Darkthrone... brainchild of Ted Skjellum and Gylve Fenris Nagell, also known as Nocturno Culo and Fenriz... the innovators of 'True Norwegian Black Metal.' They have given the world its 'unholy trinity' of black metal albums... A Blaze In The Northern Sky, Under A Funeral Moon, and Transilvanian Hunger... and now have released a new song 'Leave No Cross Unturned,' from their highly anticipated upcoming album, The Underground Resistance. (Peaceville Records, Feb 25 2013)
This track has received attention from a multitude of music blogs, due to its dramatic shift in direction and long duration. A shorter edit of the song posted to Peaceville's SoundCloud page about three weeks ago more or less flew under the radar...
The new track sounds more like Judas Priest or Angel Witch than the songs they are widely famous for. Whether or not you're pleased by the band's new style, they have been experimenting with their sound the entire span of their careers.
Despite the 90's Black Metal community rising out of contempt for the Death Metal scenes in Florida and Sweden, Darkthrone originally had a Death Metal vibe themselves. Tomas Lindberg (Grotesque/At The Gates/Disfear) designed the band's logo, and Nicke Andersson (from Nihilist/Entombed) helped get their debut LP recorded at the famed Sunlight Studio in Stockholm.
The music from this original 4 piece lineup largely drew from the existing Stockholm Death Metal sound.
Have a listen to 'Cromlech,' (meaning burial ground) from their first album Soulside Journey:
This is clearly something that would fit right into the then-current Peaceville roster...
For those of us that missed the original demo tapes and early collections, last year's release of the demo compilation record, Sempiternal Past shined light on the band's earliest experimentation.
For those of us that missed the original demo tapes and early collections, last year's release of the demo compilation record, Sempiternal Past shined light on the band's earliest experimentation.
One of the first songs 'Forest Of Darkness' demonstrates their interest in Death Metal, especially with the signature slow, marching parts, ala Suffocation... (later known as 'breakdowns') but Darkthrone clearly had their own lens to project it through. Note that Nocturno Culto was not in the band until next year. (1989)
On this next demo, we can see the progression becoming closer to the eventuality of the Sunlight Studios Swedish sound.
'Thulcandra'
Goatlord was an instrumental demo tape which was recorded in '91, between Soulside Journey and their next full-length. It was instrumentals, with vocals dubbed over top later on in 1994. I chose this track, 'Rex' because it is a very clear indication of the band's next direction. Listen around 3:10 for the sound that will define them for albums to come...
Next in 1992 we have the band in a key moment of transformation, fully committed to Black Metal with 'Kathaarian Life Code,' off the album A Blaze In The Northern Sky. Fenriz states that these are Death Metal riffs that are played fast in a Black Metal Style. Dag Nilson, the bassist, and 3rd member at the time (the 4th was Ivar Enger
aka 'Zephyrous) had left the band after the recording of this album due
to creative differences - he wanted to play strictly Death Metal.
It's crucial to stress that the Black Metal scene's aversion to Death Metal was no narcissism of small differences... the alpha males of the second Black Metal movement in its prime deliberately sought to be more 'serious' than the horror-flick hesher scene in Sweden, or the promenade of Bermuda shorts in Florida. Daniel Ekeroth's book reveals that there were even death threats sent through the mail...
This album was recorded at Creative Studios, in Kolbotn Norway, the same which their infamous peers Mayhem had recorded in. Also noteworthy, was the fact that Fenriz almost released this via Euronymous' Deathlike Silence Records, due to Peaceville not being fully on board with the Black Metal direction.
This was the very first Darkthrone song I'd ever experienced... likely downloaded via Napster!
Next in '92 came the legendary LP Under a Funeral Moon. Although the pure, Black Metal style is minimalist in nature, the band still borrows heavily from its forefather Bathory, and the riffs here have some variation to them. Fenriz wrote all the lyrics and Nocturno Cultio composed the music and performed the vocals. Ultimately, This is the band's magnum opus, and the zenith of 90's Black Metal. The ugly, cold 'cvlt' sound is born, and the benchmark is set...
