG3hCgHQ

Tracklisting:

01. Marduk – “Panzer Division Marduk” (from “Panzer Division Marduk”, 1999) [Submitted by Sonny92]

02. ColdWorld – “Dream Of A Dead Sun” (from “Melancholie2”, 2008) [Submitted by Ben]

03. Wallachia – “Heathen Shores” (from “Monumental Heresy”, 2018) [Submitted by MacabreEternal]

04. Fall Of Rauros – “The Cormorants Shiver On their Rocks” (from “The Light That Dwells In Rotten Wood”, 2011) [Submitted by MacabreEternal]

05. Agalloch – “In The Shadow Of Our Pale Companion” (from “The Mantle”, 2002)

06. Varathron – “Under the Sight of Horus” (from “Walpurgisnacht”, 1995) [Submitted by Sonny92]

07. Windir – “Svartesmeden og Lundamyrstrollet” (from “Arntor”, 1999) [Submitted by Ben]

08. Shining – “Vemodets arkitektur” (from “IV • The Eerie Cold”, 2005)

09. L’Acephale – “Sovereignty: (Dieu – Die Sonne stirbt – Sovereignty)” (from “L’Acephale”, 2019) [Submitted by MacabreEternal]

10. Leviathan – “All Tongues Toward” (from “Scar Sighted”, 2015) [Submitted by Ben]

11. Lunar Aurora – “Glück” (from “Andacht”, 2007) [Submitted by Ben]

12. Förgjord – “Suohauta” (from “Ajasta ikuisuuteen”, 2008) [Submitted by MacabreEternal]

13. Drautran – “” (from “Blót - Lohen der Opferung” (from “Throne of the Depths”, 2007) [Submitted by MacabreEternal]

14. Árstíðir Lifsins – “Ek sá halr at Hóars veðri hǫsvan serk Hrísgrísnis bar” (from “Saga á tveim tungum II: Eigi fjǫll né firðir”, 2020) [Submitted by Sonny92] 

Another utterly magnificent Deathspell Omega release here in my opinion. I just fucking love this band. In fact, I think they've been the best black metal band in the world since the turn of the century. The way they invariably manage to make such abstract dissonance sound so unnervingly evil is beyond comprehension & the drumming & vocal performances just smash me. I have no problem with the chaotic structure as that's really a part of the appeal with a band like Deathspell Omega & the lengthy track duration is only an issue if you're not engaged throughout which I unquestionably am. I spend the vast majority of "Chaining The Katechon" being amazed at the next-level artistry on display & find it just edging out "Paracletus" for second place behind "Kenose" as far as Deathspell Omega's back catalogue goes.

4.5/5

Much to enjoy here for me and a couple of takeaways for me to explore more in Kawir, Katavasia and Panopticon. Heard Panopticon before but never explored beyond the one album I own.  I think I have the Nocternity half of a spit they did with Kawir and have never heard any Katavasia until now so got some warm black metal tones to listen to over the coming weeks.

Great playlist this month Daniel, one of the best yet. Sorry though Vinny, the Jute Gyte track went right over my head. Summoning are only really any good for table-top RPGing and I found the Ensiferum track a bit fromage-friendly! I was also wondering why the Deafheaven track was so crap until... Bam!! When it gets going it is amazing. Everything else was terrific and to be honest how can any playlist that features Immortal, Bathory and Darkthrone not be awesome? A few I need to check out further too, such as Wiegedood and Anorexia Nervosa (I remember not being impressed by them before, but their track on here is very good indeed).

Ha, Jute Gyte is a challenge alright.

Yeah, he sure is. I really enjoyed his Perdurance album, but I'm a bit too much of a literal person for the more avant-garde stuff. Still, he's obviously ridiculously talented, so good luck to him.

Worked my way through this earlier, some interesting stuff in terms of new bands like Mystras, Manegarm and in particular I Shalt Become whose whole album I listened through this morning and subsequently have found my way to Krohm as a result.  I found White Ward to be a bit odd, a bit forced if perfectly honest.  They don't need that jazz edge (not sure if that's a whole trait of theirs or just limited to that song) as it brings nothing to the track. When the track did get going it was decent enogh BM to my ears so why f**k about is my initial ask.

