Friday, July 16, 2010

Nachtmystium - Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1




Black metal has always been here, just kind of lurking the background with a very dedicated (and somewhat small) fanbase. A lot of people view it as a joke thanks to album covers that seem more like some Juggalos with an interest in Photoshop and a bunch of kids in Norway burning churches down. Don’t let that discourage you from the new, young rising scene in America with great bands like Nachymystium. They strip away the make up and tomfoolery and bring great atmospherics and progressive tendencies to black metal’s usual and typical ideology of guitar-bass-drums and recording in lo-fi. They still do all this but because of their use of keyboards, electronics and other things, they refuse to be labeled as black metal. The guitars and bass can be seen as shoegazey a lot of the time, just walls and waves of distorted madness with machinegun drums and double bass. All the while incorporating keyboards and ambient sounds, making it akin to post-metal sometimes but never quite crossing the line. I want to call it Merzbow meets Emperor or Zombi meets Darkthrone but those comparisons fall short as most do and don’t encompass all the things they are trying to accomplish or maybe they overshoot, you be the judge.
For Fans Of: Wolves In the Throne Room, Darkthrone, early Mayhem, Celtic Frost

Suggested Tracks:
2. Assassins – Very by-the-book black metal to start things off. Demonic vocals, walls of guitar, fast drums. Track 1 is a good intro but not necessary.
3. Ghosts of Grace – A pretty accessible song compared to most, catchy music, vocals still pretty growly but the hooks are there.
5. Your True Enemy – Absolutely angry and brutal, everything is going full force, leaving no earspace empty, they throw in a sick guitar solo too.
6. Code Negative – A great semi-post metal jam. Whispering vocals, complex drums, although the song as a whole is more mellow. Great guitar solo once again.
8. Seasick Pt. 1: Drowned At Dusk – The beginning of a 3 parter. Mellow, spacey, vikingy, nice little jam, not too busy.
9. Seasick Pt. 2: Oceanborn – Maybe my favorite of the 3 parts because of the guitar/saxophone (YES, saxophone) intertwining. Pretty short so play with Pt. 1 and/or or 3 as well.
10. Seasick Pt. 3: Silent Sunrise – The blackness returns on this one, vocals are back (and multiple) but the music is still laidback compared to previous tracks. A good ending to a 3 part epic.

No comments: