SORG Demo

Powerviolence is the absolute antithesis of Black Metal. Powerviolence tracks are aural instances of brevity that are direct and political and very much of this world and of the feelings of man. Black Metal is murky and atmospheric and profoundly rotten and will never be of this earth. When the two combine or, rather, when an attempt is made to combine the two, it leaves me uneasy. 

Sorg, from France, are the latest band to attempt to fuse the two genres and, remarkably, they are successful. The songs are direct and catchy yet their is nothing in them that relates to man. This success is partially due to the rock n' roll vibe of some of the tracks. The little skatterings of melody, especially in "Excidum" are noteworthy. They provide something to grasp on to, a kind of buffer in between two very different and nearly incompatible styles. After all, what is more inhuman and direct than rock n' roll?

The production on this demo is excellent. Closer to De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas than Deathcrush. Modern technology has cast the days of horrible demos into the abyss where they now belong. Part of me says good riddance, part of me misses the danger. Either way this demo is excellent. It is appropriately murky but still forceful, like the stench of death emanating from the fog.

Highly recommended stuff. I'm hoping for a tape release.

Listen here

An interview with Merzbow

Merzbow, the straightedge, Vegan noise powerhouse, needs no introduction. Ruthlessly inventive, exceedingly prolific, and dauntingly conceptual, Merzbow can be called the godfather of noise. He kindly agreed to an email interview. These answers are translated from Japanese, so there might be slight grammar errors, but it is an accurate statement of intent.

You recently began recording with your new band CU/TS. Will these sessions result in an album and, if so, would you put together a tour?

We invited Thurston Moore to record with us in London in May. These sessions, after they are mixed, will lead to an album in the future. The live band will include myself, Mats Gustafsson, and Balazs Pandi.

When composing the music for CU/TS, does any other member of the group bring forth structural ideas and, if so, who produces the lions share? Or am I totally wrong and the music is improvisational?

In the beginning, the music was improvisational. I mixed this first recording, done in Budapest, in my studio in Tokyo. Balazs carried out the final mix in his studio back in Budapest.

Your music is very much informed by Vegan Straight Edge beliefs. Is this indicative of any kind of cultural movement in Japan?

There are very few people in Japan who adhere to the Vegan Straight Edge lifestyle. Although there is an Animal Rights movement, mainly active in anti-fur demonstrations, it is very small. There are Vegan friendly restaurants, but not many.

Do you feel that independent art and Vegan Straight Edge are two sides of the same coin? A kind of rejection of societal morals from a lifestyle and an art basis?

The purpose of Vegan Straight Edge is to oppose the alcohol and tobacco industry, industries that protect cruel gastroeconomic cultures, such as whaling and dolphin fishing. My art is a representation of Vegan Straight Edge, so they are one and the same.

You recently announced a Collaboration with Full of Hell. Can you provide any details?

I first became aware of Full of Hell when I heard their music on youtube. They wanted to make a t-shirt using the artwork from my Pulse Demon album. Balazs Pandi is a friend of theirs. He mediated collaboration. It went very well and I think it led to something fun.

Do you feel that noise music will ever reach any form of mainstream acceptance?

I might seem like a representative of noise, but I am very separate. If noise becomes mainstream it is not my fault.

Did your embrace of Avant-Garde art come about as a form of rebellion or a form of expression and catharsis?

If Avant-Garde art perpetuates animal cruelty and greed, then it is not truly free.

Being Vegan Straight Edge, how do you feel about organizations like the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front?

I believe that any method one uses to promote Animal Rights and Global Environmentalism is important. Individuals can make a difference. For example, becoming a Vegan damages the meat industry indirectly, It is possible to damage the fur industry by not wearing fur and it is possible to damage the tobacco industry by not smoking.

Do you feel your art is indicative of a larger struggle present in the human condition or is it solely a form of personal expression? 

It is a thing of a personal nature.

What artists, regardless of medium, are you currently enjoying?

I am enjoying Iskra, a Red Anarchist Black Metal band from Canada. I also like AHNA, a blackened crust punk band also from Canada. They gave me their record when I played live in Vancouver.

John Cage: Top 10 pieces for prepared piano.

John Cage is one of the few people who deserves the title of genius. A prolific composer and virtuoso piano player, his career spanned fourty five years, four decades spent in states of constant experimentation and musical growth. One of his many innovations was the mastery of the prepared piano. Although modifying the piano was a practice invented ten years before he began composing, Cage typified the technique and it became something of his trademark. He composed thirty two of these pieces throughout his career. These next ten are my personal favorites. They are in no numerical order. 

