Vincent's Black Metal Album of The Day (NBBMN)

November has come, the clocks have been put back the days are short, the nights long and the inescapable cold has reached our bones. So as we begin to welcome winter let us delve into the musical abyss that is black metal. A genre steeped in controversy, blasphemy and hatred, expressing the most profound beauty and utter vileness that this world is capable of. The earliest band started amongst thrash in the 80’s but it wasn’t till the Norwegian scene emerged in the early 90’s that black metal truly took on a character of its own. Since these roots, the sound has evolved in both melodic and dissonant styles being fused and influenced by many forms of music over the decades the become a truly vast and varied style. So whether you are joining me in “Nothing but Black Metal November” or not, let us begin my black metal album of the day.

The First Day
Emperor –In The Nightside Eclipse




Emperor is a band whose name you will know if you have listened to black metal before, and there is good reason for this. As one of the early pioneers of the Norwegian scene their music has influenced many. Their debut “In the nightside eclipse” perfectly exemplifies why they have a well-deserved reputation. The record blends many of the staple elements of the genre wit some of the more melodic ad progressive ideas that would become more prominent on their later releases. Managing to combine majestic and reverent synths with more aggressive and complex guitars to create a cold, dark, moody atmosphere. This is true classic and well deservers its place as one of the greatest black metal albums of all time and is a must listen to anyone with any interest in the genre.

I invite anyone who has any questions, wishes to find more or similar bands to ones I post, disagree with me, wish to contradict or correct, complain, insult or generally just engage in discourse, to comment below.

-Vincent

The Second Day
Dark fortress –Séance



Séance is creepy. That is probably the most succinct way to describe this album.  From the onset it begins to evoke an atmosphere akin to a good horror movie. This album captures feelings of suspense and claustrophobic desperation, a journey into the occult, the supernatural visions of ones sleep-deprived decent into madness. Dark fortress as a band has always been at the more melodic side of black metal and séance, their forth full-length album, showcases this well. The guitars and synths blend well to create a rich and powerful sound capable of haunting you down to the very core of your being. When you are awoken by strange voices at 3 in the morning, this is the perfect record to put on.

The Third Day
Akercocke -Choronzon



Combining elements of death metal and black metal, satanic metalers Akercocke continuously delivered deliciously progressive and perverse albums throughout their career. Their third full-length, Choronzon is a truly innovative release. Weaving together an eclectic mix of influences such as Arabic music and dead-can dance style synths with the raw pounding aggression of death and black metal, all topped off with sexualised lyrical blasphemy make this a far more varied experience than your standard black metal fare. Skilfully played and arranged, with good use of effects and vocal styles, these Brits had talent and the rest of their discography is definitely worth checking out.

The Forth Day
Drudkh –Estrangement



Ukrainian Black metal project Drudkh’s sixth full-length Estrangement is an emotionally rich piece of black metal. They combine folk elements, Ukrainian poetry and an atmospheric, burzum-esq brand of black metal to create a truly autumnal sound. The album juxtaposes a seemingly minimalist quality of composition with the characteristic noisy wall of sound black metal is more know for, to create a feeling that borders between energetic and the serene. The harmonious drone coupled with some interesting bass lines and the odd guitar solo blend to create a tranquil, depressive and almost trance like soundscape that is perfect for that night time stroll through the local forest.

The Fifth Day
Carpathian Forest –Strange Old Brew




Like a bullet of pure misanthropic aggression, Carpathian Forest’s Strange Old Brew certainly isn’t holding anything back. From the opening track Bloodcleansing, Carpathian Forest deliver some frantic riffage. Noisy, messy and a bit chaotic, the first half of this album is a hate filled experience, ideal to headbang along to. The latter half lowers the tempo but increases the sinister, with songs such as Cloak Of Midnight just oozing with menace. This is further complimented by instrumental tracks featuring saxophone, a old horror movie theme, and of course, The Good Old Enema Treatment. Closing with the frantic He’s Turning Blue the whole experience is summed up simply; we’re going to hell for this.

