Metal Reviews

PLS could anyone help with selection of Black metal suitable for the man(me)almost untouched by black metal? I prefer softer things with progressive elements. I' ve never listened to any black metal before, but after i heard Cradle of filth-Cruelty and the Beast, i was charmed especially by the rhytmical part(and continual changing of rhytm) of this music and that beautiful dark poetry.

"Elizabeth, my heart is thyne,
thy fragrant words, warm within like wine" 8)

I'd look out a flame suit if i were you.

But seriously, CoF are more Gothic Metal than Black Metal (a very common mistake new listeners make). If you really do like them maybe it is Goth Metal recommendations you should be looking for.

Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire & Demise by Emperor is progressive and black metallic but still relatively harsh.

maybe bands like Woods of Ypres or Alcest would be more appropriate.

I personally would jump in at the deep end, and go for some Mayhem, Emperor or Marduk

If you want the real end, ask Gast1, he will show you the path for the oblivion..

well... you could always try these.. they won't feel like a forhammer smashed in your face the first time you listen to it - instead of complaining later.. most of it doesn't have progressive elements in it:

Aaskereia - Zwischen den Welten.. awsome! if you don't mind crazy scream ala Varg, you'll also get some clean vox and guitar/piano.. hidden in "noise" of course ...
alcest - alcest
Drudkh - autumn aurora
Klabautamann - der ort
Agalloch - the mantle
Alkonost - alkonost .. .really good
Woods of Ypres - against the seasons
Emperor - Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk
Ulver - Bergtatt
Windir - 1184, Arntor and Likferd
Forest of Fog - Nebelhymnen
Forgotten Woods - As the Wolves Gather
Hidden in the Fog - abstract maelstrom paragon.. if you like Emperor, you'll like this too
Dissection - The somberlain ... melodeath/black thingy.. only one if got, but not bad.
In The Woods - A Return To The Isle Of Men
Mystic Forest - Romances
Nokturnal Mortum - Goat Horns... you might expect it to be some devil worshipping eval black meal, but it isn't.. but it has lot's of medieval stuff in it... uh
Satyricon - Dark Medieval Times


that's about some of the softest black i listen to, i think...

what did you like in CoF? the atmosphere, the aggression..?

Some great albums here.

Windir - 1184
Windir - Arntor
Windir - Likferd
Drudkh - autumn aurora
Forest of Fog - Nebelhymnen
Ulver - Bergtatt


I recommend these for n00bs Like me.

hmmm, im not a hudge black metal fan but i only pick out the bands i like alot. If you're into the whole symphonic black metal, i recommend Old Man's Child. But if you want some good old fashioned black metal i also reccomend some Immortal but ask some of the big back metal metal fans cause i think they know more than me when i comes to black metal

Try Ancient-The Cainian Chronicles. It's like COF but more towards the real Black Metal side of things.

Maybe he just does? :roll:

no, so as to know what kind of bm band the fellow would like most.

i hate cof, but if he likes them good for him.

I would start with the fuckin' classics, as anyone else should.

Darkthrone - A Blaze In The Northern Sky
Darkthrone - UNder A Funeral Moon
Darkthrone - Transilvanina Hunger
Burzum - Burzum/Aske
Burzum - Det Som Engang Var
Burzum - Hvis Lyset Tar Oss
Burzum - Filosofem
Ulver - Bergtatt
Ulver - Nattens Madrigal
Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
Immortal - Pure Holocaust
Immortal - At The Heart Of Winter
Satyricon - Dark Medieval Times
Satyricon - Nemesis Divina

Those are waaaay to hard to get into for somebody who has little to no experience with black metal. Melody is the key, then you can move to more of the raw sound.

2Azrael: i would not say i like them, I have heard two albums so far, the second one-Damnation and a day received 100% on metalreviews, though i do not understand why..
I said i like Cruelty and the beast, and i dont think it's too agressive, it almost reminds me some speed metal(except the singing).After all, this music would be good for me without singing as well. But in that case, i would have never known that great lyrics..

From the list Deathkvlt gave, only Satyricon and Immortal are good entry points for a beginner. My other recommendations would be Emperor and some more recent Enslaved, and for something a little less known, try Alghazanth. Ragnarok is a good idea too, their latest offering is quite good.

Once into it, the rest Deathkvlt's list is full of essentials you can't do without.

Those in fact have a lot of melody, except maybe Burzum and Mayhem.

You will not find lyrics like these in black metal. You might want to check out the gothic scene (as lizardtail mentioned).

I can see that you have alredy got a lot of fine recommendations so I will not bother repeating them. However I have a word of caution: Steer clear of Marduk (which was recommended earlier). All you get is blatant blasphemy wrapped up badly in blasting. No poetry or atmosphere to be found here.

I agree with Astaroth and Ness, Windir are a really good band to get you into BM. They have a lot of BM atmosphere and darkness, but at the same time they are melodic enough to be accessible. I think if you go first for something like Nattens Madrigal you're liable to hurt your ears....

Venom
Bathory
Celtic Frost
Sodom (first EP & LP)
Sarcofago...