black & death: the top 10

[Oblivious Maximus]

When I first heard DMDS, I didn't like it. It finally grew on me, and now I think it's one of the best albulms of all time. I think the song writing is good, but nothing special.

 

[no country for old wainds]

Personally I think it's the best album ever and I think the people who don't agree simply haven't listened to it enough. It's a very even album, the first couple of tracks rule, but so does the middle and ending couple.
Listen to it (all of it) under fitting circumstances and tell me your opinion of it again.

I've listened to it many times. I think there's too much filler, I think the melodies at times aren't all that interesting and I find the vocals a bit annoying.

 

[Oblivious Maximus]

I find the vocals a bit annoying.

I agree with that. That's why it took me a while to get into it, Dead's vocals can be very distracting, and I felt it took something away from the music. I still give the albulm a 10/10.

 

[no country for old wainds]

Atilla did the vocals on DMDS. Dead wasn't alive at the time it was recorded. If Dead had been doing vocals it would've been better.

 

[Focusphere]

Quote

"It has comprehensive reviews no doubt, but that site is extremely biased to ultra-elitist views as far as metal goes. Not necessarily saying that elitism is a bad thing, but anus.com is too one sided to be considered that good a review site."

You mean as opposed to being wishy-washy about your opinion and trying to sugar coat something that would otherwise be useless to begin with? Whether you agree with anus.com isn't the issue I think. I appreciate their honesty, no matter if you agree with their assessment of an album or not. They also explain in full detail what the music is doing and how the instruments are being played. Sure, its a subjective way of interpreting the music, but so is every other review that says "This is bRoOtAl DuDe! tHeY hAvE tHe FaSteSt DrUmMeR!" and other type of moronic reactions to albums that don't explain the music very well. Anus takes an album as it is, and explains what the reviewer feels is important to that album and how it is relevant for us, the listener.

Metal should be elitist. It's not an ideology that focuses on helping everyone out. You have the courage to say what is progressing and what is stagnating. Allowing weak music to become acceptable is going to hurt metal, as it already has.

 

[no country for old wainds]

Couple of points:
Those who say 'Anus is so elitist, it sucks' are being elitist. Self-deprecation is stupid.

Those who say 'the Anus staff are a bunch of pseudo-intellectuals who have no idea what they're talking about' actually mean 'the Anus staff use big words which make me feel threatened because I can't match their intellectual prowess, so I'm going to say something about how pretentious and stupid they are because there are many other people like me on this board and they'll back me up.'

 

[Slayed Necros]

Couple of points:
Those who say 'Anus is so elitist, it sucks' are being elitist. Self-deprecation is stupid.

Those who say 'the Anus staff are a bunch of pseudo-intellectuals who have no idea what they're talking about' actually mean 'the Anus staff use big words which make me feel threatened because I can't match their intellectual prowess, so I'm going to say something about how pretentious and stupid they are because there are many other people like me on this board and they'll back me up.'

 

[Oblivious Maximus]

Atilla did the vocals on DMDS. Dead wasn't alive at the time it was recorded. If Dead had been doing vocals it would've been better.

My bad. There is a typo on my copy of DMDS, which says it was recorded in 1990.

 

[no country for old wainds]

Dead may have been a very interesting guy, although I don't like the fanboys who worship him. Better him than Euronymous though, I guess...

I know that wasn't relevant.

Also, I said 'Atilla' when I meant 'Attila'. He was a better vocalist in Tormentor. I don't think his vocals fit with Mayhem's style on that album, at all.

 

[Transilvanian Scotsman]

You mean as opposed to being wishy-washy about your opinion and trying to sugar coat something that would otherwise be useless to begin with? Whether you agree with anus.com isn't the issue I think. I appreciate their honesty, no matter if you agree with their assessment of an album or not. They also explain in full detail what the music is doing and how the instruments are being played. Sure, its a subjective way of interpreting the music, but so is every other review that says "This is bRoOtAl DuDe! tHeY hAvE tHe FaSteSt DrUmMeR!" and other type of moronic reactions to albums that don't explain the music very well. Anus takes an album as it is, and explains what the reviewer feels is important to that album and how it is relevant for us, the listener.