The Sixth Day
Bathory –Blood Fire Death



As key members of black metals “first wave”, Bathory showed a level of extremity that rivalled and often supposed that of their contemporaries. Playing a style rooted in the harsher end of thrash metal, laden with blasphemous lyrics, Bathory continued to hone their style until the pinnacle of their career in their fourth full length, Blood Fire Death. This record is a masterpiece of early black metal showcasing an aggressive playing style with grim, fast and brutal riffs. The album also shows some excellent melodic ideas, acoustic guitars and synths complimenting several tracks, not the least on the monumental title track, Blood Fire Death, a true epic piece of song writing. This and other songs show the beginning of what would become know as Viking metal, and a shift away from the more satanic imagery of their earlier career.

The Seventh Day
Samael –Ceremony Of Opposites



Ceremony Of Opposites is the third full length from Swiss band, Samael. Their first two albums were important in forming the sound of black metal’s second, with their third release they began experimenting with a more industrially influenced sound. This fusion works brilliantly, the combination of the raw aggression of black metal with the pounding beats of industrial blend to form a collection of fury filled tracks that are surprisingly danceable. Samael would later go on the give the synthesisers a more prominent role within their music further developing their distinctive brand of electronic/industrial black metal. This is a must listen for anyone interested in either black metal or industrial metal.

The Eighth Day
Chthonic –Mirror Of Retribution



Combining the music and tales of their native land, with the raw power of black metal, Taiwan’s Chthonic have oft crafted melodic masterpieces with their albums. Mirror Of Retribution is no exception, the furiously played bass and guitars combined with the pounding drums create an atmosphere of aggression and brutality. This is tempered by the melodic layering of the synths and ehru, whose tone and quality leave a haunting presence. Lyrically the album follows the story of Phuann Tsing-guan, a medium who traverses into the depth of hell in order to gain the Book of Life and Death, in order to help his comrades in the battle against the Chinese in 1947.

The Ninth Day
Anaal Nathrack –In The Constellation Of The Black Widow




Anaal Nathrack’s In The Constellation Of The Black Widow, is nothing short of a visceral assault upon the senses. Unleashing a cacophony of raw brutal noise, this black metal, and grindcore fusion is the embodiment of chaos in musical format. Irrumator plays everything with inane levels of aggression and speed, and V.I.T.R.I.O.L’s vocals display an impressive range with, piercing shrieks, tortured screams and rumbling growls all punctuated by moments of harmonious clean singing. Dripping with ferocity, played with blistering intensity and combined with several melodious ideas, this album is nothing short of pure anger and hatred compacted into a 35-minuet package.

The Tenth Day
Lustre –A Glimpse Of Glory



Bringing a transcendental quality to its sound, A Glimpse Of Glory combines minimalist ambient music with black metal. Relying heavily upon synthesisers and samples, the music is pure atmosphere, creating a trance like sensation from the drone like soundscape that has been crafted. The atmosphere creates a sense of awe and serenity, reflecting the majesty of nature that has inspired it. Lustre is not a typical black metal project, and this album is indicative of that, however the elements of black metal are all here but used instead to create an ambiance, to invoke feelings of peace and tranquillity, of sorrow and longing, with themes of nature and mysticism permeating throughout.

The Eleventh Day
Wolves In The Throne Room –Two Hunters



Atmospheric black metal, environmental black metal, Cascadian black metal, astral black metal, even hipster black metal, Wolves In The Throne Room have been called many things however most agree that they are indeed black metal. Hailing from Washington in the northwest region of the Americas that would become the nation of Cascadia, they bring their own distinctive slant on black metal. Their sophomore release Two Hunters begins with night bird and a slow ambient intro with Dio Artio, invoking a meditative sense of being. Starting with Vastness And Sorrow, the music begins to take on a more familiar state, blast beats layered with tremolo picked guitars melodically interwoven with synthesisers all work together to create an atmospheric experience, ranging in intensity from driving emotion filled passages, to softer trace like chants before finally closing with the songs of morning birds.

The Twelfth Day
Falls Of Rauros -The Light That Dwells In Rotten Wood



Expressing themes of naturalism, Falls Of Rauros, with their Tolkin derived name, are one of the many black metal bands that have began to experiment with folk metal and neofolk influences. Their second full-length album, The Light That Dwells In Rotten Wood, is split between 3 folkish instrumentals and 3 longer songs in the vein of atmospheric black metal. The guitars are layered harmoniously to create an atmospheric soundscape invoking an autumnal theme, whether they are played acoustically or distorted with some of the more common black metal motifs. The whole effect is completed skilfully to create a sense of longing for vast open landscapes, where one can return to their roots within nature.

