Crash course to Norwegian black metal episode 3: Enslaved, Emperor and Ulver
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- Welcome to Rauta's crash course series and the third episode of it. This time I will hope to guide you into the Norwegian black metal of the 90's. Three bands in question this time are Enslaved, Emperor and Ulver.
This time I failed to include Metal Archives' pages on the background, so you just have to go with my face. Sorry for that!
00:07 Intro
03:27 Enslaved
09:24 Emperor
14:31 Ulver
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I saw Emperor play the whole of In the Nightside eclipse in concert last month. They are amazing live and Ishahn's voice has held up really well over the years. They're a bit like Mayhem in that they only have a few good releases but the good stuff is some of the best there is
Thank you for Mighty Emperor 🤘😎
Emperor drowns the guitars under the keyboards. The riffs and the music in both “Nightside” and “Anthems” are great. I personally would like these albums even more if the sound of the guitars was more like the demos, where they have less or no keyboards.
But oh well, I bought these albums in 2019 so I guess I am late to the party.
If this episode is about the ones that got away from BM you should do one about the bands who never gave up making killer BM like Urgehal and Tsjuder etc. BM era of Enslaved is really killer, Frost is probably my favorite. And of course In The Nightside is Eclipse is total classic. For Ulver the first 3 albums are definitely their best, Nattens Madrigal is my favorite. I used to be more into Bergtatt but im kinda over that type of sound today.
They are coming. I'm just basically going from the big to small, from the more successful ones to less known ones. Wait and you will see.
@Rauta excellent, enjoying the series so far very much!
Glad to hear
Moro Jerry! Good guiding Video for those who needs it! Hopefully U go through other countries as well! Take care! ;)
Thanks. This series is not even halfway finished, so other countries have to wait...
Some really good smaller Norwegian bands out there too peole shoukd check out. Ancient's first album and EP are amazing for example, or early Gehenna is excellent too. The Hades demo is one of the greatest BM demos as well. Not a lot of people talk about these bands.
I'm going for smaller bands after the biggers are done, of course. Just wait and you'll see.
Noooooo more of Norwegian 90s BM..😂😂😂....Marduk was killing it at the same time
Yep, but that's another story. This series focuses on Norway.
Wrath of the tyrant rules!
Of these three bands, only Ulver is the one I could call myself "fan" of it. I used to like "Bergratt", like when I first discovered black metal but nowadays whenever I listen to it, it reminds me of what you call "green black metal", or what I call "oh so sophisticated, smart with PhD diplom, harmless atmospheric black metal". To be honest I seriously feel nauseous when I listen to it. On the contrary of Bergtatt, I used to dislike "Nattens Madrigal". Now it's one of my favorite albums. I especially like the cover art and the lyrics besides music. It may sound really raw to a newcomer but it's not raw or not even "crappy production". Very good album nonetheless. Kveldssanger is a hit or miss for me. I like few selection of songs from that album. After their Black Metal era, I like "Perdition City" and "Lyckantropen Themes". From that up until "Messe I.X-VI.X" I skip everything. I somewhat like "The Assassination of Julius Caesar" and "Flowers of Evil" but not as much as Messe or Perdition City.
I commented something similar to the first episode of this crash course bu, this is my main problem with nowadays "legendary black metal guys". They are trying to rewrite the history, " _cough_ _cough_ we were just kids and we were just joking around, it was all for fun. Euronymous used us, Dead was just a poor depressed guy which Euro used and abused". There were interviews, statements, photos BEFORE making albums. Tons of them. You were alive and well back in the day Jerry. I was born in 1997, you know that better than me. If they weren't, now what people like to call "edgy", if they weren't passionate, devoted individuals; what was left of BM would be a few extremely rare demo tapes and RUclips videos about this "obscure and forgotten genre and stange bands from Norway, Sweden etc." Not Black Metal as we know it. It makes me laugh when a BM artist (especially one of the BM "celebrities") says "it's all about music man". FOAD.
Black Metal is nothing without fanaticism and devotion. I'd like to limit it to Satanism (not LaVey not Church of Satan, ego driven pro-life pro-human Satanism, Wicca, including NS. Unfortunately, NSBM - allegedly or for real - is the only thing what keeps people on their toes about BM nowadays) but let's just leave it at that.
Sorry for the long comment. Keep up the great work as always Jerry! I hope Gorgoroth will be featured in the next episode.
Very good commentary, and I agree, some artists try to rewrite the history. If it wasn't for the passion and controversy of these guys - edgy - we wouldn't have these albums.
The non-metal ones you mentioned about Ulver are imo some of the best (Messe, Lyk, PC etc). But if this three, Enslaved is for me the winner. Clearly.
The next episode will feature CF, Gorgoroth and Taake.
'' I'd like to limit it to Satanism '' ... Ok! so what about paganism ? Lots of true black metal deals with pagan topics. Paganism are part of black metal since day one. Real paganism (not the hippie wicca type) is someking of devil worshipping if you asking me. Slavic Black Metal could be a indicator of this tendencies.