After this album, the band lost Zephyrous on guitar, making Darkthrone the 'dual dictatorship' we are most familiar with. The reasons he left were never definitively laid out. There have been rumors of everything from alcoholism, to creative differences, and even 'delving into misanthropy.' Furthermore, in '93 the most notorious incidents of the early Norwegian Black Metal Scene occurred, followed by the inevitable media circus... the band members kept to themselves. It seemed for a minute like there might have been a possible breakup of the band entirely. Fenriz likely stopped hanging around Helvete (Euronymous' small record shop and gathering place) and he also went back to drumming for Valhall & to working on his solo project Isengard. Zephyrous lived hours outside of Oslo to begin with. Nocturno Culto also never had much communication with Fenriz...I don't believe any of them even had their own telephones...
Then, inspired by his peers like Burzum, and more importantly, Von, Fenriz had a wintery vision for a fresh sound to gift to the metal world.
In 1994 with Transilvanian Hunger, Darkthrone inadvertently set a new trend that would long endure in Black Metal... exceedingly lo-fi dirges to evoke intensely raw, cold impressions. The idea was to concoct a 'necro' ambiance. Although Nocturno Culto sang, Fenriz wrote all the words and played all instruments on this recording. The gray desolation that was the Oslo wilderness, their home, inspired them to imprint this landscape on their listeners...
Similar to skeptics of Mondrian's Compositions in the visual art world, Darkthrone's critics speculated that the fuzzy production and very focused style masked their lack of talent. The indisputable bottom line however, is that musicians could try as they might to replicate Transilvanian Hunger, or many other cult classics of this nature, but it cannot be done. One cannot reproduce a zeitgeist, just as your father cannot create abstract art from his armchair.
A brief mention about Varg Vikernes' lyrical contribution to this and also on their next album... Fenriz has stated in his interview for Precious Metal that he thought giving Varg a voice from prison was an extreme thing to do in metal and in Norway... he did it for this reason alone and never to align with bigoted propaganda.
It's clear that my intent for this post is not about the band Mayhem, or even about the Black Metal scene, and I will speak more later about my thoughts regarding early Darkthrone interviews.
"It was an extreme outing from extreme times." (Fenriz on the album)
***
In 1995 Darkthrone released their fifth album, Panzerfaust. This was their first release on Satyr's [of the band Satyricon] Moonfog Productions label. Its discordant tracklist ranges from the cold, minimalist sounds, the thrashier Bathory worship, and the slower paced songs we have heard from the band before. While the LP is very good and certainly has its moments, the lack of cohesiveness is a definite detractor... Panzerfaust is literally a mish-mash. Often times Nocturno Culto's vocals are much to high in the mix as well.
I believe this album marks an early sign of the band becoming frustrated with the state of the Black Metal scene. These are individuals who loathe being part of a trend or mold, as has been repeated on many occasions in interviews from the 90's to present day.
During 'En Vind Av Sorg' we can tell the production is more dialed in... a compromise between Under a Funeral Moon and Transilvanian Hunger.
I believe this album marks an early sign of the band becoming frustrated with the state of the Black Metal scene. These are individuals who loathe being part of a trend or mold, as has been repeated on many occasions in interviews from the 90's to present day.
During 'En Vind Av Sorg' we can tell the production is more dialed in... a compromise between Under a Funeral Moon and Transilvanian Hunger.
"En Vind Av Sorg"
This next track is seemingly plucked from a past era of the band's catalog...
'Triumphant Gleam'
Yet another indicator of uncertain vision was their next album, 1996's Total Death, an album comprised of lyrics written entirely by other Black Metal musicians.
In 1999, Ravishing Grimness was released and recorded at Ronny Le Tekrøe's studio in Toten, Norway. Characteristics of the remaining albums on Moonfog include slower tempos, less blasting, cleaner production, and lyrical topics that move away from the near exclusively anti-religious themes. The band members' roles were reversed this time around - Nocturno Culto wrote all the music, except for the track to follow; "Beast." Fenriz had help with the lyrics of this one from Aldrahn, of the band Dodheimsgard, whom he had worked with in the past.