Metal should be elitist. It's not an ideology that focuses on helping everyone out. You have the courage to say what is progressing and what is stagnating. Allowing weak music to become acceptable is going to hurt metal, as it already has.

The quote from that guy shows that he was not doubting, the comprehension/ the 'in-depth'-ness of anus.com. I dont think many can fault them for talking at great lengths to criticize an album. Which in itself should be praised as you said. However, some people can only take the words at face value because they do not have the same tastes in music and probably dont agree with their politics. Of course, neither point of view can be 'right'.

Couple of points:
Those who say 'Anus is so elitist, it sucks' are being elitist. Self-deprecation is stupid.
Those who say 'the Anus staff are a bunch of pseudo-intellectuals who have no idea what they're talking about' actually mean 'the Anus staff use big words which make me feel threatened because I can't match their intellectual prowess, so I'm going to say something about how pretentious and stupid they are because there are many other people like me on this board and they'll back me up.'

Some may even say that of you? Understanding the big words is not the problem. Take the dictionary for example, full of big words BUT, notice the word that appears on most/all of them... Concise. I dont think Anus are concise enough for everyone to refer to. Being concise does not detract from being elitest. I know someone studying English Literature, their grammar is superior to mine no doubt, yet even they find anus not concise enough that they have to re-read articles. The obvious reply to this is: He must be on the wrong university course or they he sucks balls, and is stupid because they cant dont enjoy deciphering anus.com.
Not everyone cares about in depth consideration of political imagery. Not saying either side is right, but you dont seem to appreciate people have a different perspective to the same music you listen to.

The biggest shock i got was when i read the reviews for Absu, they actually seem positive.

Is that a fair review of anus? I'm not disagreeing with their 'prowess', just not fond of their writing style.

 

[ThePhilosopher]

I think Anus.com reviews generally read way TOO much into albums. 1000 bucks says that when the bands made the albums, virtually none of that was going through their heads. They try too hard to find obscure meanings and often point things out that aren't even there. While I generally do enjoy reading their reviews, because they are right a lot of the time (and no doubt well written), their staff just has too much of a hard time realizing that not every band in the world is out to create some new philosophy or ideology.

 

[Genesis_Revolt]

Anything after Stormblast from Dimmu Borgir is'nt really black metal. I really wouldn't give Cradle of Crap the pleasure of being called black metal either.

 

[tapegasser]

thanx to all who responded. here's my choices:

Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
Darkthrone - A Blaze in the Northern Sky
Suffocation - Effigy of the Forgotten
Immolation - Close to a World Below
Morbid Angel - Blessed are the Sick
Cryptopsy - None So Live
Dying Fetus - Destroy the Opposition
Nile - Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka
Nile - Black Seeds of Vengeance
Nile - In their Darkened Shrines
Obituary - Slowly We Rot (Extra Tracks)
Entombed - Left Hand Path
Cynic: Focus
Atheist: Unquestionable Presence
Atheist: Piece Of Time
Burzum: Hvis Lyset Tar Oss
Summoning: Dol Guldur
Immortal: Pure Holocaust
Suffication: Pierced From Within
Burzum: Filosofem
Bathory: Blood Fire Death
Darkthrone: Transilvanian Hunger
Ulver: Bergtatt
Immortal: At the Heart Of Winter/Blizzard Beasts
Immortal: Sons Of Northern Darkness
Ulver: Nattens Madrigal
Darkthrone: Under A Funeral Moon
Enslaved: Vikingligr Veldi
Limbonic Art: In Abhorrence Dementia
Possessed: Seven Churchs
Rotting Christ: A Dead Poem
Borknagar: Olden Domain
Burzum: Det Som Engang Var
Immortal: Battle In the North
Immortal: Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism
Cannibal Corpse: Tomb of the Mutilated
Gorerotted: Only Tools & Corpses
Nile: Festivals of Atonement
Cryptopsy: And Then You'll Beg
Gorguts: Obscura

 

[Profanity]

You've chosen badly.

