Metal for Winter - Black Metal, Doom Metal

Winter arrived few weeks back and the cold swept the northern part of India. Having shifted to this region after ages, I was basically unprepared for the magnitude of this cold. I decided to compile a list of bands/albums that go along with the climate. Unsurprisingly, this list will consist of majority Black (mainly atmospheric/ambient and depressive) Metal and Doom Metal (again, either Death Doom or Funeral Doom) since both genres were have a close association with depression and negativity, just like Winters. There is no particular order followed in this list. So, here I go:

1. Evoken - Antithesis of Light and Embrace the Emptiness - Although the latter lacks the thickness and sheer gloom of the former, which is considered a masterpiece by a majority of Funeral Doom Metal fans, it is a highly recommended Evoken album, since it is well-done diSEMBOWELMENT worship, with great melancholic clean lead guitar lines and the music creates an empty atmosphere with the use of mellow synths. The former album needs no introduction.

2. Empyrium - Songs of Moors & Misty Fields - Empyrium, on this album play an infusion of Dark Folk and Doom Metal, similar to Uaral. This is a promising combination, but Empyrium's output is too mellow, flowery and romantic for stern metal fans. Nonetheless, it appeals to me.

3. Trist - Stiny - This one man band from Czech republic plays Depressive Black Metal, and not unlike most bands, it has a fuzzy, atmospheric sound. The difference lies in the fact that there is a good use of lead guitars and certain variations in drumming and main riffs in songs. The end result is a cavernous, claustrophobic sound of being imprisoned in sheer cold.

4. Nyktalgia - Nyktalgia - Inclusion of this album is a no-brainer. Out of the several Burzum clones floating around in the world, this is the one that managed to stand out, and for all the good reasons. Nyktalgia use the same idea as Hvit Lyset Tar Oss and throw in extra doses of depression, clean guitars, howled vocals and blast-beats, and however formulaic and generic it sound, it works really well. This is the perfect album for which I'd use descriptors like cold or grim.

5. Gorement - The Ending Quest - Probably the only Death Metal band in this list. Gorement are one of those bands with an enigmatic atmosphere. It feels distant, and has a feeling of being in an open space. The atmosphere has a serene and calm vibe to it, which contrasts the riff-tastic Death Metal assault.

6. Abyssmal Sorrow - Lament - Again, a no-brainer. It's obvious from a past review that Abyssmal Sorrow have that dreary, cold atmosphere, full of hopelessness and sorrow. There are no crushing, heavy riffs, but thin, Black Metal riffs played with the pace and feeling of Funeral Doom Metal.

7. Worship - Last CD Before Doomsday and Dooom - For the uninformed, Worship are one of the best known Funeral Doom Metal bands. The music is filled to the brim with pure emotion, and the riffs are crushingly heavy. Worship are well-known for their ability to mix sorrowful atmosphere with heavy riffs and spine-chilling lyrics. Just don't commit suicide after listening to this.

8. Darkspace - Dark Space III - Ambient Black Metal with a ridiculously heavy guitar sound, that is capable of making Death Metal bands hide their faces in shame. Despite that, Darkspace successfully evoke a sound that would be heard in outer space if it had any medium for sound propagation.

9. Black Autumn - Rivers of Dead Leaves - This album always gave me an impression of walking along the road, on dry, dead leaves during a cold, foggy winter morning. Black Autumn mixes Black Metal with Doom Metal, with some post-metal tendencies. Quite laid-back and relaxed, and unlike a lot of bands on this list, it doesn't invoke a miserable feeling.

10. ColdWorld - Melancholie² - No winter is complete without this atmospheric Black Metal classic in your playlist. ColdWorld's music is an amalgamation of Atmospheric Black Metal and Dark Ambient, with use of instruments like violins, and compositions with sweeping wintry melodies that would soak your ears with bliss.

11. Dissection - Storm of the Light's Bane - This Black Metal classic is a stormy blizzard of icy-cold, melodic riffs and appropriate occult-based lyrics. Look at the album cover, add a blizzard to it, imagine being there. If you have synesthesia, you now know how the music sounds like.

12. The Howling Void - Shadows Over the Cosmos - Funeral Doom Metal laced with piano instead of lead guitars. A very laid back record suitable for contemplating or work. Also well-suited for winters.

This is all I can think of, at the moment. Keep checking back for updates on this list.