The Thirteenth Day
Altar Of Plagues –White Tomb



With their debut full-length, White Tomb, Irish black metallers Altar Of Plagues, by blending black metal with post-metal, have crafted what can only be described as the soundtrack to the demise of the human race. Musically the band juxtaposes quieter ambient like passages with nosier drone like parts, making frequent use of the post-metal staple technique of the climax, often introduce each element into the music individually before reaching their peak and unleashing the stored latent energy. Lyrically the band has often dealt with themes of ecology and conservation, warning against the desolation of the earth caused by human expansion and continued urbanisation.

The Fourteenth Day
Summoning –Oath Bound



Taking heavy inspiration from the works of J.R.R.Tolken, Summoning’s Oath Bound conjures forth images of the deep forests and mist-covered mountains of Middle-Earth. The band effectively use synthesisers to create an array of instrumental effects, combined with the distorted guitars, this allows them to bring forth an epic sounding atmosphere reminiscent of war songs or tale of old. The drums are unusual due to the absence of cymbals, blast beats, double bass or other similar ideas typically found in metal, instead they rely heavily upon the use of toms and snare to create an earthy and expansive sound perfectly complimenting the rest of the soundscape. The album closes with the hymn like song Land of The Dead, which uses pipe and choir to add to the dream like drone quality that was already present to create a truly awe inspiring soundscape.

The Fifteenth Day
Lifelover –Erotik




Showcasing an eclectic array of influences, Liflover’s sophomore effort, Erotik, sits at a more avant-garde end of black metal with a strong depressive bent. This is black metal in touch with its more punky roots, with songs ranging in styles often featuring melodic clean guitars and piano parts juxtaposed with the more frantic and noisy sections. Using samples, reversed sections and a low melancholic vocal style punctuated by agonised howls, Lifelover manages to convey an atmosphere of misery and despair. This plays like the soundtrack to a broken city, half asleep and ignorant of the other half, forgotten and mired in depression, attempting to escape the bleakness of reality.

The Sixteenth Day
Behemoth –Sventevith (Storming Near The Baltic)



Behemoth is a name well known in the modern metal community mainly for their Nile inspired brand of blackened death metal. Taking strong influence from the Norwegian scene, Sventevith, the first full length from these Polish extreme metalers, shows the raw talent that they possessed and that would later display itself throughout their career. The album is far from perfect however, the production sounds like a fart through a tin can and Nergal’s vocals lack the depth or power that he would later develop, nether the less, the writing shows a strong sense of melodic intuition and a passion for what they are doing. This was a good step on what would become an excellent career for the band.

The Seventeenth Day
Austere –To Lay Like Old Ashes



To Lay Like Old Ashes was the last release by Australian outfit Austere and the highpoint of a unfortunately short career. In their earlier works, they played in an atmospheric and depressive black metal style, but this shows a more experimental approach with a more of a depressive rock feel throughout. Featuring beatify intertwined guitars and a sorrowful clean vocal style alongside the agonised howls, all layered with synths, bass and drums to create a deeply emotional sound filled with bitter sweet tragedy. The album closes with coma II, a sequel of sorts to the track coma from their first release, a drone like instrumental, that has an almost cathartic feeling, creating a symbolic sense of closure for the band.

The Eighteenth Day
Marduk –Panzer Division Marduk



Unapologetically offensive Swedish black metalers, Marduk, were a band created with a single goal, to be the most obscene blasphemous band possible. The second album in a trilogy representing blood, war, and death, the three elements they consider to be most important to black metal, Panzer Division Marduk perfectly encapsulates war. Bringing to bear a ludicrous amount of speed and aggression, the album is nothing short of a sonic blitzkrieg upon the listener, pounding blast beats and tremolo picked guitars create a sense of euphoric franticness and chaos, the sensation of one revelling in the horrors of battle. This could be considered a form of black metal in its purest and rawest form, an unstoppable attack of frenzied anger and hatred directed with abandon at everything and everyone.

