Metal Reviews

The breaking point is tricky here, when do we say the Norwegian sound fell into disarray and began getting eclipsed by those initially influenced by them? 1996, 1997, 1998? Abigor always had its unique spin on the genre, same goes for Sigh. Blut Aus Nord was releasing interesting stuff as far back as 1995, Beherit and the Swedish bands were around too, the fledgling American sound, and many more examples abound.

A 1997 example which comes to my mind though is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VA_IWmvDZko. In many ways this album paved the way for the East European version of the genre, which emphasized the incorporation of Slavic, Finnish, and Romanian folk instrumentation and motifs.

Also in 1997 some of the original Norwegian bands were either in radical transition (Ulver, Satyricon), defunct (Burzum), in disarray (Immortal), or all of the above (Mayhem). Meanwhile, with Samoth out of prison, Emperor returned with Anthems to the Welkin in mid 1997, one of the biggest selling, and most popular black metal albums of all time. But I think it serves as the perfect bookend to Norwegian dominance of the genre, whether one likes, loathes, or loves that album (I like it). And Emperor, Darkthrone and Enslaved would also soon be moving further away from their original sounds too.

So I'm using top BM albums since Anthems was recorded (if any of you guys want to come up with another break point, please do, just tell us why: the more opinions the better). Also aiming for a list of 15, because otherwise I will go on for too long, but you want to put down 10 or 20, go for it.

1.) Deathspell Omega - Si Momentum Requires, circumspice
2.) Emperor - IX Equilibrium
3.) Limbonic Art - In Abhorrence Dementia
4.) Drudkh - Blood in Our Wells
5.) Wolves in the Throne Room - Two Hunters
6.) Negura Bunget - Om
7.) Gris - Il Foret Une Fait
8.) Watain - Lawless Darkness (probably should be Sworn to the Dark)
9.) Weakling - Dead As Dreams
10.) Immortal - Sons of Northern Darkness
11.) Shining - V: Halmstad
12.) Agalloch - Ashes Against the Grain
13.) Cradle of Filth - Enthrone Darkness Triumphant
14.) Leviathan - The Tenth Sub Level of Suicide

Included one album on the cusp of 1997. Can't really determine a 15th album, but surely there is something that I am forgetting or maybe it should just Blut Aus Nord, which I just never got into. Or maybe Taake. Obvious USBM slant to my list.

In no order....

1. Watain- Sworn To The Dark
2. Mayhem- Chimera
3. Dimmu Borgir- Enthrone Darkness Triumphant
4. Watain- Lawless Darkness
5. Funeral Mist- Salvation
6. Cradle of Filth- Dusk and Her Embrace
7. Cradle of Filth- Midian
8. Dark Funeral- Diabolis Interium
9. Deathspell Omega- Si Momentum Requires, Circumspice
10. Dark Fortress- Profane Genocidal Creations
11. Trelldom- Til Et Annet...
12. Taake- Noregs Vaapen
13. Satanic Warmaster- Carelian Satanist Madness
14. Satanic Warmaster- Strength And Honour
15. Sargeist- Let The Devil In
16. Sargeist- Satanic Black Devotion
17. Nokturnal Mortum- Goat Horns
18. Nokturnal Mortum- The Voice of Steel
19. Marduk- World Funeral
20. Krieg- Blue Miasma
21. Immortal- Sons of Northern Darkness
22. Immortal- At The Heart of Winter
23. Gorgoroth- Twilight of the Idols
24. Dimmu Borgir- In Sorte Diaboli
25. Dark Funeral- Angelus Exuro Pro Eternus
26. Drudkh- Blood in Our Wells

there's some sick BM records for you....

I'm going to be a little different in that I will list bands 95 and after, outside of Norway (for the most part at least)

In no particular order:

Cultes Des Ghoules (entire discography. This is how black metal is supposed to sound)

Evilfeast - Funeral Sorcery

Inquisition - Into The Infernal Regions Of Ancient Cult

Funeral Fog - Under the Black Veil

Moonblood - The Winter Falls Over The Land

Profanum - Profanum Aeternum Eminence Of Satanic Imperial Art

Mortuus - De Contemplanda Morte

Gehenna - Seen Through the Veils of Darkness (The Second Spell)

Arckanum - Fran Marder

Vargsang - Call Of The Nightwolves

Tenebrae In Perpetuum - The Black Flame's Age

Odal - ...Wilde Kraft

Graveland - The Celtic Winter (I cheated, sue me)

Thor's Hammer - Three Weeds From The Same Root

Xasthur - A Gate Through Bloodstained Mirrors

Maniac Butcher - Epitaph

Warloghe - Womb Of Pestilence

Leviathan - Shadows of No Light [Demo] (was hard to pick just one)

Nehemah - (toss up between Light of a Dead Star and Shadows From The Past)

Black Funeral - (another toss up between Vampyr - Throne of the Beast and Of Spells of Darkness and Death)

Judas Iscariot - To Embrace The Corpses Bleeding

Forest Silence - Winter Ritual

Doombringer - Abhorrent Dreams of the End

Graven - Perished and Forgotten

Limbonic Art - Moon In The Scorpio

Flagellant - Maledictum

I thought about Graveland after we started making our lists, tough to decide which list to put them in but definitely a worthwhile inclusion. And thank you for remembering Gehenna, they are so often forgotten in these lists, odd considering where they are from.