1. In The Name of The Holocaust

This is a haunting name for a composition, no doubt. The piece befits the name. It is etheral and creepy.  It becomes progressively more chaotic, ending in some loud, heavy tone clusters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9kUveeBgdM

2. Mysterious Adventure

Composed in 1945, this piece is is relatively complex, containing five sections and 27 notes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKpPn8SVYLg

3. Roots of Unfocus 

Composed for a dance piece by Merce Cunningham, Roots of Unfocus is an action if intense virtuosity. It is bleak, an aural description of fear and defeat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oFwnI7N-Ps

4. The Unavailable Memory Of

Another dance piece, this is one of Cage's most minimalist works. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5j-U0qrI8Ig

5. Daughters of the Lonesome Isle.

A jittery, uneasy piece, it is best for listening in old mansions and empty train stations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-29dJfmAl8

6. Spontaneous Earth

A gorgeous title for a beautiful piece. Very beat heavy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcDKNzOeSj4

7. A Valentine Out of Season

Probably the most naked in emotion, this is Cage's ode to his separated wife, Xenia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7nGBTu92lg

8. Bacchanale

A bacchanale is a musical composition dedicated to drunken revelation. Cage's take, unsurprisingly, is a lurching, pounding attack. Cage at his most demented.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwJLGUgs1jc

9. Music for Marcel Duchamp

Characterized by periods of silence, a bizarre rythm, and haunting melody. This is simply a masterpiece. No music is better suited for Dreams That Money Can Buy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO4YbACZKi4

T.O.M.B

T.O.M.B is a band that are, shall we say, hands on. An occult, ritual, paranormal themed group that makes raw blackened noise, they have actually recorded albums in abandoned Mental Hospitals, Tombs, and, supposedly, on the bodies of cadavers. If T.O.M.B was anything more than an obscure musical oddity the mainstream media would have an absolute field day. Alas...

T.O.M.B have quite the discography, twelve releases since 2002. Their most recent is a compilation album called Pennhurst/Xesse out on Todestrieb Records.

If you like your extreme music to be played by extreme people give this band a listen.

http://label.todestrieb.co.uk/artists/tomb/

From the Vault: BIG UGLY MOUTH

Confession time. I'm a stone cold sucker for albums that the creators have grown to hate. There's just something about musicians fucking up and then willfully presenting said fuck up for mass adulation by hungry fans that intrigues me. I don't blame the artist, hindsight is sometimes a bitch, but these albums are, more often than not, terrible. I'm thinking Celtic Frost's "Cold Lake", Pantera's "Metal Magic," and -gulp- Burzum's "Baldr's Death." 

Every once in a while, an album that an artist has cast aside as garbage ends up being excellent. The entirety of the Hellhammer discography, for example. "Big Ugly Mouth," an album of spoken word material by punk poet Henry Rollins, fits this mold nicely. Recorded live in 1987 at multiple U.S shows, it is some of Rollins earliest recorded spoken world material. 

Rollins is interesting because it's almost like he came into the artistic world fully formed, beginning as the Mishima-esque bastion of thoughtful masculinity, a place where he still resides. 

Big Ugly Mouth certainly has some cracks. Rollins performance can be a little bit amateurish, he stumbles over words and occasionally has trouble controlling the volume of his voice but the material, the stories he  tells and the advice he offers are classic Rollins, to the point and profound. 

Production is raw. You can really tell that he recorded this right after leaving Black Flag. He had little money and it shows. It sounds tinny and the crowd's laughter can overpower Rollins' speaking.

Highlights include "Short Story," a comedic story about hotel sex,  and"Boy On A Train," a poignant tale of racial injustice.

This is an album for those who seek the genesis of Henry Rollins' spoken word. Despite it's rough production and Henry's occasional performance folly's, this record offers humor, humility, and pathos. Recommended. 

Waves Crashing Piano Chords

Waves Crashing Piano Chords, the juggalo, power-noise oddity, is a very controversial entity. I recently interviewed Sean Beard, the bands main man, about his image and his music.

First off, could you introduce yourself and tell us what you do?
My name is Sean Beard.

Your music, to me at least, revolves thematically around deviant sexuality. Is this an attempt to shock or is it a sexual release?
Yes, but more than that I've found it's the arousal from letting all the "skeletons out of the closet" through it that turns me on the most- to the point where the project has almost become about itself.