It's weird how black metal basically has two roots: Pagan, isolationist nature worship, and theatrical satanic transgression.
I prefer the former, so Burzum and Ildjarn for me capture that spirit the most perfectly, because they were the first and the most extreme. I do think Filosofem is THE quintessential black metal album and Burzum is THE artist.
A lot of people can argue that Satanism is the core of black metal, but Mayhem's brand Satanism is ultimately very surface level and is quickly outgrown. Same with Darkthrone's vampiric vibe and their host of imitators. At its core, Satanism is "adversarialism" so from my perspective that spirit looks more like extreme paganism when it is maturely developed. Varg Vikernes understands that is the best front-facing presentation of that spirit in black metal.
Many black metal artists, especially those from the second wave of black metal, embraced paganism as a means to reclaim their cultural roots and rebel against the widespread influence of Christianity in European society. The second wave of black metal originated in the early 1990s in Norway, where some artists felt the need to resist the cultural dominance of Christianity and return to their pre-Christian, Nordic heritage.
Paganism was attractive to these artists because it provided them with a sense of identity and a spiritual foundation that was separate from mainstream Christian beliefs. In their lyrics and music, black metal artists often explored themes related to Norse mythology, ancient pagan rituals, and a general sense of national pride. By identifying with paganism, these musicians aimed to express their dissatisfaction with modern society and create a sense of rebellion against the Christian establishment.
In addition to this, black metal has always been heavily influenced by themes of darkness, chaos, and anti-religion. By embracing pagan themes, black metal musicians were able to reinforce these concepts while incorporating a closer connection to their cultural heritage. Therefore, paganism became an important element of the second wave of black metal, and it remains a significant influence on many artists within the genre today.
It's essential to note that while many black metal artists embrace paganism for cultural and spiritual reasons, there is a risk of encountering folkism within parts of these communities. Folkism refers to the belief that certain pagan religious or spiritual practices should be exclusive to people of a specific ethnic or national background.
Well you are definitely in the minority in where you place Emperor. They headline festivals & their albums routinely make the top ten in lists around the world, often at #1. It could be argued that they are the greatest black metal band, full stop.
I choose the placing on these factors: the numbers (following, plays etc. - simply put the other bands are bigger, so this is not an opinion) and the fact how active they are. As you noticed, Emperor’s album career lasted only for ten years. So, this ”placing” is based on facts, not opinions so much.
A lot of people seem to think Emperor is a lot bigger but when you take a look at the numbers, they are not as big as Mayhem, Satyricon or Immortal, for instance. But greatest black metal of all time? Maybe for those who are not really into black metal that much. Or those who prefer softer version of black metal and not that much extreme metal.
Don’t get me wrong: In the NIghtside Eclipse is one of the best black metal albums of all time, but the more clean vocals they started to incorporate in their music and the more progressive elements they started to include, the less interested I was in their music. Usually people seem to praise their 1st or 2nd album, not so much IXE or Prometheus.
@@RautaMetal You make some good points, & thanks for replying. To expand on my original comment I'm going to quote from Dayal Patterson's meticulously researched & voluminous tome 'Black Metal: Evolution Of The Cult'. Here is how he introduces Emperor:
"If Black Metal should ever get a hall of fame, there’s a pretty good chance Emperor will be the first inducted. In their early days they carved a name for themselves as an act surrounded by an aura of danger, one that occasionally threatened to overshadow their musical achievements. Yet at the same time they were always an undeniable creative force, and quickly earned a place as one of the genre’s early success stories. Indeed, they were one of the first Norwegian black metal bands to be signed by a foreign label, achieve significant album sales, and tour abroad. They also managed to survive as a band when three of their members were in jail. Most impressively, they managed the near-impossible feat of becoming one of the biggest bands in the genre while also being one of the most respected, ultimately winning over much of the metal mainstream as well as the black metal underground."
Glad to reply of course :-) Those points are good but also imo outdated. If they had been going, the could be the biggest. But in success etc Behemoth, CoF and Dimmu Borgir are a lot bigger. As are bands like Marduk, Mayhem, Immortal, Dark Funeral, Darkthrone and Burzum and latter two don't even tour.
When it comes to music, it's all matters if taste. For me Emperor made only one good album and that album is 5/5.
@@RautaMetal Yeah I could have appended that the book is a decade old! Things can change in that amount of time. As powerfully as Emperor plays live, they could be relegated to the 'Legacy' bands bin in terms of their peerage, though not necessarily that in regards to the amount of people who want to see them in concert for the first time & will blissfully travel for the opportunity. I may be in the minority on this channel, but 'Prometheus' is a 5/5 for me. Also, I think it likely that a new album will come out of these shows. Seems inevitable. If that happens then all bets are off. These are 'master' musicians, after all.
Thanks for getting back. Yep. Legacy act describes them well imo.
For me Prometheus is more like 5/10 for me... Ihsahn solo stuff is better imo