Amebix "No Sanctuary" (1983)

 

Having recently entered some conversations on the origins of proto-Black Metal, this British Crust Punk outfit share some peculiar similarities at times with Bathory and to a lesser extent Venom. Given the confrontational nature of this music and expanding exploration of extremity, this seems a case of retroactive co-incidence, given a lack of mention from any originators of second wave Black Metal.

My ears immediately turn to fellow Post-Punk era Killing Joke. With a menacing fuzz of dissonance powered by a repetitive rhythm section, crashing walls of scratchy lead guitar noise wails alongside angered shouts of rage. Its gritty production rolls the instruments into an atonal mess of texture, spewing forth an unsettled mood. Lacking ferocity, these grizzly soundscapes make one feel like an observer, detached from gruesome atrocities the topicality likely depicts, given its harrowing cover art.

Mid-tempo marches revel in grinding repetition. Baselines articulate iterations, dodge a sense of melody whilst adding expression. The music routinely drags itself along with its charm seemingly buried in these strange chromatic rumblings. Barbaric strikes of percussion interrupt without groove, crafting a sense of anti-music inspirations.

Control seems to be the one song connected to Bathory. Its heathen like vocal choir tilts the atmosphere to something satanic and mysterious. The suggestion shapes its shredding guitar riff to a similar tilt. In juxtaposition, at the other end of the record, Sunshine Ward goes in an entirely different direction, sounding like The Cure or possibly a parody of. Interesting listen, curious atmosphere but not a lot to latch onto.

Rating: 5/10

Burzum "Filosofem" (1996)

 

With a stroke of genius, Hvis Lyset Tar Oss broke ground on what Black Metal could be. Its popular predecessor Filosofem, further explores this atmospheric angle. Shifting tone and temperament in slight degrees, Varg returns with the usual sentiments of mother natures harsh realities, lonesome, esoteric and fantastical. Consciously lowering fidelity somewhat, loose distant drums, simmering fuzzy guitars and half spoken distortions of English lyrics embark on lengthy marches. Another flavor of his crude yet deeply effective atmospheres.

Exploring potent chemistries Dunkelheit and Erbicket pace through mid tempo storms of gnarly fuzz, illuminated by soft synth tones. The latter's eclipsing keyboard melody simply unforgettable. They breed an usual tension accepting inner peace and mortal death. Between them, Jesus' Tod runs rampant into the darkness, cycling mean, sinister riffs through hurtling blast beats. Completely unrelenting, only its catchy melody offers relief to its ceaseless nature.

In my opinion the record should have concluded with Rundgang, a twenty five minute minimalist piece evoking transient spiritual sentiments. Often erroneously compared to Tomhet, its soothing tone and curiously introspective mood plays like a headspace alteration, more so than a song. It won me over decades ago, a perfect companion for lonely night walks through forest and fields lit by moonlight. It holds a mesmerizing magic I only hope others can encounter too.

Either side of this track lay the two halves of Gebrechlichkeit, a destitute experience built on sullen guitar riffs and sluggish, melancholic synth melodies. Lacking drums and its second instance simply pulling the groaning vocals of despair, it seems as if an unfinished track has been used to pad out the records duration, leaving its later half primed for skipping over. This is where it loses merit. This could have been another classic, given how undeniable its opening trilogy of song are.

Rating: 9/10

Hades "...Again Shall Be" (1994)

 

Exploring the other works of Burzum's producer Pytten, I happened across ...Again Shall Be. I'd probably checked them out decades ago but with a refined ear for Viking Metal, it caught my attention as an early hybrid of the later and Black Metal. Fellow Norwegians Hades embody an early Immortal sound, who Pytten also worked with. Gristly narrow guitar distortions drone, intertwined with throat wrenching screams. They meld together in med tempo grooves with powerful thunderous drums and meaty yet tuneful basslines. Song shift between sways of metallic and raw atmosphere. Along its journey melodies conjure echo's of ancestral roots, yielding the sinister format to their heathen vision. So to do acoustic guitars and burly clean voices wage in on swaying the darkness to evoke folksy cries of a harsh rural godless communion.