Anatomia/Grudge/Coffins - Doomed To Death, Damned In Hell

Japanese once again prove to the world that they're among the best when it comes to metal. In this split album, 3 absolutely crushing Death/Doom metal bands present some of their best material, pounding the listener with sheer force with each note.

The album begins with Anatomia, bringing their sludgy, heavy and slightly melancholic variety of Death/Doom metal. It's reminiscent of Autopsy and a bit of Hooded Menace. The vocals are not low gutturals as implemented by Coffins or most bands from the genre, but are growls with a good range, similar to that of Chris Reifert (but nothing like them). The riffs are heavy, pulverizing Death/Doom in almost every song, except Mournful Cremation, where the band adds a strangely melancholic melody in midst of the powerful riffs the guitarist churn out. A certainly good band and worthy of being in this album.

After 5 songs of raw, suffocating power of Anatomia, the listener is treated with Grudge. The band stands apart from Coffins and Anatomia here, as they're experimental in terms of sound and songwriting and especially the vocals. The vocals are similar to Depressive Black Metal but not exactly like it. Distant moans of someone being tortured suit their music perfectly. The percussion, though not pummeling like that of Coffins, is prominent in the sound. The guitars sound more similar to early 90s Death Metal than Death/Doom.

The last part of the split album is the legendary Coffins. They sound even more evil here, than they did in Buried Death, with 2 sluggish, outrageously heavy Death/Doom tracks, and 2 faster-paced songs bordering on grindcore speeds, and equally heavy and destructive, which in turn sounds like a jackhammer pounding your face with relentless consistency. Not much needs to be said about Coffins, except that they don't disappoint and are clearly the best part of this album.

An amazing Death/Doom metal split album that needs to be checked out by each and every metal fan. This album grabs you by the feet and drags you under quicksand, choking the life out of you.

10 Finnish Death Metal Albums/Demos Recommended Listening

The Death Metal scene in Finland was one of the most active scenes in the early 90s. The bands had a distinct, atmospheric sound, which made them different from Swedish Death Metal bands.

I will list some bands and album (or demos) here that should be heard by any Death Metal fan.

1. Convulse - World Without God : The album is Finnish Death Metal at its very best - heavy, crushing, and catchy at the same time. The palm muted riffs accompanied by the drum grooves with the rather low-fi production, and an atmosphere that induces imagery similar to what the album cover depicts makes a good OSDM album.

2. Demigod - Slumber Of Sullen Eyes : A band that perfectly blends atmosphere with brutality. Each song is a relentless Death Metal assault with a feeling of being in a bog/swamp surrounded by crocs that will pull you down any time. No frills Death Metal that keeps a constant pace at all times.

3. Cartilage - The Fragile Concept Of Affection (Split with Altar) : Similar to Demigod in Nature, but only a little more mellow and atmospheric, and honestly, wrote songs that are more memorable. Especially the riff at the beginning of the song "The Altar" got stuck in my head for days.

4. Abhorrence - Abhorrence EP and Vulgar Necrolatry : Both demos are crushing Finnish Death Metal with a crypt-like atmosphere and mid-paced to slow songs, but fast sections are laden with evil-sounding tremolo riffs and blast-beats. The slower sections are some of the heaviest I have heard in Death Metal, especially the ones in Vulgar Necrolatry demo.

5. Depravity - Silence of the Centuries : One of my favourite bands from Finland. Rather than relying on Heavy, palm-muted riffing, Depravity rely more on tremolo-picked riffs and successfully create a dark sound unparalleled by any Death Metal band. No, it does not have any Black Metal elements in it, so it cannot be called Blackened Death Metal, yet, the band's sound it too dark and less heavy for Death Metal.

6. Rippikoulu -  Musta Seremonia : Easily one of the heaviest bands I have heard Rippikoulu's Musta Seremonia is the second demo by the band. Though I have not heard the first demo I have been told it is even heavier and had less Doom Metal in it. Yes. Musta Seremonia is essentially a Death/Doom metal demo. The guitar tone is distorted to an extent that it cannot be heard properly unless you have good speakers/earphones, yet the bass is quite audible and adds to the heaviness. The drums, when pounding away during the fast parts, completely crush everything it their way. Highly recommended!