So much for 15, I'll probably stretch this to 20-25 by the time I've figured it out.

Well this is one BM conversation I can't get in on. If '97 is the cutoff point I just don't have enough albums to compile a list. At least not without taking albums from the mid to late 2000s and even then I'm struggling.

Absu - Tara
Agalloch - The Mantle
Behemoth - The Satanist
Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta II – Dialogue with the Stars
Burzum - Belus / Fallen
Dark Funeral - Diabolus Interium
Dimmu Borgir - Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia
Dissection - Storm of the Light's Bane (This came out a year or two before '97, but it deserves to be mentioned.)
Drudkh - Forgotten Legends / Blood in Our Wells
Emperor - IX Equilibrium
Enslaved - Below the Lights / Vertebrae
Immortal - At the Heart of Winter / Sons of Northern Darkness
Inquisition - All of Them!!
Limbonic Art - In Abhorrence Dementia
Mayhem - Ordo Ad Chao
Melechesh - Sphynx / Emissaries
Rotting Christ - Triarchy of the Lost Lovers / Theogonia
Wolves in the Throne Room - Diadem of 12 Stars
Watain - Sworn to the Dark

Jesus, so damn many I've left out. Need to check out Cultes de Ghoules.

Time to start firing up Youtube and get yourself educated. Sworn to the Dark, Si Momentum Requires Circumspice, IX Equilibrium, and In Abhorrence Dementia would be a solid start.

It is really easy these days. I can't believe how obscure some of the bands are posted there with full albums.

You're right despite me not being able to find Lunar Aurora's Andacht last week.

Hmm let's see what I can come up with for my contribution to this thread.

Taake - Natterstid Ser Porten Vid
StarGazer - The Scream That Tore The Sky
Absu - Exhibit V: Tara
Cradle Of Filth - Dusk...And Her Embrace
Immortal - At The Heart Of Winter
Necromantia - Scarlet Evil Witching Black
Bewitched - Diabolical Desecration

Little bit of cheating in there I'll admit.

Disappointing, though for me that album was always about track 1, Glück, and the rest was sort of overshadowed.

Inquisition-Into the Infernal Regions of the Ancient Cult
Blasphemy-Fallen Angel of Doom
Rotting Christ-Triarchy of the lost lovers
Destroyer 666-Unchain the Wolves
Absu-Tara
Sigh-Infidel Art
Mortuary Drape-All the witches dance
Graveland-Immortal Pride
Absurd-Facta Loquuntur
Dissection-Storm of the lights bane

Sticking purely to albums released outside of Norway, that can easily hold a candle to 1st gen Norwegian classics

Honorable mentions: Behexen, Horna, Thor's Hammer, Sarcofago, Master's Hammer,

I remember being impressed by it, but couldn't remember why and wanted to hear it again. It was probably just Gluck.

Forgot about Destroyer 666. Unchain the Wolves is big game.

Negura Bunget--Om
Drudkh--Microcosmos
Ruins of Beverast--Rain Upon the Impure
Katharsis--World Without End
Xasthur--Telepathic with the Disease
Graveland--Immortal Pride
Limbonic Art--Ad Noctum
Horna--Sanjesi Aarelle
Burzum--Belus
Kawir--Ophiolatriea
Leviathan--Tenth Sublevel of Suicide
Blut Aus Nord--Saturnian Poetry
Moonsorrow--Havitetty
Watain--Casus Luciferi
Darkestrah--Epos


HM: Recent listens like Evilfeast (Funeral Sorcery) or Cultes des Ghoules (Henbane) probably only need time to make this list; meanwhile, Darkspace, Elysian Blaze, Nokturnal Mortum, Gris, Borknagar/Arcturus/Rotting Christ/Gehenna, DsO, Lunar Aurora, Mutiilation, Inquisition, Nehemah and many others only missed it because I kept it to 15.


I'm currently trying to listen to every Norwegian 2nd Wave full-length (using my admittedly contrived cut-off point to mid 97). The less famous bands (some of which I'd never heard before) are varying wildly in quality.