Your top 10 Black Metal albums

[Einherjar86]

Actually, black metal is my favorite type of music.

It sucks that you don't like that much of it.

 

[AnamCara]

There are many bands that aren't well known or aren't the popular bands in black metal that are actually good, great and brilliant. Why some become more popular than others, I haven't a clue. I think many people when they find they love black metal start with what I call the basics like Bathory, Darkthrone, Immortal, Mayhem etc and never expand beyond that, which I feel limits you musically and you miss out on some super stuff. Sure I have bought duds, and plain shit but I have also found some incredible stuff too. My philosophy is to buy and not go by other peoples opinions or reviews, since that can be limiting.

In my own collection of just black metal (not counting other genres of metal), which includes sub genres or cross overs of ambient, folk, death, pagan, thrash and viking black metal, I have well over 3,000 cds, vinyls and cassettes many of which are demos. I could definitely find 500 in that section that I really like or love and I think I have pretty good standards in music when it comes to black metal. I also tend to buy whole discographies if its a band I really love and having been buying black metal for well over 20 years since Bathory jumped into the scene in the mid to late 80s when I was in high school. Bathory at that time was earth shattering. Something out of left field that no one was really doing and it left me wanting and searching for more bands like that at the time. For me, the quest is always on for more black metal. I just placed an order of 18 cds. 15 are demos and debuts of black metal bands I haven't heard of or heard yet but have wanted to. The other 3 are stuff that is pretty well known. I hope I wind up liking all 15 but I am sure there may be a dud or two in the bunch. I don't mind taking the chance if it means I might find something that blows my mind.

Just my opinion on the 500 albums debate.

 

[V.V.V.V.V.]

How did you come up with this number from MA?

I just checked the number of bands labelled as BM in MA and there were 18.517. I don't know what the average number of releases is? 3? 4? So there are probably more than 50.000 black metal releases overall?

I went to M-A and used Advanced Search to search how many results I'd get for the criteria "full-length" and "black metal" in the genre (so this didn't include things labeled Black/Death Metal, etc., only things that said black metal, so it did include melodic/symphonic/whatever-qualifier black metal...)...

I admit I probably have far broader taste in BM than you, Cythraul. I don't think you find that to be an insulting statement, because I think you possibly (maybe I'm off base ) equate "broader taste" with "lower standards" which signifies a distinct error in your though process, imho.

 

[Kara-Shehr]

1: Emperor- In the Nightside Elicpse
2: Enslaved- Eld
3: Gorgoroth - Antichrist
4: Burzum - Filosofem
5: Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
5: Marduk - Panzer Division Marduk
6: Burzum - Burzum
7: Darkthrone - Under a funeral moon
8: Striborg - Autumnal Melancholy
9: Behexen - Rituale Satanum
10: Dimmu Borgir - Stormblast

in no real order just some of my personal favorites

 

[Kara-Shehr]

Sorry but I'm still not convinced. It's quite likely that an astonishing proportion of that 8,000 consists of mediocre copycat releases, downright horrible releases, pointless bedroom black metal projects, and then stuff that is probably decent (which, by the way, I wouldn't count as "worth hearing.") If you think stuff like Drudkh is good then of course I can see you thinking the latest atmospheric black metal jerk-off out of Uzbekistan is worth hearing, but I don't. I need a little bit more than mere numbers to be convinced.

edit: Now, if we're including demos in the mix, then I could see how the 500 figure might be reasonable. I was referring to albums. I simply cannot fathom there being 500 black metal albums that I ought to listen to.

I could go on a BM binge for WEEKS just on the stuff that in my opinion is worth listening to. but you do have a point though, low production and long droning songs or the "trve kvlt" sound don't always equate to good BM. the songs have to have emotion in them.

But you really have to go beyond just hearing the first 30 seconds of each song and really try to think about the purpose of it. pretty much what the music is supposed to do for you. what the artist is trying to get you to feel. but im not trying to sound all deep though

 

[Balmung]

Ulver - Nattens Madrigal
Arthemesia - Devs Iratvs
Burzum - Filosofem
Darkthrone - Transilvanian Hunger
Summoning - Dol Guldur
Immortal - At The Heart Of Winter
Rotting Christ - Thy Mighty Contract
Enslaved - Frost
Dissection - Storm of the Light's Bane

In no particular order

 

[no country for old wainds]

i kind of agree with cythraul in the sense that while theres almost certainly more than 500 *enjoyable* bm records, i'm pretty certain there aren't that many that i'd listen to over and over and develop a real fondness for. the whole patronising grimmer-than-thou 'you obviously dont like bm that much then' thing is a load of crap. i think the more experienced you get as a listener the higher your standards go, a lot of the stuff i was into say 5 years ago has revealed itself to be pretty naff in retrospect.

 

[V.V.V.V.V.]

i kind of agree with cythraul in the sense that while theres almost certainly more than 500 *enjoyable* bm records, i'm pretty certain there aren't that many that i'd listen to over and over and develop a real fondness for. the whole patronising grimmer-than-thou 'you obviously dont like bm that much then' thing is a load of crap. i think the more experienced you get as a listener the higher your standards go, a lot of the stuff i was into say 5 years ago has revealed itself to be pretty naff in retrospect.

The claim (by Cythraul) was that there are "doubtful 500 BM albums worth listening to". I get where you're going with this but to "kind of agree" with him would mean at least agreeing with his premise, which was quite clear tbh. I know what you mean, and yeah, if we go by your definition of "enjoyable" (keep developing a great liking to, even after many many multitudes of listens), of course that's going to thin the herd a little bit, I don't think anyone can logically disagree with that, which is why I, coincidentally, don't really find this method of thinking the least bit compelling

 

[Lateralus14]

If you have time in your life to devote several listens to 500 black metal releases in the first place, I would say there are other issues at hand.

 

[skeptik]

i kind of agree with cythraul in the sense that while theres almost certainly more than 500 *enjoyable* bm records, i'm pretty certain there aren't that many that i'd listen to over and over and develop a real fondness for. the whole patronising grimmer-than-thou 'you obviously dont like bm that much then' thing is a load of crap. i think the more experienced you get as a listener the higher your standards go, a lot of the stuff i was into say 5 years ago has revealed itself to be pretty naff in retrospect.

I think what you're saying specifically goes more in line with sheer pragmatics. It's nearly impossible to have a serious, committed fondness with 500 albums period, across a wide spectrum. For people with large libraries, the vast majority of their collection will by necessity be rendered to the "occasional listen" category, with some ultimately enjoying brief fits of regular listens before going back to the shelf. Of course, I'll always ultimately gravitate toward Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Mercyful Fate, Bathory, Fates Warning, Burzum, Pentagram, etc. But that doesn't mean that others that receive less playing time are "unworthy". I'm fairly confident that I could find 500 black metal albums that are worthy if I put enough effort into exploring it further, though I'm not sure if I even own 500 black metal albums at the moment.