As the record settles in, repetition becomes a sticking point. After a few tracks, its darkly agitated temperament begins to drone. Songs proceed at a steady pace, rarely breaking form. When a simple synth note arrives at The Ecstasy Of An Astral Journey's conclusion, its elevates the song greatly. This is attributed to a need for change, more so than compositional merits. After all, its a single note. A couple other songs have brief acoustic breaks that perk the ear. Otherwise the record feels like an endless repetition of its main theme heavily inspired by the likes of Bathory's Black and Viking eras. Its left me bereft of remarks beyond enjoying this vision which swiftly tires beyond enduring ten minutes of its diminished ideas.

Rating: 5/10

Burzum "Et Hvitt Lys Over Skogen" (1998)

Paired with yet another demo of Lost Wisdom, Et Hvitt Lys Over Skogen reaches us via bootleg release. Its a nine minute epic pulled from Hvis Lyset Tar Oss. Why it was removed? A total mystery. This is a mighty fine song, heard through a muddied recording. One can imagine its aesthetic matching that fine record. Musically, Its construct has a foot in each camp. Some riffs conjure the metallic temperaments of his earlier works. The other revels in harsh naturalistic atmospheric. The pivots between these halves flow wonderfully. Approaching its midpoint, power chord arrangements coalesce with a triumphant chest thumping march. After, blast beats erupt and shadowy riffs call with nefarious inclinations. Another enchanting song but on this analytical reflection, I see how Varg may have felt the song repeats ideas explored before, only partially realizing the visionary direction of that record.

Rating: 4/10

Paths Of The Eternal "Esoteric Rites" (2024)

 

Esoteric Rites caught my ear with its fragrant attempt to establish fresh fantastical territory within a tired genre. For that, I commend the effort, however it falls short of clicking into place. Seeking out unusual aesthetics, estranged synth tones clash through both melody and tone. These wild compositions rest upon musical theory, as instruments dance is a peculiar limbo, absent of chemistry. Drums bang away, stiff and jolted. A sense of tribal influence permeates some of its percussive lines. The basic samples and swift attack delivery lacks a nuance to sell us on its purpose beyond keeping pace. Around them, a cast of lead melodies from fantasy, to eerie, esoteric and mysterious, plunder away through its curious make up.

Across its twelve track a few bright sparks bluster but its mostly blunder as atmosphere rarely settles into distinction. One can hear the allure of certain visions accustom to Dungeon Synth and Fantasy music but core themes are dragged through a dimensional paradox of crossed wires and inverted tensions. I'm most fond of the opening title track, a fever dream collapsing into itself. Here the unusual temperament yields a riveting peculiarity but beyond this first impression, the music is lacking a deeper substance. It entertains, a handful of melodies charm but as a whole Esoteric Rites fails to land its flight with gratification.

Rating: 4/10

Burzum "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss" (1994)

 

Enter a naturalist sublime, as inspiration finds it form, the stars align. Opening with a spirited union of mystic synthtone and sizzling guitar distortion, we embark through three minutes of atmospheric bliss, isolated with the cruel beauty of mother nature. Estranged and peculiar as ever, this is Burzum's peak, perfecting aesthetic, craft and vision. Its opener, Det Som Engang Var, sharing name with his previous album, then roars into life. A barrage of tumbling tom fills ushers in an iconic, anthemic riff. Triumphant and resolute, it plays like a battle cry from a Bathory classic. The song swings between these juxtaposing temperaments, laying in simplistic lead guitar overtones at the midpoint to slip us along the songs lengthy final passage, which further revels in its arcane guitar distortion and korg/cassio synth chemistry.

Title track Hvis Lyset Tar Oss leans into darkness. Blast beats and grizzly guitar grinding turns attention to the broody harmonizing bassy synth lurching below the songs unrelenting march. After a couple of minutes the pace thickens, a hard snare strike leading charge as fuzzy guitar chord arrangements breed emotional relief among its harsh offerings. Venturing deeper, the grind shifts again, pierced by Varg's despairing howls. Returning to its opening stature, an unsettled conclusion emerges as flickers of lead guitar overtone offer little more than reinforcing its darkly premise.

