Obtained Enslavement

Genre: Black Metal
Country: Norway

So here we have former Gorgoroth vocalist Pest's original band, playing some grim black metal that has a slight symphonic touch that is just enough to create atmosphere but not so much that it ruins everything. Below are their first two LP's - 1994's Centuries of Sorrow and 1997's Witchcraft - to give you a taste of satan's mystic tunes. Centuries of Sorrow is a buzzing whirl of riffs and Pest's screeching vocals while Witchcraft ups the production values and sounds a lot more Norwegian, with trems and blasts and all that jazz all shrouded with themes of wintersorrow and alchemy and all that is necro.



Satan Cries over Norway




Withcraft ov Satan

Odium - The Sad Realm of the Stars (1998)

Genre: Symphonic Black Metal
Country: Norway

I can't believe i forgot about this album.  Luckily i saw it in my library as i was scrolling through, because it definitely deserves to be here.  Symphonic black metal gets a ton of hate in general, and usually rightfully so because most of it is god awful, but there are a few little gems floating around, and this is easily one of the best in the genre.  Think if Emperor, Burzum, and Mayhem all came together to make an album, this is probably what it would sound like.  Fast, meaty but raw, all with that wonderful Norwegian melancholy that made the scene what it was, this album is fucking good.  Even if you hate sympho bm give this a spin, i'm sure you'll find something to like about it.

satan lives in the cosmos

Abigor - Orkblut - The Retaliation (1995)

Genre: Black Metal
Country: Austria

Yeah i know this band is from Austria but they play Norwegian styled black metal better than a lot of the bands from Norway so i think they deserve a spot here today..  This and Nacthymnen are my favorite releases from this band.  Their style of trading off blasting black metal with keyboard interludes pretty frequently actually works well for them and gives rise to some evil black metal that channels the quintessence of satan pretty hard.  Plus Abigor is such a fucking good black metal band name it pisses me off that i can't use it now.

channeling the quintessence of satan through the vast darkened woods at midnight

Ragnarok - Diabolical Age (2000)

Genre:  Black Metal
Country: Norway

All in all i don't really think Ragnarok gets the attention they deserve when it comes to TNBM.  Their first few releases were just ok, and then in 1997 they released Arising Realm, which if you happen to enjoy Symphonic Black Metal is one of the better releases to come from that subgenre.  After that however, they dropped most of the keys and went for a more straightforward approach, which arguably after this album hasn't done them a great service (they're basically a Watain clone now which is dumbfounding because why would you ever want to sound like fucking Watain).  But luckily for us Diabolical Age hits the right spot and plays some kickass true Norwegian black metal for the glory of satan.  Not only that, but it has the best piano piece ever recorded for a black metal album.  Back in my high school years i spent almost a year learning Postludium on piano because it was so fucking good.  Not to mention that album art, fuck that's good.

satan lives in the haunted forests of norway

Taake - Over Bjoergvin Graater Himmerik (2002)

Genre: Black Metal
Country: Norway

Taake is probably the best example of Norwegian black metal post-second wave. They are arguably the riff kings of Norwegian bm and have crafted some of the most enthralling albums to come out of the country since the early 90's. While the quality of Hoest's releases have dipped as of late, Over Bjoergvin is Taake in its prime.

Download

Mayhem - Live in Leipzig (1993)

Genre: Black Metal
Country: Norway

WHEN IT'S COLD... AND WHEN IT'S DAAAAAAAAAARK, THE FREEZING MOON CAN OBSESS YOU

Probably my favorite black metal live album, and also my favorite Mayhem release.

Download

Norwegian Black Metal

I'm willing to say that at least 95% of the readers of this blog got into black metal through the musical exports of one country: Norway. Burzum, Satyricon, Mayhem, Gorgoroth, Darkthrone, Immortal, Emperor, Ulver - whoever, really. The fact is that at one point in time we all flew the "True Norwegian Black Metal" flag while we threw up the horns to some buzzing, awfully-produced riffs, laughed along with Immortal's "Call of the Wintermoon" video, or poured over books and articles about what happened in the early 90's that caused this scene to really be something exceptional.