You often use vocals in your music. Is this solely to have a dynamic live show?
I have a few releases without vocals that are more focused on room placement and just creating a shrill atmosphere, but I leave it at that because it's not representative of the live show which is what's most important to me. In my opinion, the live show would be boring and lose energy without the vocals.

As a juggalo in the noise scene, do you feel you are a breathe of levity in comparison to your contemporaries?
Yes.

What was your entrance into experimental music?
"Cambridge 1969"

You have a habit of crashing shows. Is this something you still do?
It was easy when I started, but at this point I am banned from just about every local venue between Rochester and Buffalo for one reason or another so it's near impossible for me to ever get in the door of most places putting on shows even if I'm not trying to crash them.

Tell me about H8 track stereo. Is it your label?

I started the label in May of 2013.

You put out music on some esoteric formats, Atari cartridge for instance, why did you choose that route?

Most of the dead formats I release I actually have big collections of so to me it's just releasing something that I already collect that makes me want to do it.

What music are you currently enjoying?
Crash test dummies "God Shuffled His Feet" LP

Can you cue us in on any projects or releases?
The "Young Mouth/It Wasn't Even Worth My Back 1-sided 7" single should be available next month- I just approved the test pressing today actually. The "Tunes From The Toilet vol. 2-57 band" 7" compilation that I helped put together for David Voelkl of CONTINUUM should be coming in right after that, and there will be a 13 second long WCPC track on that.

Final Words?
Thank you for contacting me. MMFWCL whoop whoop.

From The Vault: A.I.D.S

From the frost-bitten northern kingdom of, er, Fort Wayne, Indiana hail A.I.D.S. They play black metal, frothing mad, sometimes improvisational black metal that assaults the ears with waves of tremelo picking, blast beats, and blasphemy. 

A.I.D.S recorded my favorite tape demo of all time, 666. The demo, released in 2006, is one of my favorite black metal releases. Some of the songs are riff-heavy, necro black metal where others are free-form experiments. None of them are labeled, so it is difficult to provide examples, but there is a sequence of two songs where one appears to be a venom cover and the next is a series of distorted vocals samples with a booming, expansive kick beat and samples of thunder.   The music is very intense. So intense that I can nearly believe the hyperbolic and, clearly, tongue in cheek liner notes.

According to this scrap of paper, A.I.D.S recorded this demo one June 6th 2006 in an improvisational ode to Satan and that the lyrics are so unfit for human ears that if someone were to actually read the words than they would immediately kill themselves in effigy to the dark lord.  

I like a band that has a sense of humor and makes great music. Check it out. 

Young Mouth- It wasn't even worth my back seat.

Waves Crashing Piano Chords, the New York horrornoise project, is a bit of an oddity. Helmed by a self described juggalo, the band is dauntingly avant-garde. Most of the releases revolve around disturbing, challenging, yet the creator is a massive fan of nu-metal and ACDC. In short, he is utterly free of the bullshit and pretentiousness that drowns the noise scene. 

His newest release, "Young Mouth- It wasn't even worth my back seat," appears to be a live recording in some sort of small venue. It's great stuff and really makes me jealous for the people who get to see him. It is very simple, primitive noise. His gear of choice is a microphone and feedback. In an era of noise music in which expensive gear is so prevalent, an album of this kind of noise is refreshingly brutal. 

Vocals are pained, guttural howls. Some of the most disturbing I've heard in recent memory. Lyrics are equally savage. The first track telling a story of angry, possibly illegal sex, while the second deals with disposing of noise tapes in the most discouraging way possible.

Listening to a recording of an intimate live noise show is kind of interesting. We can hear the audience joking and speaking to each other, only to be interrupted by the violent, frothing noise they paid to watch. I think that's the true purpose of this release, to preview an, undoubtedly, dynamic live show. I recommend this for people who life violent, lo-fi noise. Buy it if you're into that and go see the band. 

Listen to it here: http://wavescrashingpianochords.bandcamp.com/ and wait for the 7 inch release in July. 