My absolute favorite track, Inn I Slottet Fra Droemmen, offers up the brutality of frozen landscapes. Resolute in its repetitive, obnoxious grind, a chilling thrash of harsh riffs bombards. The wobbling high baseline furthering its gratifying peculiarity. Grinding through dissonance, it eventually releases this tension for moments of worldly reflection as those stunning synths re-emerge alongside string plucking riffs that revel in the messy guitar distortion. Teasing the release of its steady build up, the climax is godly. When drums crash in, its conclusive riff roars triumphant and eternal. Its peak, yet somehow, Varg yields more, lining up gratifying riffs, the return of harmonizing synths and a glorious guitar lead for an unforgettable spiritual experience.

At its conclusion, we a treated again to visionary offerings. Although easily associated with the retroactive Dungeon Synth label, Tomhet transcends. Seemingly a simple arrangement based on minimalism, the chemistry of its tones, octave shifting whistle and subtle percussive thud birth something remarkable. Meditative, introspective, lonesome... insert all your adjectives here! So much is conjured from so little, highlighting our deep humanist connection to music. The midpoint pivots entirely to a new construct, refining its calming powers and evoking even more curiosity. After some minutes, a gentle drum pattern emerges alongside this soulful flute melody that somehow makes sense of all this spiritual peculiarity. Such a remarkable record.

Rating: 10/10

One Arc Degree "The Forest And The Milky Way" (2023)

Inconsequential! That's the word I've been seeking. A peaceful setting, absent of self. This describes my current obsession with these meditative Psybient sleepers. One Arc Degree's prior effort didn't resonate quite like this one. With soft touches of Yagya alike dreamy Downtempo droning, The Forest And The Milky Way toys with Cosmic Ambience aesthetics as steady thuds of percussive life pull us through serine soundscapes that swell and contract through luscious layers of shimmering synths. Its sweetest fruits emerge through covert arrivals. The driving kick bass locks in with an emergence of soft snare and quiet cymbals, conjuring a hazy dancefloor energy.

Its construct sequences lengthy songs dwelling on an aesthetic tones. Instruments gracefully dodge melody, lurching in limbo, toying with their own ambiguity. A web of sounds hang in perpetuity, whirling, murmuring, drifting on by without a care. The result is soothing, meditative, blending earthly vibes with astral synths that land in their own strange yet welcoming space. My preferred tracks lure me in to a deep calm, the others pass by without concern. Its a wonderful listen. The moments that spin to my rhythm are entrancing. Its not the entirety of the record but worthy of much merit!

 

Rating: 7/10

Burzum "Det Som Engang Var" (1993)

 

 

 The blemishes of Burzum's growing pains fade as Varg's sophomore effort plays concise, sharp, effortlessly flowing through the fruits of his lonesome esoteric craft. A masterclass in how to structure a record, Det Som Engang Var houses the final remains of sinister metallic groove, before sequestering into the depths of lonely atmosphere on future releases. With a bold linearity, songs brood, evolve and venture to breaks, deviations and climaxes at thoughtful pace. Its flow gushes with musicality, weaving in plenty of nightly heathen melody to its monstrous demeanor. Varg jostles extremities, shuffling between tuneful lockstep grooves and frighting bursts of discordant terror held together by loose blast beats, arriving at wild destinations.

Opening with the scowling ferocity of Key To The Gate, this roar of dissonant metalic anger matures through blues pains punctuated by Vargs anguished howls with a stunning uplift of anthemic melody. Proceeded by En Ring Til Aa Herske, we revel in the echo's of Black Sabbath groove twisted to a frozen landscape as soft murmuring chants bestow a glorious ritualistic mood. Lost Wisdom returns in its best incarnation. Bereft of fuzzy fidelity, the track shines with a fierce might. Jostling Varg's typical arsenal of disheveled chords, roaring groove and dusky melody, the song blooms.

Next we hit the Dungeon Synth note, Han Som Reiste showcases an ear for melody evoking naturalistic and ancient cultural themes, tilted to a lonely peculiarity. Its a gorgeous song, the following Naar Himmelen Klarner shares its qualities but is performed on dueling guitars drenched in fuzzy distortion. It creates a stunning atmosphere but its underlying composition suggests it too could have been performed with synths. The gradual build to arrive of a simple drum groove is always enchanting.