Had forgotten how abrasive and harsh Jute Gyte was as it had been a while since I heard much of his stuff; hasn't helped my tinnitus anyway.  Another enjoyable list thanks Daniel. 

It's now October which of course means that we'll be nominating a brand new monthly feature release for each clan. This essentially means that we're asking you to rate, review & discuss our chosen features for no other reason than because we enjoy the process & banter. We're really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on our chosen releases so don't be shy.

This month's feature release for The North is the highly regarded 2010 self-titled debut album from Norwegian crust punk/black 'n roll hybrid Kvelertak.

https://metal.academy/releases/3931

I think that Falkenbach exists in the "this is pretty good I guess" zone of Folk Metal for me. After listening to this and Heralding I might have to admit that straight up Folk Metal doesn't really do it for me, especially in the way that Falkenbach presents it. This album is incredibly smooth, pretty, and easy to listen to, but I can't help but feel like nothing really happens. I don't necessarily get any atmosphere the same way I do with other Folk Metal bands I tend to gravitate towards, like Moonsorrow. I'm sure that these guys are massive favorites for people that enjoy straight up Folk Metal because, again, this album was admittedly gorgeous. But I still can't exactly recommend it because of the reasons said above me, it wasn't engaging nor particularly exciting for me. 

Three things I have learnt / relearnt from the playlist:

1. I really love black metal.

2. I really dislike folk metal.

3. I actually like Shining a lot more than I thought I did.

There's a couple of well-respected albums on there that I've not checked out yet and I definitely now intend to - Fluisteraas and Oathbreaker.

That Aquilus track was very interesting to. I'm intrigued to listen to the whole album now.

Yeah I felt fairly similarly about this playlist to be honest Vinny & it reminded me the reasons why I opted to remove myself from The North altogether because there's a substantial portion of the subgenres it covers that are simply too far removed from my personal tastes which sit very much in line with with your own. I could easily have stuck to my comfort zones when creating these lists but it I would always have left someone disappointed so I opted to go with a more holistic approach. I'll be interested to see what the community consensus is on that over the next month or so but I think things will inevitably morph into whatever direction the clan members want to take over time once we have more regular suggestions for inclusion coming in.

Just shared my review. I had a lot to say so let me be brief:

Sunbather is a record that shocked a lot of people when it came out. Hell, it's still controversial even to this day. Some "metal purists" do not like the idea that their favourite genre is commercializing. They can't stand change. But change can be for the better. I believe that Deafheaven created the most culturally significant metal record of the 2010's and a great one to boot. The major chordal harmonies found within are truly spectacular and unlike anything I've heard in any strain of extreme metal. The atmosphere is warm and uplifting rather than cold and brooding. It is flawed for sure, but its unique charm almost makes me lenient by default.

8/10

P.S. If you like this new wave of blackgaze, may I suggest giving artists such as White Ward, Sylvaine and Unreqvited a chance as well. 

Whilst I find a lot of Depressive / Suicidal Black Metal to be self-absorbent and, frankly, amateurish, one of my recent favourites in the sub-genre is Déhà, the Belgian behind the bands Imber Luminis and Slow (amongst a shedload of others). He has released nine albums in 2020 so far, including three in his A fleur de peau series. These three albums are some of the best DSBM I've heard, Déhà having a gift for expressing the inner emotions of the psychologically troubled without sounding like a self-absorbed idiot. Despite his profusion of releases this year, the quality has not been compromised at all.With guest appearances from artists like Kim Carlsson of Hypothermia, Natalie Koskinen of Shape of Despair and Nils Courbaron from Sirenia Déhà is pushing the envelope as far as DSBM goes.

Also I'm curious Daniel, and this isn't meant to be a jab since I'm genuinely curious, are all folk melodies cheesy for people who don't care for Folk Metal? I ask because I saw a few comments about Nokturnal Mortum's Голос сталі saying it was the cheesiest thing they've ever heard, and I honestly don't get where they're coming from. It can get a bit over the top, sure, but I try not to instantly equate that to "cheesiness". 