 

[Black Winter Day]

thank you for that information

 

[no country for old wainds]

I think Anus.com reviews generally read way TOO much into albums. 1000 bucks says that when the bands made the albums, virtually none of that was going through their heads. They try too hard to find obscure meanings and often point things out that aren't even there. While I generally do enjoy reading their reviews, because they are right a lot of the time (and no doubt well written), their staff just has too much of a hard time realizing that not every band in the world is out to create some new philosophy or ideology.

Of course, art is always subject to interpretation. Anus may interpret aspects of an album differently to how the creator intended.

 

[no country for old wainds]

The quote from that guy shows that he was not doubting, the comprehension/ the 'in-depth'-ness of anus.com. I dont think many can fault them for talking at great lengths to criticize an album. Which in itself should be praised as you said. However, some people can only take the words at face value because they do not have the same tastes in music and probably dont agree with their politics. Of course, neither point of view can be 'right'.



Some may even say that of you? Understanding the big words is not the problem. Take the dictionary for example, full of big words BUT, notice the word that appears on most/all of them... Concise. I dont think Anus are concise enough for everyone to refer to. Being concise does not detract from being elitest. I know someone studying English Literature, their grammar is superior to mine no doubt, yet even they find anus not concise enough that they have to re-read articles. The obvious reply to this is: He must be on the wrong university course or they he sucks balls, and is stupid because they cant dont enjoy deciphering anus.com.
Not everyone cares about in depth consideration of political imagery. Not saying either side is right, but you dont seem to appreciate people have a different perspective to the same music you listen to.

The biggest shock i got was when i read the reviews for Absu, they actually seem positive.

Is that a fair review of anus? I'm not disagreeing with their 'prowess', just not fond of their writing style.

I think Anus are generally concise. They don't wander off from the topic at hand, there's little or no redundancy, it's all very nicely written. The problem most people have is that the vocabulary is so complex. However, you have to take into account that these words exist to be used, and that Prozak won't hesitate in using these words if they express his views more accurately than a simpler, similar word.

 

[speed]

I very much disagree with you Guardian. The anus.com reviews are quite similar to reading a British academic journal; the articles wander off without making a point. The author is merely using "big" words to mask the fact that generally the author is bullshitting everyone with theories the author doesnt fully understand nor have any relevance towards the topic at hand.


Once you get in College or grad school, you wil notice this trend of wandering confusing overly wordy articles, its a good way of masking the fact that you have no relevant research to share.

 

[Astral Poetry]

Personally I think it's the best album ever and I think the people who don't agree simply haven't listened to it enough. It's a very even album, the first couple of tracks rule, but so does the middle and ending couple.
Listen to it (all of it) under fitting circumstances and tell me your opinion of it again.

It's an alright album, but for the time it was released during, it's rather bottom of the barrel. The highlight of the album is the lyrics which are fantastic, but otherwise it's not very compositionally achieving.

 

[Transilvanian Scotsman]

On topic:

Are you going to download those albums Tapegasser? Or buy them? Thats a lot of money if you are going to buy. Well, to buy all at once... I find it hard to buy many cds at once and give them a full listen. Perhaps d/l a song or 2 from each?

Edit: From a black metal stance point, you have not chosen badly, imo. You do have pretty much every Immortal album listed, lol (thats not a complaint,b tw). Furthermore, you have most of the important releases in there too.

Off topic:

I very much disagree with you Guardian. The anus.com reviews are quite similar to reading a British academic journal; the articles wander off without making a point. The author is merely using "big" words to mask the fact that generally the author is bullshitting everyone with theories the author doesnt fully understand nor have any relevance towards the topic at hand.

Someone that agrees with me. Fortunately for me, my chosen line of study is Physics. In many ways I can enjoy reading relevant journals which are much more objective. The topics are hard enough to think about without the need of 'floral' english.

I concur with Guardian that words exist to be used; why else would they exist?
But as far as word choice is concerned... it is good at times. It's more the sentence structure that the word choice that frustrates me. If there is a word I dont know, I can use dictionary.com Then re-read the sentence and consider the context in which it is used.
Some of the reviews are far easier to read once than others. I still think he could have been more concise.

Edit: Guardian do you ever find yourself disagreeing with the reviews at Anus? Whether is simply a disagreeance musically or about their interpretation of ideology or other interpretation of artistic content?

If so, which review and why?