From The Vault: Skitlive

To call Skitliv a supergroup would be a gross underestimation. The word supergroup conjures images of washed up, bloated, balding old men uniting with other washed up, bloated, balding old men to record some underwhelming music to high praise and album sales. This band and it's debut album ,entitled "Skandinavisk Misantropi,  are the exact opposite of this conceit. Although Skitliv is made up of members of other, more famous bands, most notably Niklas Kvaforth and Maniac, this album is not an effort of egotism or moneygrubbing. This is apparent in the manner of its release. Put out through Seasons of Mist with little promotion and fanfair, Skandinavisk Misantropi is free of any pressure to make a hit album. The creation of this album was clearly motivated by artistic expression.

It is rather simple and somewhat lowfi, yet utterly brilliant, black/doom metal. Niklas plays lead guitar while Maniac handles rythm and lead vocals. They make a great team and each song is memorable and, dare I say, catchy. The album maintains a mid-tempo gallop throughout. Although rooted in black metal, it never strays too far into absurd speed. The slower pace actually makes the album more menacing. It's slow torture as compared to a quick killing.

Skitliv have three releases to their name but this is by far their most well-realized. The band is still semi-active. So look out for any new releases.

Fissure set out on West Coast tour

Orange County fastcore bastards Fissure are heading out on a West Coast tour in support of their new self-titled  7-inch.

Tour dates

You can peep their music here: http://fissurehcpv.bandcamp.com/

Yukio Mishima is a man of many contradictions. A lover of honor and national pride, he dodged the draft in WW2. A critic of modern Japanese society, he is to this day one of the countries best selling offers. He got away with this kind hypocrisy based on the depth, breathtaking beauty, and stark brutality of his work. With 34 novels, 50 plays, and 35 books of essays, Mishima explored themes of sexuality, death, and an idealized form of Japanese nationalism. In 1970, he committed ritualistic seppuku after a failed coup attempt. Needless to say, he is a controversial figure.

It is not surprised then, that Mishima has been embraced by the experimental music community. He, along with Genet, was featured on artwork for English neofolk band Death In June. This kicked off countless noise bands using Mishima on album covers. Noise music's fascination with Mishima can be traced back to two commonly held ideas about him. One. That he was a fascist, which is untrue, and two, that he was a homosexual, which is very true. 

Fascism has, unfortunately,  always had a place within noise. Thanks to Boyd Rice it is common to fetishize it and play with it and Mishima is just a cog. A  literate person wore military a military uniform, let's slap him on our seven inch! It's a shame he was remembered this way, as his views were much more nuanced. He was certainly a nationalist, but his brand of nationalism was idealistic and he was well aware of that fact. Beauty and honor meant far more to him than political dogma. 

Homosexuality, at one time, was taboo and like all things taboo it was used by the noise scene as a sign of extremity. Mishima, like his muse St. Sebastian, became a gay icon. 

He's an interesting case, possibly a sad one. A man with a bibliography his size should not be regulated to symbols of 2d posing. 

Cabal

I featured Matrioshka Brain's last album here. I praised it's creepy vibe and ambient feel, saying it was full of "negative vibes." Their new album, entitled Cabal, makes me embarrassed to have afforded such shallow compliments. This album blows their last album out of the water. It is a release that is creepy, yes, but also very much mysterious. It's "vibes" are not negative, but murky, possibly even soothing in a whistling a lullaby whilst walking through a misty woods kind of way. This is not an experimental album to throw on and do house work to and it is not an experimental album to listen to with headphones on and a glass of wine in hand. This album really grabs you and really makes you think about its purpose and it's overall message.

The group describes this albums music as "devotional" but what religious observances or rituals it is meant to accompany is unclear. The album art, drawn by one Aleister Crowley,  features a large-headed humanoid staring melancholic towards the viewer. Is it an alien? A spirit? No. It is Lam, an entity Crowley held dear. Even the band name, a Matrioshka Brain is a hypothetical computing system, is ambiguous. The song titles are radiance, saudade (meaning a deep sense of nostalgia), and sepulchre (a misspelling of a word for tomb). It doesn't get more esoteric than that. Maybe I'm a sucker but it drags me in and piques my curiosity. I want to know how these, possibly unrelated, ideas connect.

Musically, the album is droney, noisey ambient. It is very chord based, often pretty, but always unsettling. It would be somewhat unremarkable if it weren't for the synth tone. It sounds like a haunted game boy being used to conjure a spirit. It's incredible.

I might be the victim of an insincere group of people using meaningless occult and metaphysical imagery to sell their music to gullible power electronics fans but I don't care. I'm recommending it anyway.