Snu Mikrokosmos Tegn has long been a favorite. Its pummeling dissonance and dreary persona grinds with repetition, shuffling into hardy guitar riffs that highlighted the values of brooding on an idea to a young me. Its offering of light at the midpoint plays a swell, gratifying reward, ideas we will hear again later on, explored deeper still. The track then muddies its way through another spooky spell of intensity, lacking the pummel of barbaric drums, to arrive at that magical destination once again.

Either side of all these cuts lay some Dark / Black Ambient pieces, masterfully composed, estranged, mystic and complimentary of the five songs nestled between them. This lean approach will evolve as we embark on Varg's finest work next.

Rating: 10/10

Naughty By Nature "Naughty By Nature" (1991)

An understated classic from the other side of Hudson River, Naughty By Nature's sophomore effort stands the test of time. Uniting radio friendly Hip Hop of the era with Hardcore Rap. This trio's tuneful beats and energetic rhymes somehow grapple the gritty verbal craft and easy pop appeal in the same space. Kicking off with Yoke The Joker, we hear a ferocious Treach drop one of Rap's most legendary verses, rhyming practically every word in the dictionary beginning with s. The whole song is fierce display of talent, his words leap out at you through undying rhyme schemes.

 

In retrospect, he seems ahead of his time. Leaving the classic post N.W.A flow behind. One can anticipate rhymes arriving yet his vocabulary depth is loquacious, a fluent stream of surprises with words beyond casual tongue delighting on a frequent basis. Slick, swift deliveries and chopped cadences are thoroughly entertaining. Every tracks words house a few surprises up the sleeve, spit fit for purpose, wonderfully contrasting the often upbeat, poppy instrumentals with street rugged rhymes.

 Some instrumentals play strapped with typical sampling of the era, reveling in childhood influences of 70s R&B, Soul and Funk. The balance struck sets them apart, with hard hitting drum samples more akin to House music and tight, purpose built baselines. They aid its aesthetic personality along with simple Piano strikes, adding stiff flushes of color and melody to the mix. So to do soft organ or synths chime in on occasion. A Saxophone and Piano solo also liven this sense of elevated beats.

This tailored musicality bridges the cheery tones of OPP, Everyday All Day and Everything's Gonna Be Alight, with hard hitting bangers like Let The Ho's Go, Strike A Nerve and Guard Your Grill. Lyrically, its often gritty. The contrasts this breeds on its upbeat numbers plays a charm that's hard to forget. Naughty By Nature has got it all, endearing beats, enduring rhymes. When it comes to discussing Hip Hop classics this has to be in the conversation.

 

Rating: 9.5/10

Burzum "Aske" (1993)

To my ears, Aske is where things take off. Consisting of three solid songs, refined aesthetics compliment their musical vision. Gnarly guitar distortions are softened into an indulgent flavor of nightly fuzz, brooding an estranged emotive atmosphere. Stemmen Fra Taarnet, the voice from the tower, jostles between metallic power chord arrangements and discordant touches of dark melody. Wounded howls anchor its evil inspirations, shifts invite an esoteric melancholy that swells in the tracks third phase.

Dominus Sathanas, master Satan, highlights a compositional prowess. Commanding a craft for sinister melodies, Varg melds them into clouds of fuzzy overdrive to break the linearity. Its key tune embarks as a lone reflection, to captivate ones imagination in his realm. We've heard flickers of this motif before. It will return again but with this song, a vision is fully realized. A delight to indulge with upon its brief duration.

A Lost Forgotten Spirit returns in its best incarnation yet. Fined tuning percussion and slowed tempos aid the droning distortions. Blast beats tone down intensity, double pedals rumble steadily. Its a better performance that elevates the songs unique mood. The track's first slow down beyond the minute mark is an utter delight. In prior version it sailed by to fast. It demonstrates Varg honing in on what makes his music tick. Something that won't need stating again after this remarkable turning point.

Final notes to share, the album cover is of a Church Varg was suspected of burning down. It is also suspected he took the photo too. This is how wild and real these deranged ideas where within the scene. Leading to more arson and murder, most of the madness emanating from a handful of madmen with the inner circle.

