Black Metal History Month -The Top 66 Black Metal Bands of All Time -36-27

We are going further into this darkness with this list of the Top 66 Black Metal Bands of All Time. Before you get your bullet belt twisted with what is about to go down here. I am not writing commentary with each entry, instead I will cryptically foreshadow the reasoning for where these bands fall. I typically defaulted to Last Fm so this is ranked by most listened to by me. Since it is my blog it only makes sense I can think I am a huge fan of one band but if I never listen to them how good can they really be? There are bands that are supposed classics , and well they did make the list and this is the top 66 black metal bands out of hundreds. If they did not rank as high as you liked well go make 

your own fucking list or start your own fucking blog. 

 There will not be much in the way of Raw or Beastial black metal, because they tend so sound like shit . There are many sub-genres represented here, Atmospheric, progressive , first wave , depressive, post ...so lots of ground is going to be covered. I have also included the country so we will have a clearer picture of who is exporting the best black metal. The tracks chosen are not the best , but the 6th track from my favorite album unless my favorite album does not have six songs and then I am picking the album before that one, if that one doesn't have six songs then I keep going back until I find one that does. So here ya go

36-Destroyer 666

Country - Australia

 

35- 1349

Country- Norway

 

34-Wayfarer

Country- America

33- Rotting Christ

Country- Greece

 

32- Wolves in the Throne Room

Country - America

 

31-Primordial 

Country- Ireland 

 

30- Twilight 

Country - America

   

 29-Negura Bunget

Country- Romania 

28- Craft

 Country- Sweden

   

  

 27 Leviathan

Country - America 

Negura Bunget : "ZI"

The hungry Transylvanians are back. The first song is more chanting an native instrumentation than metal and when the distortion does crunch on it's just that and not black metal per se. Negru is the only original member with members of Din Brad and Grimegod picking up the slack. There is a weird lapse into rock n roll on "Gradina Steletor". Thanks to the members of Grimegod, there is more of a death metal feel at work than black metal when they do go into the heavier sections. While the rock n roll portions were unexpected I am a fan of the darker moodier beginning of "Brazda da foc" . A throaty Neurosis like sung vocal comes in before the murmur of blast beats builds beneath them. The explosion is however contained. I can appreciate this as it defies the run of the mill metal formula.

The plot thickens as they get heavier on "Baciu mosneag". There is a more frantic almost progressive touch to this one , with sung vocals providing a greater contrast before the death metal growls come in. The there is an almost more Iron Maiden like gallop that chimes in with the guitar solo. It breaks down into minimalist atmosphere with a simmering chant in the background. It builds back up in a manner more in line with the rule book of standard heavy metal dynamics. I really like the blend of sonics and folk instruments that set "Stanciu Gruiul" into motion. It ebbs and flows with all of these sounds in play and a gypsy folk. Far from the heaviest song on the album it does prove to be one of the more interesting. The last song "Marea Cea Mare" has a more abstract droning atmosphere. Female vocals eventually float in, while I did the sonic depth it just hovers in one place for the first  too long. There are some other re-mixes of the other songs, but for the purpose of this review I am just going by the songs written for this album.

I'll give this album a 9. I am unsure if I need this in my iPod or not though I might just give it a shot. I like the balance achieved here that is true to what this band does. If you are already a fan then it should live up to your expectations as to who this band is and what they should sound like while adding more depth to their sound.

Black Metal History Month: Negura Bunget's"Tau"

We will say the band is back after five years, since that ep they put out in 2011, just sounded like they were trying to be Enslaved. They have returned with what is to be the first album of a three album trilogy. They brought back the balance of ethnic folk sounds and metal are back in back. It can be debated as to if they are back playing black metal or not. I can say right from the opening song it's obvious that this is something that is going to take multiple listens to soak in all the layers. This  opens more along the lines of "Virstele Pamintului" which is impressive considering the drummer Negru is the only member of the band who played on that album. This new line-up has been intact since 2013 and features members of Grimegod and Din Brad.

"Izbucul galbenei"storms of more in that Enslaved direction with a very straight ahead metal attack. Some of the folk elements when they introduced on this album are more synth driven and less organic in feel than those on"Virstele Pamintului". The album does have more of an ebb and flow than any other folk metal album I have heard in recent years and even what sounds to be some electronic elements running as a strange undercurrent . This is very ambitious and it pays off more often than not. There is a darker vibe to this album. There is an almost Wardruna like pulse to the chant that opens "Curgerea Muntelui". The synths build the drama reluctantly bringing the metal back as the growls return. They continue to balance the two worlds as the epic chug to "Tarim Vilhovnicesc" carries a progressive slant against the scathing vocals screaming into the distance. The drumming on this album is phenomenal, and I don't normally get too excited about drummers.