Yeah I'm afraid to say that 99% of folk melodies do sound cheesy to me when they're presented in a metal context. To be clear though, I actually quite like folk music in isolation. It's just that I have a strong preconceived notion of what metal music is supposed to be & the more uplifting & joyous feelings these melodies tend to evoke are in direct opposition to that. In fact, the only folk metal releases I've ended up enjoying over the years have been the ones that veer away from these melodies & are actually pretty borderline as to their qualification within the folk metal subgenre. Fans say that good folk metal is quite epic but I don't feel the same empowerment & crave something darker & more intimidating.  I don't ever want my metal to make me feel like dancing a jig but I respect that many people enjoy this aspect of folk metal. It's really that simple.

Although Falkenbach sounds extremely clean when it comes to Black Metal tinged Folk Metal, I found this one to be a pretty dull slog for the most part. There were definitely some standout sections, especially when the harsh vocals started coming into play, but I felt like a lot of similar riffs and ideas were overused throughout the album. Heralding hits its stride in the middle of the album with "Roman Land", "Heralder", and "Laekmishendr", but the rest of it has a very sluggish triplet or 6/8 feel that didn't really interest me. It's still a very pretty album with great dynamics on the folk elements, don't get me wrong, but I wish there was a bit more to it. I'll have to check out some more Falkenbach to see if any of their other stuff interests me, or maybe I need to come back to this one for another round. 

3/5

Inspired by Chris Van Ettan splitting hairs over which genre an album from a different clan has (thrash or speed metal, death metal or grindcore, power metal or trad metal and sludge vs. stoner vs. doom), I decided to continue the DIS vs DAT activity with an interesting twist; instead of voting on which album has the greater edge, we do it with genres from one of the clans instead. Single-genre clans (like The Gateway and The Sphere) would be divided into hidden subgenres that some of us have heard of but are never listed in the site (for example, alternative metal vs nu metal, industrial metal vs neue Deutsche härte). This should be a nice interesting challenge for Chris and other members of the site. Got two or three albums from a different genre in the same clan and same release year but can't decide which one has the greater edge? Share them here!

My review that I have up for A Blaze In the Northern Sky is pretty shallow compared to what I normally write, but I think it still summarizes my feelings pretty closely. I first listened to this album when I started the 1st Decade Black Metal challenge, and the album stood out an incredible amount compared to its peers at that time. There were few other bands that really captured that evil and cold feeling better than Darkthrone with this album, and I feel like it is one of the massive stepping stones between Bathory's 1987 album Under the Sign of the Black Mark and Mayhem's 1994 album De mysteriis dom Sathanas. The extended song structure and overall chaos of it is more akin to what I'm used to in modern Black Metal and while it is definitely rough around the edges in terms of guitar clarity and such, it still has clarity to it, which was rare for a lot of Black Metal bands in the late 80's and early 90's. A Blaze In the Northern Sky just gives me exactly what I want from a genre that is supposed to sound cold and evil, simple as that. 

4.5/5

This was one of those albums that I wish I liked more, but there's just something about it that didn't click in the end. It's been a while since I've listened to some good, old-fashioned, Pagan Black Metal inspired Folk Metal, so An deiz ruz was definitely refreshing. It has a ton of things I like, from the acoustic but still heavy riffing to the flute and folk elements playing perfectly with the Black Metal harsh vocals, but I wasn't thrilled at the end of it. Maybe an hour of this is a bit too much, or maybe the constant flute on top of the riffing began to feel uninspired during the second half of the album, but this one is going to have to be one that I revisit. I love what's going on, but I think they decided to write too many similar songs for the entire album to be as exciting as the first half. While the flute can sound fantastic, it feels like more of a nuisance when it copies exactly what the lead guitar is doing, like in "Epona, Part 2". Some of the Celtic elements feel a bit overblown too, like they don't exactly fit, especially when the vocalist gets involved in the folky-tunes on tracks like "Son ar Everezh". 

3.5/5, but it has potential for me. 

Inspired by the new DIS vs DAT thing on Metal Academy, in turn inspired by that weekly feature on Utopia Records' Facebook page, I decided to turn this conversation-starting activity into a full thread instead of separate threads. Got a couple albums with the same genre and release year that you can't decide which has the greater edge? Share them here!