'Beast'
It becomes clear with Ravishing Grimness (and also the three albums that follow) that the uncertainty of the Panzerfaust/Total Death period was at an end. Darkthrone was locked into a specific aesthetic musically and visually that would endure for the next five years or so.
Around this time period, Fenriz had become conspicuously outspoken in his interviews, unlike in the past. The old Darkthrone would feign aloofness, and masquerade as misanthropes, satanists, and even imply nationalism in a juvenile attempt to shock. To rebellious teens like myself in the nineties, it worked....they WERE in fact a part of the 'Black Circle!' Were they actually worshiping the devil?
The enigmatic aura was partly due to the band's refusal to tour. Fenriz would dismiss the notion with venomous contempt for being with other people in early interviews, but it was later apparent that he just did not like playing live for various practical reasons. Like all things, the mystique wore off eventually, but the reality still proves to be interesting in the end.
For now, certain bands arose to overtly capitalize on Black Metal, however late, and the seasoned fans were joined by legions of kooks donning their shirts from 'Hot Topic!'
On 'Raining Murder,' from 2001's Plaguewielder, the duo had fallen decidedly into ambiguity. Much like Moonfog frontrunners Satyricon, gone were the glory days of old. Black Metal having achieved somewhat commercialized success at this point, was simultaneously depreciative and commendable, in a sense. The two aforementioned bands endured tumultuous times, and also paved the road for countless imitators.
'Raining Murder'
'Fucked Up And Ready To Die, from the 2003 LP Hate Them.
Oddly enough, Hate Them has an electronic intro/outro. I can recall a time when I watched the Swedish Death Metal band In Flames perform at a skating rink in '99, where they first experimented with electronic samples. The whole crowd seemed to just freeze at the sound of it and stare, almost in denial about what was just heard. It didn't belong- this band too was at a decline due to watering down/heightened success.
This criticism is not to say these albums are entirely without merit or enjoyment. For example, the final album of the Moonfog era, Sardonic Wrath (2004) has a death n' roll-likened track I particularly love called 'Hate Is The Law.'
It's the band's final 'Black Metal' album, and hints at the imminent genre shift akin to bands like Motorhead, Discharge, Amebix, and Inepsy.
'Hate Is The Law'
Sardonic Wrath is dedicated to the memory of Quorthon (of the band Bathory, who passed away) and the LP actually got nominated for an 'Alarm' award in Norway! (which is similar to the Grammys) Fenriz strongly opposed, stating that awards are not for Black Metal, it has no part in the glitz of showbiz. They were removed from the ballot. I approve of this message...
Snapping out of their ennui, a radical change came with 2006's return to Peaceville: The Cult Is Alive. A shock to the original fans, the old Darkthrone is barely recognizable here. Fenriz states, "Call it black metal or evil rock, I don't care... I imagine that the casual fan today reacted similarly when hearing the bands new 2013 single...
Fenriz contributes a little bit to the actual vocal duties on this album, and it was recorded in their new home studio, 'Necrohell II.' This time around, they of course had much more modern equipment at their disposal to enable easier experimentation. Fenriz also got a computer in 2005, and I think 'web 2.0' types of things like MySpace galvanized him... he could now embrace being a diehard music nerd more than ever.
This period of the band's history was not without growing pains though, and many metal scenesters were appalled by the good-humored nature of the new material. If one had not followed the band's evolution, it may seem hypocritical to 'suddenly' realize they were no longer those Black Metal soldiers versus the Death Metal party-scene posers. In reality they were always flying by the seat of their pants.
'Too Old Too Cold'
Over the course of the next two albums, F.O.A.D. and Dark Thrones And Black Flags the balance of contributions split between the two continued, and we begin to see a slight shift away from the crust punk & crossover edge in favor of traditional metal and 1980's thrash. The band's vocal disdain for current metal scene grew ever clearer...