The Nineteenth Day
Taake – Hordaland Doedskvad



Norwgian band Taake have a reputation within the black metal community, often causing controversy with their stage shows and antics and even going as far as to release an EP for the main purpose of reducing their fan base. Hordakand Doedskvad completes a trilogy of sorts that was formed by their first 3 albums and definitely features a more refined sound. Unlike many other bands take has managed to create a rich and varied sound, showing influences from many styles, yet still create something that is undoubtedly and firmly black metal. The musicianship is exquisite, whether its hoest or one of the guest collaborators, and showing a strong melodic bent this stand as one of the best black metal albums released to date.

The Twentieth Day
Ulver –Nattens Madrigal



The third full-length album from Norway’s Ulver, Nattens Madrigal was the last black metal release the band produced and possibly the one most firmly rooted in the genre. The album has a raw and cold quality to it, exacerbated by the intentionally low-fi production; the tinny distorted guitars and muffled drums creating a grim and slightly hypnotic atmosphere to the music. Unlike the previous albums (and of course their subsequent work) there is very little in the way of acoustic melody, the only part being a small interlude within the first track, nether the less the melodic components of the music superbly shine out through the distortion. Ulver would take a radical shift in direction with the following releases, producing an avant-garde and eclectic musical style, which disappointed many of their earlier fans, but they have always produced interesting music of exceptional quality.

The Twenty-First Day
Forgotten Tomb –Under Saturn Retrograde



Under Saturn Retrograde is the fifth full-length album from Italy’s Forgotten Tomb, who play a mixture of black and doom metal. This release shows a slightly more classic rock approach to song writing than their previous efforts, with a slight gothic aesthetic complimenting the black metal ideas. The album is less agonised than their previous albums, with more of a focus on doom metal style rifts, but still manages to retain an eerie quality to the atmosphere, particularly the latter half of the album, with tracks such as Spectres Over Venice and the two part title track providing a melodically charged and sinister feeling to this recording.

The Twenty-Second Day
Amiensus –Restoration




Restoration is the debut album from U.S. band Amiensus. This album is black metal with a progressive and melodic flavourings, featuring influences from doom metal and folk metal all blended to create something with more dynamism than what many others within the genre produce. The atmosphere is beautifully crafted with the layering of the guitars and synths, not to be found are the relentless tremolo picked passages that is common within black metal but rather longer acoustical passages, creating a calmer feeling. Much of the vocals are multi layered and brilliantly harmonised clean vocals, providing juxtaposition between them and the harsher styles when used. This is an album full of potential from this young band, and one hopes to hear more from them in future.

The Twenty-Third Day
Dissection –Storm Of The Light’s Bane




Standing as one of the best examples of melodic black metal, Dissection’s Storm Of The Light’s Bane has not compromised on any of the icy cold fury that are the staples of the genre. The Swedes’ second release is filled with an aura of cold dread, the melodies intertwined with just enough grimness to keep the mood of the music from being lost within and yet possesses an almost haunting quality to the writing. The vocals of Jon Nödtveidt are a harsh cross between a growl and a scream, a grating death rattle that compliments the feel of this album perfectly.

The Twenty-Fourth Day
Woods Of Ypres - Pursuit Of The Sun & Allure Of The Earth



The thing that strikes me most about Woods Of Ypres, is the vocal work of David Gold, his growls are pretty standard for black metal, however his low ranged clean vocals are filled with a melancholic quality that perfectly suit the aesthetic of dreary despair the band invoke. Pursuit Of The Sun & Allure Of The Earth was the first full-length album from their unfortunately short career, and as such contains more of the traditional black metal elements than on some of their later releases. The character is distinctly bleak, crafted with strong melodic ideas and doom metal-esq passages interwoven into the atmosphere, creating an emotion filled experience.

The Twenty-Fifth Day
Heretoir -Heretoir




Heretoir are one of the many bands emerging in recent years playing in a blackgaze style, combining elements of black metal, post-rock and shoegaze to create a dream like soundscape (notable is the French scene which has produced band such as Alcest, Les Discrects and Lantlôs amongst others). The Germans self-titled debut continues this tradition, often combining acoustical and distorted element and heavy use of reverb to create a baleful sound. Heretoir retains more of a black metal feel than many of their contemporaries, featuring blast beats and harsh shrieks as prominently as the softer elements without letting either side become too dominant, creating a strong sense of melancholy which permeates the entire atmosphere of the album.