I find it hard to get into black metal...

[MasterOLightning]

Has anyone else experienced this? I have the Emperor collection Scattered Ashes, figuring that would be a good place to start. Some of the songs sound pretty good (Curse You All Men, Thus Spake the Nightspirit, Ye Entracemperium, Cosmic Keys to my Creations and Times, which I like in spite of that irritating buzz.) Others don't really click with me. Should I just keep listening and listening and hope I start to like it? Are there other bands or albums that are more accessible/better? Darkthrone, Burzum, Mayhem? Please don't give me anything so obscure that only 50 people have heard it. Are there some of you who just have never gotten into black metal at all?

 

[Nico]

But "I Am the Black Wizards" didnt click for you? Strange, thats usualy their catchiest.

Darkthrone, Mayhem, Burzum, are not more accessible. You'll probably want to start with something with good production if the buzz annoys you. I'd recommend Astriaal, Dissection, Naglfar, or maybe later Immortal or Marduk.

 

[Jean-Pierre]

But "I Am the Black Wizards" didnt click for you? Strange, thats usualy their catchiest.

Darkthrone, Mayhem, Burzum, are not more accessible. You'll probably want to start with something with good production if the buzz annoys you. I'd recommend Astriaal, Dissection, Naglfar, or maybe later Immortal or Marduk.

Darkthrone are the fucking Motorhead of BM-they're easily accessible (depends on which album- but most of them).

 

[futile]

What Shroud said.

 

[crimsonfloyd]

Keep listening to Emperor. The fact that you like a lot of it already sugests it will click in time. I didn't even like them the first time I heard them. It's very complex and intracate music, it's not all gonna click at once. Give it more time, I doubt you'll regret it.

For more accessible but still excellent black metal give Dissection, Darkthrone, Old Man's Child or Summoning a listen.

 

[Perdition's Light]

If you are looking for something accesible to break you into black metal, it's hard to recommend anything because black metal is almost by definition not accesible music...I think most of the overly melodic black metal doesn't really measure up to the harsher stuff.

But "I Am the Black Wizards" didnt click for you? Strange, thats usualy their catchiest.

Darkthrone, Mayhem, Burzum, are not more accessible. You'll probably want to start with something with good production if the buzz annoys you. I'd recommend Astriaal, Dissection, Naglfar, or maybe later Immortal or Marduk.

The above suggestions were excellent.

also try:

Nightwork - Ravendusk in My Heart
Ancient Wisdom - ...And The Physical Shape of Light Bled
Limbonic Art - Moon In The Scorpio, In Abhorrence Dementia
Rotting Christ - Genesis, Khronos,
Satyricon - Nemesis Divina
Summoning - Dol Goldur
Thy Serpent - Christcrusher
Ulver - Bergtatt
Aeternus - Beyond The Wandering Moon (not really BM but should help you appreciate it)
Behemoth - Sventevith (Storming Near the Baltic)
Carpathian Forest - um, pretty much any of them...they're the rock'n'roll of BM
Goatwhore - Funeral Dirge for The Rotting Sun
Old Man's Child - The Pagan Prosperity, In Defiance of Existence
Samael - Ceremony of Opposites
The Meads of Asphodel - Exhuming the Grave of Yeshua

A lot of those (well most of them) are not a true representation of black metal. But until you can find Emperor accesible, there's no way in hell you're going to get into Burzum or Darkthrone.

 

[Ultimate_Symphony]

Astriaal - Renascent Misanthropy
Nagelfar - Srontgorrth
Nokturnal Mortum - Goat Horns
Obtained Enslavement - Witchcraft
Ulver - Bergtatt
Negura Bunget - 'n Crugu Bradului
Vinterland - Welcome My Last Chapter

 

[Funeral Portrait]

There's only been a handful of BM bands I can say I've really gotten into, mainly because I personally don't care for the whole "necro" recording alot of them go for. Some of my favs are... (and yes I know some, like Dimmu, aren't real black metal, but I'm more of a Death Metal fan so I don't care )

Dimmu Borgir, Naglfar, Gorgoroth, Emperor, Immortal, Carpathian Forest, Impaled Nazarene, Alghazanth, Old Man's Child, Third Moon, Tidfall, Lux Occulta, Diabolical Masquerade, Windir.