'The Church Of Real Metal'
Also of interest is this video clip, which was included as bonus content, of the two in studio:
By the time 2008's Circle The Wagons came out, the new identity seemed comfortable and fans either stuck around or moved on. Those who kept following the band found a light-hearted tribute to traditional metal, speed metal & NWOBHM. Punk primarily only remained as an appropriate descriptor of their attitude. Darkthrone commissioned graphic novelist Dennis Dread to come up with a new art style for three of these new albums... featuring a character Called 'Mr. Necro.'
Circle The Wagons represents the peak of the band's efforts that spanned the last four LPs.
Listen:
"I Am The Graves Of The 80s'
In summary, I can describe the different musical chapters as follows:
-The early Death Metal period, which consisted of demos and the first album.
-The true Black Metal times, in which the band released the 'unholy trinity...'
-The 'Moonfog records era,' which after two ambiguous albums they presented a more "listener-friendly" Black Metal experience...
-And finally the 'Cult Is Alive' era, consisting of the latest four albums consistently in the crust and traditional metal style.
In each stage there were hints of what was to come next, and I firmly believe what lies ahead in 2013 will be a new, separate renaissance for the band. The new track is dripping with confidence in the vocals, and delivers capable and satisfying speed metal riffs. It's perfect for when you are in a 'Municipal Waste' type of mood...
Anyone can see that throughout the article I placed significant focus on Fenriz himself. At least part of the reason I have given the new album a fair shake is because this man used to be the uber-enigmatic, supremely evil, god-like pillar of the metal community! Over the past 15 or 20 years his image transformed into the steadfast, opinionated music geek, and amicable goof we have gotten to know and love. I feel a certain kinship with him. There are plenty of times I can deeply appreciate and respect when he condemns the state of modern metal. Think about it - nu-metal, nu-metalcore, deathcore, djent clones, bad tech-death, terrible one man black metal projects, clicky drums, the same exact vocal production ad nauseum... I could go on and on.
By now we know that we can never go back in time... there will never be another Darkthrone unholy trinity. The guys in Darkthrone are not teenagers anymore, they are in their forties! We know we'll always get any band's best effort when they are true to themselves and uncompromising with their art. Any insincere attempt to replicate past glories would be noticeably hollow. Perhaps one day we may see some form of return to the old style, but until then, I am going to enjoy the ride.
Pre-order the new album, I did
check out: Fenriz's music blog
Around this time period, Fenriz had become conspicuously outspoken in his interviews, unlike in the past. The old Darkthrone would feign aloofness, and masquerade as misanthropes, satanists, and even imply nationalism in a juvenile attempt to shock. To rebellious teens like myself in the nineties, it worked....they WERE in fact a part of the 'Black Circle!' Were they actually worshiping the devil?
The enigmatic aura was partly due to the band's refusal to tour. Fenriz would dismiss the notion with venomous contempt for being with other people in early interviews, but it was later apparent that he just did not like playing live for various practical reasons. Like all things, the mystique wore off eventually, but the reality still proves to be interesting in the end.
For now, certain bands arose to overtly capitalize on Black Metal, however late, and the seasoned fans were joined by legions of kooks donning their shirts from 'Hot Topic!'
On 'Raining Murder,' from 2001's Plaguewielder, the duo had fallen decidedly into ambiguity. Much like Moonfog frontrunners Satyricon, gone were the glory days of old. Black Metal having achieved somewhat commercialized success at this point, was simultaneously depreciative and commendable, in a sense. The two aforementioned bands endured tumultuous times, and also paved the road for countless imitators.
'Raining Murder'
'Fucked Up And Ready To Die, from the 2003 LP Hate Them.
Oddly enough, Hate Them has an electronic intro/outro. I can recall a time when I watched the Swedish Death Metal band In Flames perform at a skating rink in '99, where they first experimented with electronic samples. The whole crowd seemed to just freeze at the sound of it and stare, almost in denial about what was just heard. It didn't belong- this band too was at a decline due to watering down/heightened success.
This criticism is not to say these albums are entirely without merit or enjoyment. For example, the final album of the Moonfog era, Sardonic Wrath (2004) has a death n' roll-likened track I particularly love called 'Hate Is The Law.'
It's the band's final 'Black Metal' album, and hints at the imminent genre shift akin to bands like Motorhead, Discharge, Amebix, and Inepsy.
'Hate Is The Law'
Sardonic Wrath is dedicated to the memory of Quorthon (of the band Bathory, who passed away) and the LP actually got nominated for an 'Alarm' award in Norway! (which is similar to the Grammys) Fenriz strongly opposed, stating that awards are not for Black Metal, it has no part in the glitz of showbiz. They were removed from the ballot. I approve of this message...
Snapping out of their ennui, a radical change came with 2006's return to Peaceville: The Cult Is Alive. A shock to the original fans, the old Darkthrone is barely recognizable here. Fenriz states, "Call it black metal or evil rock, I don't care... I imagine that the casual fan today reacted similarly when hearing the bands new 2013 single...
Fenriz contributes a little bit to the actual vocal duties on this album, and it was recorded in their new home studio, 'Necrohell II.' This time around, they of course had much more modern equipment at their disposal to enable easier experimentation. Fenriz also got a computer in 2005, and I think 'web 2.0' types of things like MySpace galvanized him... he could now embrace being a diehard music nerd more than ever.
This period of the band's history was not without growing pains though, and many metal scenesters were appalled by the good-humored nature of the new material. If one had not followed the band's evolution, it may seem hypocritical to 'suddenly' realize they were no longer those Black Metal soldiers versus the Death Metal party-scene posers. In reality they were always flying by the seat of their pants.
'Too Old Too Cold'
Over the course of the next two albums, F.O.A.D. and Dark Thrones And Black Flags the balance of contributions split between the two continued, and we begin to see a slight shift away from the crust punk & crossover edge in favor of traditional metal and 1980's thrash. The band's vocal disdain for current metal scene grew ever clearer...
'The Church Of Real Metal'
Also of interest is this video clip, which was included as bonus content, of the two in studio:
By the time 2008's Circle The Wagons came out, the new identity seemed comfortable and fans either stuck around or moved on. Those who kept following the band found a light-hearted tribute to traditional metal, speed metal & NWOBHM. Punk primarily only remained as an appropriate descriptor of their attitude. Darkthrone commissioned graphic novelist Dennis Dread to come up with a new art style for three of these new albums... featuring a character Called 'Mr. Necro.'
Circle The Wagons represents the peak of the band's efforts that spanned the last four LPs.
Listen:
"I Am The Graves Of The 80s'
In summary, I can describe the different musical chapters as follows:
-The early Death Metal period, which consisted of demos and the first album.
-The true Black Metal times, in which the band released the 'unholy trinity...'
-The 'Moonfog records era,' which after two ambiguous albums they presented a more "listener-friendly" Black Metal experience...
-And finally the 'Cult Is Alive' era, consisting of the latest four albums consistently in the crust and traditional metal style.
In each stage there were hints of what was to come next, and I firmly believe what lies ahead in 2013 will be a new, separate renaissance for the band. The new track is dripping with confidence in the vocals, and delivers capable and satisfying speed metal riffs. It's perfect for when you are in a 'Municipal Waste' type of mood...
Anyone can see that throughout the article I placed significant focus on Fenriz himself. At least part of the reason I have given the new album a fair shake is because this man used to be the uber-enigmatic, supremely evil, god-like pillar of the metal community! Over the past 15 or 20 years his image transformed into the steadfast, opinionated music geek, and amicable goof we have gotten to know and love. I feel a certain kinship with him. There are plenty of times I can deeply appreciate and respect when he condemns the state of modern metal. Think about it - nu-metal, nu-metalcore, deathcore, djent clones, bad tech-death, terrible one man black metal projects, clicky drums, the same exact vocal production ad nauseum... I could go on and on.
By now we know that we can never go back in time... there will never be another Darkthrone unholy trinity. The guys in Darkthrone are not teenagers anymore, they are in their forties! We know we'll always get any band's best effort when they are true to themselves and uncompromising with their art. Any insincere attempt to replicate past glories would be noticeably hollow. Perhaps one day we may see some form of return to the old style, but until then, I am going to enjoy the ride.
Pre-order the new album, I did
check out: Fenriz's music blog
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