Review by Rexorcist for Dissection (SWE) - Storm of the Light's Bane (1995)

If you're first getting into black metal, then one of the first names you're going to hear is Dissection, specifically in regards to the album Storm of the Light's Bane.  This album was once the number 1 black album on RYM many years ago, and had been dethrones by the overrated Filosofem by Burzum for many years.  In recent times, it's reclaimed that position, and stands as a major player in black metal even now.

Now I'm a guy who very, very rarely gives single-genre albums a perfect rating.  There are only three instances I can think of in which I've done that: Songs of Leonard Cohen, South of Heaven by Slayer and Almoraima by Paco de Lucia (that's flamenco, btw).  And I'm not quite sure I'd give SotLB that just yet, but I completely understand if a lot of other people in the world would.  For a single-genre album, this remains pretty original throughout and never once gets tiring.  This sophomore effort is certainly not just an exercise in skillful riffage and drumming: it's a poetic testament to the power of black metal, downplaying some of the death metal that was carefully combined with black metal in their first album, allowing for some of the most excellent melodies black metal has ever featured.  It's very difficult to pick favorites out of the group, because the consistency in songwriting and performances makes it that difficult.  Even when you've heard the genre and basic sound before on previous tracks, they keep finding ways to impress you.  Even when they're recalling old tricks, it's the way they're organized that impresses.

It's certainly a much catchier album than before, and gets the winter vibe across perfectly without relying on winter production.  This is an essential for a reason: it's mostly so well done that it's a threat to beat.  I'm not even sure this sound has been properly emulated yet.