The Rock Blogger

Empyrium. Where at Night the Wood Grouse Plays . 1999. 4 stars .

Germany’s now defunct Empyrium have crafted a gorgeous neofolk album in the same vein as Ulver’s Kveldssanger, complete with classically inspired acoustic melodies and haunting, Gregorian inspired vocals. While albums embracing acoustic instrumentals and forest imagery are becoming increasingly common in underground music circles, Where at Night is so succinct and convincing in its vision that its beauty is hard to match.

The sound created by the soft guitar arpeggios is sweeping and majestic, making songs like "A Pastoral Theme" and "Abendrot" deep and relaxing exercises. Most of the album is instrumental with the exception of a few tracks like "Many Moons Ago" and "Where Shadows Grow Longer" where the deep, almost religious sounding chants weave narratives of mystical forests and enchanted encounters with their inhabitants. The result of pairing almost ancient dynamics with acoustic songwriting is almost unnervingly successful, as these graceful tones will send chills down your spine.

For a twilight journey into the heart of the wilderness, Empyrium is the guide of choice, as they create a rich atmosphere that rivals the darkest black metal records without the brutal musicianship. The only downside to Where at Night is that its far too short, clocking in at around 30 minutes. Just as the melodies are sucking you in, the experience fades off. The sun rose a little too early I suppose. Despite its short duration, Empyrium’s opus remains a masterpiece of refined instrumentation.

A strange and innovative video for “It is Not Sound” from The Blood Inside (2005). Featuring bizarre human animation, the video follows the plight of the band members through a twisting sea of limbs. Crazy stuff.

Well this is it, my 100th post… It’s been a fun ride so far, and things are just starting to heat up on The Rock Blogger, with more readers joining us everyday. And with guest posts on other blogs coming up (more details on that later), we’re bound to be getting even more attention.

While it has been a harsh winter, it has also been a fine season for discovering and appreciating new music from all around the world. Below is a list of some of my favorite Black Metal albums I’ve come across in the last few months, some of which I’ve reviewed already on this site, others which I have yet to write about.

So I hope you take the time to explore some of these works and maybe come to a different understanding of what metal can be about. Rather than just being harsh noise and screaming, albums such as these are steeped in atmosphere and emotive intensity, some drawing on ancient myths and folklore to offer new insight into the respective cultures these bands derive from.

#10. Ulver. Nattens Madrigal. 1996. 4 stars.

The final installment in Ulver’s black metal trilogy, Nattens Madrigal is one of the rawest metal records ever recorded. Rumored to have been recorded deep in some Norwegian forest, this record features impossibly fast, tremolo fueled ‘hymns’ dedicated to lycanthropic urges, using the lo-fi production as another element to its bestial atmosphere.

#9. Paysage d’Hiver. S/T 2000. 4 stars.

Incredible use of the violin, keyboards and classical arrangements matched with despairing, existential roars and primal drumming. Sweeping in its atmosphere and unflinching, depressive drama.

#8. Drudkh. Estrangement. 2007 4 stars.

Ukranian forest metal that celebrates the trails set by nomadic ancestors with its folkish elements and stunning guitar and bass solos. This is mid-tempo black metal full of somber riffs and hypnotic drumming.

#7. Windir. 1184. 2001. 4 stars.

Crazy, symphonic black metal that employs complex keyboard compositions and searing layers of guitar noise to convey the conquest of vast landscapes .

#6. Negura Bunget. OM 2006. 4 stars.

Fascinating and incredibly dark black metal from Romania, Negura Bunget takes folklore from his country’s Wiccan and Pagan ancestries and crafts an album of incredible scope and musical virtuosity.

#5. Ulver. Kveldssanger. 1995. 4.5 stars.

The second and most melodic entry in Ulver’s black metal trilogy. This is a haunting and gorgeous collection of Norwegian folk songs tinged by sinister tones and acoustic chanting. Their incorporation (and focus) on acoustic and neo-folk elements would influence many American bands in their wake.

#4. Emperor. Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk. 1997. 4.5 stars

Symphonic black metal from Norway. These guys were pioneers in the genre and played their black opuses with brutality and searing complexity. The musicianship, especially the drumming, is impenetrably fast.

#3. Wolves in the Throne Room. Diadem of 12 Stars. 2006. 4.5 stars.

Dense, experimental and downright insane music coming one of America’s premier black metal bands. Their sound is like a tornado, terrifying in its speed and blurry, destruction that that comes from unstoppable forces of nature. The musical equivalent to a hail storm - unusual, painful and beautiful to listen to.

#2. Agalloch. Ashes Against the Grain. 2006. 5 stars.

Oregon’s Agalloch is a band that likes taking journeys with their music, moving from haunting acoustic passages, to hair raising riffs, to peaceful melodies, all the course of a single song. Ashes Against the Grain is a meditative listen, providing stark yet beautiful moments that remind you of nature and isolation.

#1. Ulver. Bergtatt - Et Eeventyr i 5 Capitler. 1994. 5 stars.

Easily one of the most melodic black metal albums to ever be recorded, Ulver’s majestic debut is an amalgamation of folk guitar, savage drumming and wicked tremolo riffs. There is an almost mythic quality to these songs, especially the album opener “Troldskog faren vild” that draws you straight into strange, ancient forests, with its Gregorian style chanting and epic guitar rhythms that carry the same urgency as some ancient battle.

This video, set to Ulver’s “Blinded by Blood”, showcases the haunting work of renowned Swiss artist HR Giger, who’s disturbing bio-mechanical imagery caught worldwide attention after he designed the creatures and sets for the Alien series. The hellish figures and threatening mechanical landscapes match beautifully with Ulver’s ambient and ghostly compositions. Giger remains one of the greatest surrealists, combining science fiction and horror elements in his fantastical visions, inspiring artists across different mediums and revolutionizing the aesthetics of science fiction.

Ulver. Shadows of the Sun. 2007. 4.5 stars.

A dark, brooding and beautiful album, Shadows of the Sun sees Norway’s Ulver continue on with the reinvention of their sound, opting for symphonic ambiance with black metal and electronic flourishes. The songs here are subtle, tense and mystical, crafting a mournful testament to days and loves long past.

The album as a whole is incredibly cohesive, with each track progressing seamlessly into the next, building from sparse, reverb-drenched sonic landscapes to full-fledged arrangements complete with horns, saxophones and gorgeous piano lines. While Ulver prove their compositional virtuosity with their experimental passages , the album’s moody atmosphere remains consistent and immersing. The vocals are also deep and haunting without the wailing histrionics that made some of Ulver’s past work so divisive.

The only complaint I have against Shadows of the Sun is that it rarely reaches the impenetrable crescendos associated with the band, as it strives toward tranquility rather than pure apocalyptic transcendence. Still, as an ambient metal record, Shadows of the Sun is remarkable for its originality, its restrained intensity and its melancholic imagery - a masterful work of art that defies genre conventions.