Hammerheart has had a slow burn for me over the last year and a half or so. When I initially checked out Bathory's discography I was looking forward to Hammerheart the most, since I knew it was the true start of the Viking Metal genre, but at the time Blood Fire Death captivated me so much more with its balanced split of slower, more extended tracks and classic early Black Metal thrash. As I come back to it more and more, though, Hammerheart is really starting to win me over. Each riff is absolutely stellar, having an unmistakable raw heft that only early Bathory production can provide. Since Hammerheart is slower and more restrained in terms of songwriting it really plays to the strengths of its pushed back and crunchy production style. Although Quorthon is known for his signature and furious Black Metal barking, he somehow manages to find a strained but clear clean voice that is still filled with emotion and fits the style of the album superbly. I think it still takes some getting used to if you're not familiar with Bathory, but I'm just always surprised that it sounds so natural and good although it sounds like his throat is about to give out during certain parts of "One Rode To Asa Bay". The choirs that are so heavily used really give a nice contrast to Quorthon's ragged voice as well, giving Hammerheart its epic sound and quality. 

I think I've finally reached the point of truly appreciating this release, since I was still skeptical of all the hype even after many listens. Something didn't click, and this time around the wheels have really begun to turn. I still think "Home Of Once Brave" holds the album back a little, but with "Baptised In Fire And Ice", "Father To Son," and "One Rode To Asa Bay" I'll forgive it. 

Heol Telwen - "An deiz ruz" (2005)

So in the interests of ensuring the continued expansion of my knowledge of all things metal, I decided to give a release labelled as Celtic metal a go so that I could find out what it's all about. From my understanding (& feel free to correct me if I'm wrong), the subgenre is essentially just folk metal that utilizes traditional Celtic instruments like bagpipes, whistle, fiddle, flute, bodhrán & hurdy gurdy. The record I selected was the only album from French outfit Heol Telwen entitled "An Deiz Ruz" & I have to say that it was a real struggle for me to get through. The band are certainly decent musicians & composers & I think they'd make for a very reasonable black metal band given that the basis for this music is built on black metal. But the continued use of folky flute melodies & the gang vocal "Hey!" parts make it almost impossible for me to take it all seriously. I'm not a fan of most folk metal but I think Celtic metal might be even further away from my personal tastes.

2/5

Any of our members love this stuff? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this album & the subgenre in general. Please feel free to use this thread for continued discussion on the subgenre moving forwards.

Finally got around to my review of this.  The proof of what a great record it is comes from me being able to review whilst playing it in my head, like it is transcribed in my memory.  Need to hunt down a decent physical copy.

Thanks for clearing that up Daniel. I had a feeling that it would be considered ok for the Academy (as I believe it should be). Just checking because, as you rightly say, some websites make completely arbitrary decisions on what constitutes being "metal enough" - a position particularly odd in the case of metal-archives as they claim to be an encyclopaedia of metal music yet dismiss many valid artists out of hand because of personal bias.

Yet another example of why Metal Academy is a superior site for the Metal connoisseur!

Bathory - "Hammerheart" (1990)

Quorthon finishes his transition away from Bathory's classic black metal sound into previously uncharted territory... well at least for extreme metal anyway as the Manowar plagiarism is very clear. "Hammerheart" not only single-handedly created a new subgenre of metal but it also presented itself in the most defined, impressive & iconic package we've heard from Viking metal still to this day. Amazing stuff that completed a trio of classic of Bathory albums in my opinion.

4.5/5

A lot of Black Metal this year. An overflowing amount. Here's what I ended up with for a Top 10:

1. Funereal Presence – Achatius 

2. Serpent Column – Mirror In Darkness 

3. Saor – Forgotten Paths 

4. Obsequiae – The Palms of Sorrowed Kings 

5. Deathspell Omega – The Furnaces of Palingenesia 

6. Stormlord – Far 

7. Grima – Will of the Primordial 

8. Mgla – Age of Excuse 

9. Fen – The Dead Light 

10. The Great Old Ones – Cosmicism 

I really thought that I'd enjoy this more than Hammerheart, but by listening to them both back to back they evened out for me. Cleaning up the production for the guitar tone and drums makes Twilight of the Gods sound infinitely better than Hammerheart, but it also makes it lose that dirty edge that Bathory's old production had which helped to sell the Viking theme. Twilight of the Gods sounds like it's telling the tales of Gods rather than the mere mortals present on Hammerheart. The dirty old production is replaced with full and clean sounding guitar tones and bass rhythms, distant but bombastic sounding drums, and folky but powerful acoustics, creating a more familiar atmosphere for me in terms of viking and folk metal. 