Stream/Buy it here: http://matrioshkabrain.bandcamp.com/album/cabal

Merzhell

U.S.A Grind/Noise mutants Full of Hell have announced a collaborative LP with prolific Avant-Garde noise master Merzbow. The album will see release in America via A389 recordings and in Europe through Stab/Repeat Records. Additional details will be available in the coming months. 

Later this month, Full of Hell will embark on a tour of Europe with Disciples of Christ. In August, they will return to the states with a west coast tour with Noisem and the legendary DropDead.

Merzbow has just finished his first Canadian tour and will be playing a few Japanese shows next month. 

Ancient Emblem

Throne With No God, Spanish Black Metal band Ancient Emblem's debut album, is striking in both its familiarity and it's directness. Sticking to old school, true Norwegian style black metal, Ancient Emblem do not deviate at all from the path laid out by those bands, but they pull it off based on the energy put forth in the music. It is produced and played expertly, proving that originality is not necessary to make a good record. 

The album also stands out in the lyrical department. I think the liner notes say it best. "4 lovers of gloomy and raw sounds which support veg(etari)an way of life and deeply hate attitudes based on discrimination and domination such as religion, homophobia, sexism, speciesism, racism, fascism, or Nazism." This is a refreshing and hopeful worldview, especially since the band comes from Spain, a country consistently threatened by right wing groups, and the Black Metal scene, which includes some less than savory politics. Topics covered include environmentalism (Crow will tell, Old Tree), organized religion (Stolen Symbols, My Unique Law), and individualism (Over my Equals, Stone Circle) 

This album is for devotees or raw, old school black metal. The music rarely strays away from that, only occasionally slowing to a more ambient pace. This is an album for the kvlt at heart. Fans of atmospheric black metal need not apply. 

Listen here: http://ancientemblem.bandcamp.com/album/throne-with-no-god

Alocer Christus

Christopher Ropes, also known by his noise-making alter ego Alocer Christus, is a busy guy. Besides fronting two power electronics acts he is a pious devotee of more occult style religious practices, accumulating a vast amount of knowledge. I recently had a chance to ask him a few questions about his art and the ideas behind it.

1. Could You tell us your name and a little bit about yourself? 

My name is Christopher Ropes and I'm a 41 year old fan of most art and music. I've moved around a lot and am now living in New Jersey for the second time, this time with the love of my life. The most relevant facts about myself are that I'm a devout Satanist and I believe all existence is The Grand Work Of Art and all individual works of art reflect some facet of this.

2. Your music, specifically Nighttime in The Abyss, is very much informed by you spirituality. How would you describe your spirituality? Is your music evangelistic in purpose? Or is it more spiritual and cathartic?

My spirituality is very complex. It is a form of ascending Satanism that eschews all violence, whether internal or external, material or spiritual. My music is not really evangelistic, though I do like sharing my soul. I do not attempt to proselytize but neither is it purely personal or cathartic. I consider the music a series of progressive reports from the front lines in my own quest for truth. Some of these reports are deeply religious and some are cathartic but ultimately the goal is is always to reflect where my Self is at any moment in time. I hope that, in this way, I capture the timeless through the temporal.

3. Why the pseudonym Alocer Christus? What does it signify? 

Alocer is something of of a guardian spirit or patron demonic entity to me and represents to me the beginning of my occult search. Christus is, I believe, an accurate and yet controversial depiction of the end result of of any occult life well-lived. So this name is my spiritual Alpha and Omega.

4. Your new project,Abizu, has a very strong personal bend to it. Why the change in direction?

To be perfectly honest, it feels just a spiritual as Nighttime in the Abyss, the main change for me has been the willingness to tackle examples of the spiritual as manifested in the concrete rather than in simply abstract ideas and concepts. I do not feel there is any true gap between the spiritual and the worldly unless one lives a life that divorces the two and I've been seeking balance in that very area of my life, so I've attempted to bridge them in Abizu as well as make work that is even more explicitly devotional.

5. Do you feel that power electronics/noise/experimental music can convey feelings of love as accurately as can convey feelings of nihilism and negativity. 

I absolutely do. I am not sure if you've ever heard the album "Territory" by Immaculate:Grotesque, but it is the first album I have ever heard in the realms of noise to tackle more tender feelings, possibly not positive ones but certainly not savagely hateful or aggressive ones, and it did an exquisite job. I hope to accomplish some of that with my work as well.