7. Disgrace - First 2 Demos : Like their fellow Finns, Xysma, Disgrace changed their genre a number of times, playing all from Death Metal to Punk Rock. The first 2 demos - "Beyond The Immortalized Existence" and "Inside The Labyrinth Of Depression" are straight-up murky Death Metal with a typical Finnish sound. The low, Death/Doom-like vocals really suit the band's mid-paced (and occasionally slow or fast) music. An interesting thing about them is that they don't mind making their songs sound groovy at places. That makes them interesting. The recent split with Coffins is worth checking out too.


8. Adramelech - Psychostasia : Adramelech deviated from the typical Finnish Death Metal sound and adopts a rather fast, thrashy and slightly technical sound, but that doesn't stop them from being an important Death Metal band from Finland. Psychostasia is a very good record with fast songs and memorable riffs. Another good feature is the presence of memorable solos.


9. Purtenance - Member of Immortal Damnation : Getting back to a band with the typical sound. Purtenance are another Finn Death Metal band that incorporate muddy guitar sound while being generally slow or mid-paced, but never shying away from speed and blasting. If you have already heard Abhorrence or Rippikoulu or Disgrace, you might find this band rather unremarkable, but it still deserves a listen.


10. Preprophecy - Season Of Sorrow : The band made no break-through in Death Metal, even though some elements of their music are rather unusual. They place thrashy Death Metal, slowing down at most parts, but their overall sound is very gloomy - even the fast, thrashy riffs sound more gloomy than aggressive. They also had the audacity to include clean singing vocals here and there but it doesn't sound bad, even though amateur.

MAJOR ADDITION:
11. Demilich - Nespithe : I had not added this because I had not heard it, and I regret not having heard it till now. Demilich play Death Metal similar to Demigod in many ways, but their music is a lot more complex and technical. Crazy, spiralling riffs, lengthy song names and overall epic sound make them a special band. The vocals are especially different as they are extremely guttural. A MUST HAVE! DOWNLOAD IT, IT IS A FREE ALBUM!

Top 50 Death Metal Albums

The following is a list of my personally favoured Death Metal albums. The list contains mostly Old School Death Metal. Most of these albums are a must-listen and each of them is very good and unique. I have included one album per band, though some bands have come up with more than one record eligible for this list.
Here is the list anyway:

50. Wombbath - Internal Caustic Torments

49. Vomitory - Blood Rapture

48. Master - On The Seventh Day God Created.... Master

47. Cannibal Corpse - Tomb of the Mutilated

46. Adramelech - Psychostasia

45. Caducity - Whirler of Fate

44. Death - Leprosy

43. Purtenance - Member of Immortal Damnation

42. Uncanny - Splenium For Nyktophobia

41. Cadaver - ...In Pains

40. Utumno - Across The Horizon

39. Demented Ted - Promises Impure

38. Immortalis - Indicium De Mortuis

37. Cancer - Death Shall Rise

36. Necrophobic - The Nocturnal Silence

35. Cryptopsy - None So Vile

34. Unleashed - Where No Life Dwells

33. Possessed - Seven Churches

32.  Tiamat - Sumerian Cry

31. Rottrevore - Ubiquitous

30. Burial - Relinquished Souls

29. Deicide - Legion

28. Excruciate - Passage of Life

27. Depravity - Silence of the Centuries

26. Obituary - Slowly We Rot

25. Baphomet - The Dead Shall Inherit

24. Jumpin Jesus - The Art of Crucifying

23. Darkthrone - Soulside Journey

22. Abhorrence - Abhorrence

21. Suffocation - Effigy of the Forgotten

20. Runemagick - The Supreme Force of Eternity

19. Eructation - 1992 Demo

18. God Macabre - The Winterlong

17. Carnage - Dark Recollections

16. Molested - Blod Draum

15. Entombed - Clandestine

14. Brutality - Screams of Anguish

13. Altar/Cartilage - Ex Oblivione/The Fragile Concept of Affection

12. Convulse - World Without God

11. Morpheus Descends - Chronicles of the Shadowed Ones

10. Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness

9. Demigod - Slumber of Sullen Eyes

8. Infester - To The Depths, In Degradation

7. Immolation - Close To A World Below

6. Autopsy - Severed Survival

5. Bolt Thrower - The IVth Crusade

4. Gorement - The Ending Quest

3. Asphyx - The Rack

2. Incantation - Onward to Golgotha

1. Dismember - Like An Ever Flowing Stream