Rating: 7/10

Puremusic "Serenades Of The Night" (2016)

 

From algorithmic shuffle, to library, to playlist, Serenades Of The Night has swiftly won me over as another meditative ambient mastery record worthy of stashing away for the calmness it can bestow in an instant. Cutting through many flavors of sound design, Puremusic encroaches on Worldbeat, Downtempo, Psybient, Drones and subtle natural world aesthetics with an easily persuasive, engrossing distinction.

Every song feels carefully crafted. Dreamy instruments warped in soft reverbs add flashes of ambiguous melody to dense sways of inviting sound. With ebb and flow, intensities steadily muster, expanding from humble origins into succulent swells, expanding scope with entrancing repetitions ever disguising their form with timely subtle iterations and shifting nuances woven into the fabric of its alluring construct.

Highlights include Kama, a fusion of nightly Arabic suggestions, mesmerized by hypnotic rhythmic drive. Warmth strips out all percussion for a dense lavishing of droning synth. No Fairy Tales pushes its drums into electronic territory, conjuring fond echos of classics like Carbon Based Lifeforms. Only Pour L'amour breaks convention for a lonely piano piece that was a little to simplistic to evoke the emotion it aims for.

I didn't bond that much with the proceeding outro track Dawn either but despite this closing drop off, its first nine tracks are well executed and deeply soothing. A lot of this music can depend on mood and apatite yet among my musical ventures, true charm can still shine and I felt as if this record captivated me on its terms, not my own.

Rating: 7/10

Burzum "Burzum" (1992)

Armed with iconic, eerie, unsettling and darkly album art, upon its release, this debut was a freighting extremity, unleashing a new, esoteric strain of Black Metal into the wild. To seasoned ears, these abrasive aesthetics are now somehow easy, especially after enduring the fuzzy swamps of noise heard on the demos. Its Varg's shrill howls that hold up the horror. Sounding like a dying animal, raw shouts through strained vocals skirt the appeal of normal screams. I'm certain the idea is to sound off putting.

I've never been that keen on this record. Varg's writing at this point is yet to be refined. Returning to it decades later highlights the dissatisfaction yet also illuminates my lack of appreciation for the vision. Spell Of Destruction's mental break down consisting of enduring wretched screams and similarly Feeble Scream From Forests Unknown's slip into blurry dissonance and hurtful cries, created ugly sticky points I never got past.

Burzum encapsulates the raw rebellious ideology but lacks a finesse to character the essence of inspirations. A bulk of its lengthy tracks are pegged into a corner, pairing sloppy blast beats with endless strings of guitar riffs that entirely dictate the musical vision. Varg has the sense to shuffle percussive rhythms to aid the shifting moods of his power chord expressions. Twisted and woven throughout, iterations on the chords own structure play with dissonant melody to birth a fantastical sense of earthly darkness, devoid of cheese, frothing with cold suffering and tormenting loneliness.

Between these retroactively embryonic incarnations, we hear swaths of the maturity to come. Channeling lends its ear to the mystic tones discovered in classic Korg synths, laying the foundations for Dungeon Synth to emerge. Dungeons Of Darkness ends the record with a stroke of Black Ambient genius. A slow brooding suspense of ambiguous noise builds up a rumble of terror for what sounds like anguished souls to cry out in the depths of its foreboding visit. The Crying Orc showcases Varg's ear for Middle Earth inspiring melody, something to be developed on the next full length.

Then we have War. Fun and goofy, it plays like a Venom cover, or tribute to the first wave of Black Metal, its ending guitar solos reminiscent of Bathory's Heavy Metal energy. It showcases Varg's metallic prowess and yields to a new strain of dark anger. Before the records guitar driven presence concludes, A Lost Forgotten Spirit plays, another lengthy stint of primitive Black Metal ideology that will be immediately rectified on the next release. We hear glimmers of the genius yet to unfold, the difference between the two highlights a musicians growth, as aesthetic construct and tempo shifts arrive raw and unrefined, dispelling some of its enchanting and strange magic.

So there you have it, a mixed bag of ideas yet to settle into something concrete but taking us to a bewildered setting. Interestingly much of his music was written around this 91/92 era. What follows these songs will later be unimaginable in such crude and coarse form. Revisiting it again, a better understanding yet it has not grown on me.