6. What was your first experience with experimental music? What sparked your creative genesis towards the avant-garde? 

Honestly, almost all credit for that can go to Celtic Frost's "Into The Pandemonium." Prior to that, I was a teenaged metal snob who listened to nothing else and that opened the floodgates to having a much broader outlook. Many metal purists were disappointed but for me it was an awakening. Years late, I discovered things like Merzbow, Masonna, Sutcliffe Jugend, Whitehouse, the more radical Current 93 material and, very importantly for the blackened direction of my work , Abruptum. And I'm still seeking farthest frontiers of musical expression, which leads nicely into the next question you posted.

7. What do you think of the term "anti-music?" 

I hate it. If someone wants to refer to what they want to do as anti-music or anti-art and be all Dadaist or whatever, go for it, but Marcel Duchamp's anti-art is proudly displayed in art museums. I don't even consider canned, bubblegum pop bullshit to be anti-music, and there is nothing I've discovered that is such by virtue of extremity. I think labeling something as anti-music or anti-art is a foolish attempt to limit what those things are capable of and the only time I use terms like that is in jest or to describe something in a sarcastic way to an individual whose mind is closed to the avant-garde.

8. Where do you think experimental music is headed and do you think your music has a place in that journey? 

The wonderful thing about any experimental art is that if you look at it historically, much of it seems inevitable, but like a good film or story, as much as where it goes makes perfect sense, the attempt to predict it is doomed. It will take any number of visionaries all working and possibly being undiscovered for decades to determine where this craft is headed, all I can say for certain is that I'm excited to see where it goes.

Do I feel my stuff is part of where it will go? I certainly hope so, though I'm not certain or egomaniacal enough to say definitely.  I think some of my compositional techniques as well as the many ways I attempt to manipulate the human voice could lead to true geniuses expressing themselves in ways I cannot dream of. If even one person is slightly inspired to create something of lasting value from my little stabs in the dark, I will be honored and bursting with joy beyond words.

9. Any music that you're currently digging? 

Listening to Xiphoid Dementia on headphones as I answer these questions. Also Whorid, COMPACTOR, A Murder of Angels, Serpent Ascending, the most recent Behemoth album, and tons of Masonna.

10. Could you cue us in on any upcoming projects? New recordings we should look out for? 

More work on Abizu and Nighttime definitely. And my love, Stephanie, and I will be collaborating under the moniker Cult of Bastet, hopefully recording very, very soon. And I have a 2 CD album out on Altar of Waste using just my Alocer Christus name as well as a split cassette being released this summer with Kanibal Hymn on Cthulic Dawn productions, a split I've been dreaming of for decades, since he was working with the name Terrorgoat. He is one of my all time favorite music idols as well as a dear friend.

11. Any final words? 

Create art or anti-art or whatever you want to call it because in this way you participate in the life of Divinity and become identical with God and Satan. Lastly, in the words of a mentor of mine, "Lucifor-Christos, the Soul of God, have mercy upon us."

Black Metal Cover Art

Black Metal, at its essence, focuses on the idealized ancient man. The man that struggles for his success as an individual in a natural world that seeks his destruction. Despite this conflict, the man is aware of his place in the world and respects the natural order. If it is his destiny to die, so be it.

These album covers portray this black metal ideal from several different angles. These albums are in no order except for number one, which I feel perfectly represents Black Metal. I would like to clarify that I do not necessarily believe in this line of thought, but I am fascinated by it nonetheless.

10. Burzum- Aske

Featuring the charred remains of the Fantoft Stave Church, Burzum's Aske represents the self-determination and folly of man. Man has built a structure and another man, exercising his will to power, has destroyed that structure by harnessing the natural power of fire. This might seem like a victory to man, but the burning of the structure reveals it's fragile wooden foundation. All of man's tools are fragile and breakable. Man relies on nature for sustenance and protection, but nature can always take what back what it gives. 

9. Ossein- Declination

For their debut full length, Ossein chose the image of swaying reeds and a crescent moon, lording over the inky blackness. The reeds are tall, straight. They are guardians of the night. This is their domain. Any man must have their wits about them. Something might strike from the darkness. 

8. TodesstoB- Eine Velorene Seele

This is a portrait of a man that lost his battle. His skeleton has been cleaned of flesh as is the way of nature. Death with dignity, perfect for this German DSBM band. 

7. Drudkth- Forgotten Legends

Drudkth, with there debut album artwork, create a space of uneasiness and conflict. The world around the POV character is hazy and uncertain. Birds fly in the distance. What're they escaping from? 