While I don't think it should be overlooked and it has its place in the classic Bathory discography, I think that it's definitely missing something compared to Hammerheart or Blood Fire Death. With the entire album being rather low tempo and plodding, it loses a bit of its luster after the first three or four songs. It's very well written and certainly epic, but Hammerheart and Bathory's other albums had more spice to them. 

I'll have you know that kvlt evil metallers get cold feet too Ben. Do you think they really go to bed in leather & spikes? I'm pretty sure that Satan himself wears ugg boots whilst enjoying a nice cup of tea & a biscuit after a hard day of cursing people for eternity.

More from Necrobutcher on this topic:

“When I did that interview I was thinking, ‘What kind of moron fucking question is this?’ They didn’t have one fucking question about the new album, which we are out here to do, so I was like … what’s this line of questioning? Aren’t you over that now?

But yeah, OK, I’ll tell you straight up, I wanted to kill that fucker in the end. He … Imagine that somebody you think is your friend coming home and finding your other friend killed themselves and took pictures of their dead body. Who the fuck in their right mind would do anything like that? Everybody should have the little bit of intelligence to know that, that’s gotta be somebody completely stripped from empathy and normal emotions. And really a bad fucking person. But now he’s a fucking hero! And it’s like, OK, I’ve always talked good about him, never wanted to talk bad about the dead, but this has gone too far now. I mean, if the guy wasn’t killed, he would’ve gone to jail for many years for lighting up a church in Oslo. He’d be gone. He’d have been sued just like Varg Vikernes for 50 million NOK, so when he would be released from jail, he would never have a job, never own a car, own a flat, own a TV. He would be fucked with a capital F. He’s the big hero? No, he’s the big fucking asshole, that’s who he is. The betrayal — he betrayed his friends and the bad karma in the end came and took him. I never cried a tear for that guy. I was mad as fuck when he died, and what I told that journalist is when I read it in the morning paper, I headed straight home and cleaned my house for all the illegals. I was sure the cops were going to come home to my place next and that I was going to be a suspect. I didn’t know that they already knew who did it. 

“And I’ll tell you since we’re into this. Norway is a very small country. Varg Vikernes lit up a church, went to jail, they couldn’t get evidence, so they had to let him out. Big disappointment for the cops, a loss of prestige. So, they bugged his phone, bugged his apartment, everything. And he was plotting to kill Euronymous on the phone and everything, making an alibi on the phone. But of course, they knew everything! So, I was a little pissed at the cops later on because I’m thinking … they knew what was going on and they didn’t even stop it. This is very fucking bad, you know what I mean? The government was in on killing him. So, I never talked about it before, but now I’m thinking, since the government isn’t linked up to my ass now, it’s starting to get down to earth again. And that’s not the smart thing for me to do, to make enemies again now that I’ve cooled again, but it’s in me. I can’t help it. Anything that wronged me has to be right.”

It sounds like someone is looking to make a name for themselves in the naughty circle:

According to the New Zealand Herald, Jacob Lowenstein, the 28-year-old drummer for the New Zealand black metal band IGNI, has been charged with setting two Mormon churches ablaze. 

Lowenstein appeared from custody via audio visual link at Christchurch District Court today on two charges of arson and one of unlawfully taking a vehicle. 

The arson charges are in relation to fires at Mormon church buildings in Christchurch and Greymouth, which occurred two days apart in March.  

On March 11, a fire broke out in a building in Christchurch which was used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as a learning institution for tertiary students. 

 According to Stuff, the second fire at the church's Greymouth building on March 13 destroyed the chapel and caused enough damage for the building to need demolition.  

At the time, Fire and Emergency New Zealand fire investigator Sam Bugler said the fire destroyed about half of the church. 

Lowenstein and Declan MacInnes formed IGNI in 2016 at Jazz School in Christchurch. The band has released two full-length albums: "The Pale" (2017) and "This Must Be Hell" (2018). Both LPs were recorded at the school.

So he's in no way saying that he didn't do it. Only that he had a "good reason" for doing it, which the court didn't acknowledge. Yeah, that doesn't exactly evoke my sympathy.