I dunno, like I said for the most part black metal isn't really my thing, but I have found a liking in those bands, perhaps you would like a few of those as well...

 

[BlessedAreTheSick]

Old Man's Child rule.

 

[no country for old wainds]

Summoning was a good suggestion.

Personally, I don't rate Emperor very highly.

 

[spaffe]

GoD made a rather obvious but important point; only because one enjoys black metal doesn't automaticly mean one enjoys emperor. bm is without doubt my favourite genre and i don't like emperor very much/at all. go for something more melodic if you're new in the genre and then delve deeper, such as:

dimmu borgir - their four latest
naglfar - diabolical (a lot of death metal here as well i know)
immortal - sons of northern darkness and at the heart of winter
dissction

 

[no country for old wainds]

Sacramentum's Far Away From The Sun is quite an accessible release for those getting into black metal. The song Det Som Engang Var by Burzum is the one that did it for me, though.

 

[Nico]

Definitly the song that changed my mind about BM was Naglfar - I Am Vengeance. It was just so agressive and spitefull.

I dont realy enjoy Emperor much either. I'd never consider them one of my top 10 bands at any rate.

 

[anonymousnick2001]

I'd also try some hybrid bands.

...And Oceans if you're a fan of industrial.

Melechesh if you like Middle Eastern stuff.

Marduk if you like grindcore.

Dark Funeral

Agalloch if you like Opeth and Ulver.

Old Man's Child

Arcturus if you like prog-rock.

Dissection if you like Gothenburg.

Sacramentum if you like Dissection.

Vinterland if you like the above two.

 

[Perdition's Light]

Hum. "Nightwork" and "Ravendusk in My Heart" are both albums by Diabolical Masquerade. I'm sure that's what you meant.

Thanks, that's what I meant to say. I guess I was up too late.

 

[no country for old wainds]

I recommend the following. You will surely find something here that you like:
Blut Aus Nord - The Work Which Transforms God (eerie, sweeping, pummeling)
Sacramentum - Far Away From The Sun (beautiful harmonically, structured flawlessly)
Summoning - absolutely anything (incredibly epic, triumphant and slow-paced, except their first album)
Nokturnal Mortum - Goat Horns (key-laden, again very epic)
Drudkh - Autumn Aurora (an elegant naturalist piece that's been getting credit from everywhere just recently)
Varathron - His Majesty at the Swamp (mixing black metal with nwobhm to create oozingly seductive music)

 

[anonymousnick2001]

Is there anywhere I can find clips of Varathron? I've been meaning to get into them.

 

[Fourka]

Why try to make yourself listen to BM since it doesn't click for you? Listen to whatever you like, whatever you feel, whatever it makes click for you. IMO, you listen to a specific song because you like the feeling of this song/music/melodie/rythm and not because it is Black/Death/Power or even pop and so on..

On the other hand, it's good when someone checks a different music because it is said that this music is good and nice, but there's not point to pressure yourself to listen to a music you don't really like. I think it's common sense, not only with music but to whatever you do.

 

[no country for old wainds]

Meh, almost nobody likes black metal straight away. It was over a year after I had Mayhem and Emperor albums that I actually began to like the genre properly (not because of those bands, I might add). You have to put a little bit of effort into understanding and appreciating it, but it is eventually incredibly rewarding. I have no problems with people who repeatedly try to explore different forms of music.

Honestly though, try out the albums I recommended. Listen to them a few times through headphones at night with the lights off, just let the atmosphere take you places. No doubt you won't like all of them, but there's a wide range of stuff there.

I still recommend Det Som Engang Var (song, not album) by Burzum. I remember when that track first hypnotised me, it was like a whole new world was opening up.

 

[anonymousnick2001]

I still recommend Det Som Engang Var (song, not album) by Burzum. I remember when that track first hypnotised me, it was like a whole new world was opening up.

One of those musical moments no one ever forgets.