6. Mayhem- Live in Leipzig

This cover shows the idealized man as a multifaceted creature. He has had some success against the elements, yet he is also a threat. He steps out towards the onlooker, his intentions unknown. 

5. Striborg- Southwest Passage

Even during the day time, the time in which man can operate in relative safety, nature is a threat. A threat that man lives under and must respect. 

4. Wolves In The Throne Room- Demo

This image, used by Wolves In The Throne Room on their first demo tape, addresses the intellectual/spiritual dimension of this idealized man. Spirituality was nothing but an attempt to understand Man's place in the wider universe. It has basically been replaced by science, which is more accurate. Despite this, some still practice arcane spirituality today, possibly to get in touch with their idealized selves. 

3. Bone Awl- Meaningless Leaning Mess

Bone Awl have one foot in Black Metal and one foot in Punk, allowing them to accurately critique the modern world while still offering up their music and aesthetic for critique under the umbrella of larger Black Metal ideology. This image critiques modern man and its art and structures. The non-idealized man builds structures that are pleasing to the eye but not-practical in the confines of nature. The non-idealized man makes art that is beautiful yet hollow. 

2. Fall of Rauros/Panopticon

We view the rare image of the idealized man struggling against the elements in real time. He is strong and determined. Nature careens over him, an unstoppable, unconquerable force, yet he strives forward with a staff, a gift of nature, in hand. 

1. 

Here we have the pinnacle of the Black Metal man. He is shrouded in darkness, mystery, and the reaching tendrils of nature. He holds what appears to be an axe, an object gifted by the natural world, as he walks towards the viewer. What is his intent? Will he chop down a tree? Trying to eek out an individualist living? Or is he going to try and attack the viewer, belying his nature as a self-aware, yet still feral, animal. It is compelling. A fantastic image. 

Gravekeeper

DSBM, a.k.a depressive, suicidal black metal,  is an over saturated genre. Anyone with rudimentary guitar skills and a heart of despair has a DSBM project. As a result of this genre flooding, very few DSBM bands are any good. Gravekeeper, of Ottowa Canada, has managed the very rare feat of making DSBM interesting. 

Gravekeeper, with his self-titled full-length release, presents an interesting blend of depressive, melancholy black metal with elements of drone and doom. The drone and doom parts are often low in the mix, acting to accentuate the pounding drums, tremelo picked guitars, and inhuman vocals present in every song. The production on this record is perfect. It is murky without being tinny and it actually sounds heavy, a quality that most black metal, depressive or otherwise, lacks. The whole album sounds not of this world. It is depressive in the way that the works of Lovecraft are depressive. Depressive with the dread of knowing something beyond you and your world creates depression, that being small and victimized by something beyond your comprehension creates melancholy. 

Track number four, "Find Peace (In Demise)" is a highlight of the album. It is a thoroughly unnerving three-minute journey into looping feedback, demonic vocals, and guitar melodies capped off by a sudden burst of ambient guitar swells. One track even offers a sliver of hope. "Alas, The Sun Rises Tomorrow" has a surprisingly upbeat melody and vocals less abrasive than the usual fair. It's jarring and doesn't fit with the mood. 

This album is for those that like their DSBM otherworldly and closer to Funeral than Shining. 

8/10

Listen/Buy here: http://06gravekeeper13.bandcamp.com/album/gravekeeper-2

The Loud Ones

The Loud Ones are a group of four guys with very sore knees. Let me explain, The Loud Ones is a band that lives, breathes, eats, and shits skatecore. They formed in 1983, meaning they've been shredding, playing parties, and devouring beer for thirty one years. All that action has to take a wear on the body. 

Not that you would ever know it, because the band is back and they're harder than ever, finally releasing a full length. Being mangy, feral skaterats, the guys only recorded one demo in the entirety of their existence before going back to shredding gnar and raw-dogging chicks in fast-food handicapped stalls. This is their much-needed statement of intent and it's a strong one. Think thirty years of skateboarding and hardcore distilled into one record and you're on the right track. This thing is catchy, fun, and surprisingly well produced. The mix is great and the vocals are powerful. 

If you're going into this expecting anything other than a punk blast of fun then you're in the wrong place. This album can best be summed up by the title of one of its best tracks. "Skateboarding, Chicks, 'n Rock n Roll."

Ya dig?

Sample here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_1xlTu7giY

Buy here: http://store.beercity.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=BCOS&Product_Code=BCR171-2&Category_Code=music