There is an odd array of elements from almost a gypsy ska along the lines of Gogol Bordello mixing with dark prog metal. This makes for one of the albums most unique songs and opens new creative doors for the band. They ride on a graceful sweep further into metal with the melodic yet powerful"Picur Viu Foc". The growls rumble up from a dark place in the soul as the flutes attempt to offset this. There are more clean vocals on this album than in the past , yet they seem as if they are being handled differently this go around. On the last song they really take on a strong and commanding melody in the vein of Primordial. I'll round this up to a 9.5, though once I get use to some of the changes and the more epic and progressive way of apporaching the metal section rather than black metal, then it might even turn into the perfect album to me, but right now it's going to be getting repeat listens as I soak it all in. If this is the first album of a trilogy I can only hope the other two are this good.

Weekly shuffle

Ok ...you know the drill, I give a click to shuffle Mose and review whatever tracks pop up.

"The Web" by Neurosis, Back when these guys were awesome and there songs crushed you rather than put you to sleep. "Souls at Zero" is my favorite album by them and if I was or when I do make a post about my favorite metal albums of all time this will be on it. I like the reverse delay on the vocals and here is a good example of how do drone with out being a pussy about it. Even though this came out in the nineties the production is great the bass tone is incredible. This is why it's hard for me to take their new stuff seriously.

"Bloodied Yet Unbowed" by Primordial, I'm glad we are getting a lot of metal on here as it seems like I haven't been able to review much of it lately as nothing has grabbed me. I think these guys have popped up on here before, I use to have their whole discography on my iPod and now just "Redemption at the Puritan's Hand". The vocals are a perfect blend of grit and melody here, he is a better singer than growler, his voice like Ics Vortex instantly makes things epic. The double bass build into the blast beat work and is good example of it being put to creative use rather than being a cop out.

"This Place is a Prison" by Postal Service, This song has great lyrics it describes how I feel on most days and it darker than most metal lyrics these days so headbangers set up your game. The vocal melody is subdued which is par for the course the , I like when the stronger beat and the lyric "what does it take to get a drink in this place " sits over it. It's like Death Cab Cab for Cuties album for goths.

"Cursed" by Atriarch, This was my metal album of the year last year, so you already know how I feel about this one , go check out my review for more info if you are unfamiliar them. It's a dark slab of doom, with all the ugliness of black metal you can want. The vocals here are more like old Swans, and the guitar creep in behind it like funeral doom, so everything I could want in one song, so any question as to why I would have set it on such a pedestal.

"Night Witches" by True Widow, These guys fall some where in the same realm as Jesus and the Mary Chain or a Place to Bury Strangers, this album is underrated. The bass player I think is a metal head at heart as he drives this thing harder than you think it would be in the opening strains. This is indie rock done right with some balls to the too hip for their own good attitude.

"Take it Easy" by Bright Eyes, Back in the early 2000s when Conner Oberest was poised to be the next Bob Dylan by hipsters at the time he put out two albums one was country ish the other kinda of dark wave electronica called Digital Ash in a Digital Urn, which was the better of the two any way this one who is Cure influence he could no longer hide, I saw him get blown off the stage by the Faint once so it soured the taste in my mouth I had for him, I think the Fevers and Mirrors album is incredible and he was a great songwriter who fell by the wayside.

"Inarborat" by Negura Bunget, A couple of years ago I was blown away by these guys but the last e.p they put out seemed like they were jumping on Enslaved's band wagon, who is jumping on Opeth's bandwagon.Never the less their older material is incredible . This song has legit pagan/ folk elements to it which darken things up like Dead can Dance rather than dance around the maypole. The use of clean vocals here works really well and this song works for every angle.

" A Mutiny" by Red Sparowes, While I can appreciate the whole post-rock instrumental thing the majority bores me after a while. This band is an exception to that rule as they make their guitars sing in a way that doesn't leave me looking forward to vocals that never come. Their guitar tones are close to perfect, maybe they even are perfect and I just don't want to say it. This song drifts around like something from Pink Floyd's Animals album. They go from more melody and dynamics than being content to drone which wins in my book, the build on this one has a very cinnamic feel.

"Die with Me" by Type O Negative, They got wrongly lumped in with mall metal bands after awhile, but this album is a ten with no question, their pinnacle they never touched this one afterwards. Sure it starts very lazily like Queensrcyhe wanting to be pink Floyd, but by the time their signature fuzz comes in ns the chorus hovers at the rain splatter window we are all...stoned ...I mean enthralled .

"Up Through the Ashes" by Kamelot, "Ghost Opera" would be on that top one hundred metal albums I mentioned earlier. It's too bad they are following NightWish into the where are they now files. The mid paced chug of this once balances it out for. Getting too melodramatic like bands of their ilk are prone to do, the thing I have have like about them is as pretentious as this sort of thing tends to be they darken it up, of the post nineties era bands like this these guys are pretty much the only one of their kind that I listen to , they were amazing live and heavier than you would suspect them to be, but Alas no Roy Khan and I think that intensity is diminished despite the new singer being better than I anticipated.