When it comes to "must listen to" history of black
metal albums, it's always tough for me to choose. On one hand, I always suggest
Mayhem's "De mysteriis dom Sathanas " for the historical value and Venom's
"Black Metal" for the same reason. On the other, Bathory and Burzum
always get nods as well, but for me there are a couple releases I tend
gravitate towards. "Under a Funeral Moon" happens to be one of those
choices. Now, I believe that Darkthrone's golden era would begin with "A
Blaze in the Northern Sky" and continue up to and including
"Panzerfaust". Personally, I don't think you can go wrong with any of
those releases in terms of classic black metal. For me, "Under a Funeral
Moon, gets a slight edge. Maybe it's because it was my first experience with
Darkthrone, but in any case, this album is what I would say is Quintessential
black metal listening (1 of 2).
This album is the definition of black metal. Distorted
madness, tremolo picking, suicidal lyrics, screams of agony and the raw sound
that black metal has always had an affinity toward. The riffs on this album
display the talent of these Norwegians, showing that they are not just one
trick ponies and while the drums are muffled a bit, I think they intended it to
be that way. This isn't a death metal album, so the drums didn't need to be the
driving force of the sound. Despite their muffled sound, they fit just fine, as
they don't leave any holes in the music at all. To my ears, this is truly what
I came to expect black metal to be, or what all other black metal after this
releases aspired to achieve. A must have for black metal fans or those
wondering where to start with black metal.
Highlights: "Summer of the Diabolical Holocaust"
"Unholy Black Metal" "Under a Funeral Moon"
Rating: 5
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