Rating: 6/10

The UMC's "Fruits Of Nature" (1991)

Having explored the depths of 90s Hip Hop, it can be hard for records to have an impact on these matured ears. Keen not to pass by The UMC's warm and friendly tone, I've stuck with Fruits Of Nature for a fair few spins. Its struck me as one I could have easily adored if discovered earlier on the journey. Leaving the golden era behind, moving boldly into the Jazz Hop era, this complimentary duo capture the essence of a colorful scene with questions as to how its 91 release fits into the tapestry of influences. I've heard them mentioned in plenty of rhymes, possibly listened to it decades ago but opening track One To Grow On really caught my ear this time.

Its the cream of the crop, with righteous rhymes and a bouncy beat, the pair pack positive messages of personal growth into its Jazzy groove. Devoid of cursing, the record plays with an uplifting tone, two youthful voices with heads held high, aiming for a thoughtful impact on their audience, given the lyrical content which rarely deviates.

Fitting snugly into the era, cadences and rhyme structures entertain with competence, perhaps lingering in Guru of Gang Starr's shadow on occasion. Producers Haas G & RNS line up temperate percussive grooves with colorful instrumental loops. Warm, often sunny, Jazzy and Soulful in nature, halve these track play a cut above the norm. The other half getting a touch tired on its repetitious nature. A few flashes of the "phunky fresh" vibe from Cypress Hill's early sound pass by too. All in all a fun listen, a solid record that possibly held more impact on the scene at the time of its release.

Rating: 6/10

Burzum "Demo II" (1991)

 

Depending on where you venture to hear this follow up to Demo I, the quality varies greatly. This fidelity mess is further muddied by its complied nature. Including Depressive Visions Of The Cursed Warrior, later omitted to not be a Burzum song, leaves an unsolved mystery as to where this music actually originates from. I couldn't find an answer online. The other ten tracks are pulled from various rehearsal sessions of varying quality, some with drums, some without. Also present are the three songs from its predecessor. This makes for a messy listen. Three tracks appear twice but so do two songs from later releases that proceed his debut full length.

Essentially, four new tracks. Only two have drums. Between them we are showcased to the oddity of Varg's esoteric guitar riff visions. Linear movements shuffling from the dark eerie to strange metallic grooves, much like before. Only A Lost Forgotten Sad Spirit hints towards the acts future trajectory, something to be discussed later on. Stuffed with aesthetic blemishes from audio drops, swells of bass noise and playing off beat from a click track, a lack of vocals doesn't give this messy release a specific purpose. It ends up feeling hastily assembled to throw something out into the ether.

Rating: 4/10

The Brand New Heavies "Heavy Rhyme Experience Vol 1" (1992)

 

 

British act The Brand New Heavies try their hand at collaboration with rap heavy hitters of the era. Adding story driven rhymes to the mix, the Acid Jazz outfit come full circle on their Hip Hop persuasions that mostly shape up percussive loops with repetitious groove. The fit seems perfect, given the shared influences of Soul, Funk, R&B and Disco on both the bands style and young rappers parental music.

Working with a pre-Wu-Tang Clan Master Ace, Kool G Rap, Main Source, Guru of Gangstarr and legendary The Pharcyde, the band scoop up some top talent among other guests, each track receiving a guest act to layer in the vocal element. The band shape their slick Acid Jazz grooves into fruity, flavorful loops - lively, tailored with apt color and melody. Despite its organic nature, the performance stiffens, stripping out the opportunity for tangents, iterations or progressive leaning song structures.

 

Once a beat makes itself known, it sticks firmly, resting a lot of the music on its rappers who meld with the tone to various degrees of success. With such smiley, friendly instrumentals, its curious to hear Kool G Rap excellence on Death Threat. A strutting baseline and shimmering guitar leads add a soft gangster attitude to its tone. Kool takes it the rest of the way with fierce rhymes and aggressive energetic delivery.

Heavy Rhyme Experience Vol 1 is a competent listen, capturing the rap scene at the end of its Golden Era / Jazz Hop sound, right before big shifts in tone over the next couple of years. With quite a few weak performances and a lack of identifiable hooks, its served as a fun listen to plunder a couple of fun tracks from. Sadly wont have me returning for more, despite the disappointment, its a shame more crossovers like this haven't taken place in this era of Hip Hop. There was such potential here.

Rating: 5/10