- Nov 23, 2002
- 26,677
- 9,652
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Among the elite 97%
While there is quite a bit of dispute in the elitist community over which Nokturnal Mortum release stands above the rest, for me there's only one winner. While the kvlt homosexuals among us will immediately dismiss Nokturnal Mortum as 'cheesy CoF wannabes with a nazi gimmick', those among us without sand in our ears realise that this is actually one of the most beautifully melodic, intricate, epic black metal albums ever recorded (and that this one doesn't even have a nazi theme on the surface).
Calling it cheesy is understandable in a way, it's certainly grandiose and symphonic which tends to be pretentious. In this case though, the structure is actually classically-based rather than just having orchestral aesthetics based around pop-structures, and the keyboards are textured expertly into the music. The opening "Black Moon Overture" could be mistaken for a tune from a Final Fantasy soundtrack at an ear-glance (not that I'd call that an insult, but it's not really fitting for black metal), but delve a little deeper and it becomes clear that this is a stupendous exercise in dramatic tension - the mood rising and falling around beautiful folk-inspired melodies. An interesting theme that Nokturnal Mortum execute perfectly is that the tracks which follow are mainly building upon the ideas in "Black Moon Overture" - that track being the centrepiece that the album is based around.
Goat Horns is generally mid-paced, the folky keyboard melodies are sometimes rousing and sometimes melancholy but they almost always build towards a climax, usually within each individual motif as it develops, or at the end of the phrase. A trebly drum machine (if it's not a machine, it still sounds like one, but doesn't ruin the atmosphere at all) and sometimes gritty guitars create the rhythm, but this album's main focus is exploration of melody, and thus the drums usually keep quite an even beat. A relentless trembly bassline drives the songs along and creates ambience. The vocals are shrieked fittingly for the most part, although on "Kolyada" some slightly eerie clean vocals take charge and are surprisingly effective.
Nokturnal Mortum certainly can't be accused of lacking variation. Every track has something unusual to define it, from the slowly-developing strongly-eastern intro to "Unholy Orathania" to the sparkly pizzicato parts of "Veles' Scrolls". There's even the odd Mortal Kombat-esque orchestra hit (probably not the proper term but hey, I'm crappy at music theory) to be found. The title track, my personal favourite, boasts an intro that begins with an acoustic passage which is then developed on by an epic descending keyboard melody and militaristic drumming, until it finds full flow and lays out an epic journey almost completely unrivalled by other bands in black metal.
Once you've got this one, don't stop there, purchase the unusual and inaccessible but eventually rewarding "NeChrist", and "Lunar Poetry" which is somewhat similar to "Goat Horns" but not quite as good.
While there is quite a bit of dispute in the elitist community over which Nokturnal Mortum release stands above the rest, for me there's only one winner. While the kvlt homosexuals among us will immediately dismiss Nokturnal Mortum as 'cheesy CoF wannabes with a nazi gimmick', those among us without sand in our ears realise that this is actually one of the most beautifully melodic, intricate, epic black metal albums ever recorded (and that this one doesn't even have a nazi theme on the surface).
Calling it cheesy is understandable in a way, it's certainly grandiose and symphonic which tends to be pretentious. In this case though, the structure is actually classically-based rather than just having orchestral aesthetics based around pop-structures, and the keyboards are textured expertly into the music. The opening "Black Moon Overture" could be mistaken for a tune from a Final Fantasy soundtrack at an ear-glance (not that I'd call that an insult, but it's not really fitting for black metal), but delve a little deeper and it becomes clear that this is a stupendous exercise in dramatic tension - the mood rising and falling around beautiful folk-inspired melodies. An interesting theme that Nokturnal Mortum execute perfectly is that the tracks which follow are mainly building upon the ideas in "Black Moon Overture" - that track being the centrepiece that the album is based around.
Goat Horns is generally mid-paced, the folky keyboard melodies are sometimes rousing and sometimes melancholy but they almost always build towards a climax, usually within each individual motif as it develops, or at the end of the phrase. A trebly drum machine (if it's not a machine, it still sounds like one, but doesn't ruin the atmosphere at all) and sometimes gritty guitars create the rhythm, but this album's main focus is exploration of melody, and thus the drums usually keep quite an even beat. A relentless trembly bassline drives the songs along and creates ambience. The vocals are shrieked fittingly for the most part, although on "Kolyada" some slightly eerie clean vocals take charge and are surprisingly effective.
Nokturnal Mortum certainly can't be accused of lacking variation. Every track has something unusual to define it, from the slowly-developing strongly-eastern intro to "Unholy Orathania" to the sparkly pizzicato parts of "Veles' Scrolls". There's even the odd Mortal Kombat-esque orchestra hit (probably not the proper term but hey, I'm crappy at music theory) to be found. The title track, my personal favourite, boasts an intro that begins with an acoustic passage which is then developed on by an epic descending keyboard melody and militaristic drumming, until it finds full flow and lays out an epic journey almost completely unrivalled by other bands in black metal.
Once you've got this one, don't stop there, purchase the unusual and inaccessible but eventually rewarding "NeChrist", and "Lunar Poetry" which is somewhat similar to "Goat Horns" but not quite as good.