Today there will be posts here of albums you may have heard many times before, and there may be some that you skipped over, but we all know know where it will be from.

Demilich - Nespithe (1993)

Genre: Awesome as Fuck Metal (Or Old School/Technical Death Metal for Genre Nazis)
Country: Finland

Because Hyperion's most recent post reminded me that no self-respecting metal blog should be without this death metal classic on it's index. Seriously if you haven't listened to this shit (In which case, where the hell have you been?), get on it faster than balls...and balls are fast...yeah. And don't complain about the vocals, otherwise I will personally arrive at your house and kick it where the sun don't shine...and you don't want me to kick it where the sun don't shine...

Download

Diskord - Dystopics (2012)

Genre: Technical Death Metal / Progressive Death Metal
Country: Norway

First off, Crysis and Shadow will probably see this post and be like "what the fuck Hyperion is posting tech death something is wrong" and they would be right.  Fuck, most of you will probably see the tech death tag and run screaming, but hear me out.  Imagine if Autopsy, Carbonized, Morbus Chron, and Voivod got together and had a 4 way love child.  That, in essence, is what Diskord's newest album sounds like, and as a matter of fact it's pretty damn good.  Pure Autopsy worship riffs are somehow mangled into a twisting mass of discordant song structures all over some meaty and filthy production.  It rules and even if you hate tech death in general like me give it a spin, it's worth it.

coffinwank

Drug Honkey - Ghost In the Fire (2012)

Genre: Doom/Sludge/Black/Death Metal

Country: United States

Alright this shit is just mentally insane. Putrid, creepy sludge from Chicago, IL that will have you on your knees begging for the light of day to rise over the horizon. It won't, it just won't...

Download Link Removed Upon Request

Putrevore - Macabre Kingdom (2012)

Genre: Death Metal

Country: Spain/Sweden

Following the release of their debut album, Morphed from Deadbreath, in 2009, Putrevore has taken it up a step with this monstrosity. Featuring the ever productive Rogga Johansson (Ribspreader, Revolting, The Grotesquery, Paganizer, among others) sending riffage forward in his trademark style and Dave Rotten from Avulsed (who churns out some of the most toilet bowel churning gutturals this side of Craig Pillard and Tommi Sookari from Ascended), this album does not hold back in its assault on the aural cavity. It is crushing, dense and has that tinge of old school production value and fuzz that is always valued among diehard fans. A highly recommended album for anyone looking for solid 2012 death metal, which seems to have been at a relative premium at times.

Download

Odz Manouk / Absum - Rotting Esophagus (2012)

Genre: Black Metal
Country: USA

What this year has been lacking in death metal it sure is making up for in black metal, and you bet your ass the Black Twilight Circle/Rhinocervs/Crepsculo Negro conglomerate are busy putting out a bunch of stuff for us to enjoy.  Probably their best output this year is this little split between the best BTC band and the most underrated BTC band.  The Odz Manouk side is on par with all the other great things they've put out so far, but the shining star of this split of this is Absum's side.  Absum is basically a blackened funeral doom band that do what they do extremely well.  Long, drawn out, mournful melodies over a thick plate of pleasently lo-fi production makes for a fucking good track. If you want some good quality black material from this year look no further than this split, it delivers on all fronts.

Worship Black Twilight

Lurk - Lurk (2012)

Genre: Sludge/Doom Metal
Country: Finland

Heavy and brutal sludge/doom from the deepest depths of Finland. Riffs that will smash in your face at a crawling speed and atmosphere the weight of a planet. Hell, they even manage to slide some groove into their riffs that make this seem more than just displaced heaviness. As if there was any reason to not say that the Finns do almost everything better, we have this.

Download

Hooded Menace - Effigies of Evil (2012)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Finland

Are you even ready for the amount of filth this will bring? Are you?

Download