Mayhem - Esoteric Warfare (2014)

Esoteric Warfare is an interesting amendment to the Mayhem canon, a valiant effort to bridge the suppressed atmospheres of its predecessor Ordo ad Chao with the razor hewn traditional Norse black metal riffing the band helped pioneer through seminal works like De Mysteriis dom Sathanas and Grand Declaration of War, or perhaps most accurately the Wolf's Lair Abyss EP that so many seem to forget about. To that extent, I would consider it a mission accomplished, only with the caveat that I ended up finding one half of the equation a lot more compelling than the other. This is very likely my least favorite of the band's full-length works, but it does what a Mayhem outing should: dowse you in its evil clutches and remind you exactly who your Daddy is. And that's fucking Satan, if you have to ask.

But here, through Esoteric Warfare, the Norwegians channel the author of all sin through a curiously nuclear/dystopian theme which pervades the lyrics and artwork, like this unholy union of the Cold War and their creepy occult roots. It's hands down the most fascinating component of the record as a whole, followed by Attila Csihar's performance, in which he's whispering, mouth breathing, gargling, growling and otherwise sounding like his basic, decrepit, creaking-wooden-stairs self. Generally his more resonant and catchy lines come during segues from the faster action, and this is where I found a little disparity in the quality of what I was hearing. The muted, tremolo picked black/death patterns which drive the ferocity of the effort are sort of a bland strain of earlier Mayhem (Chimera, Wolf's Lair Abyss) with classic Morbid Angel, punctured and punctuated by slices of brighter, dissonant chords and partial arpeggios that were common fare for much of the Scandinavian black metal output of the mid through later 90s, or a faint few zipping, hypnotic lines cut through that remind me of the German band Endstille. Emperor and Satyricon also come to mind, but more directly these guitar progressions paired with the caustic, mechanical nature of the songwriting evoke Snorre W. Ruch of Thorns, Aborym, or Dodheimsgard's guitars in the techno-infused 666 International.

That's far from an unwelcome aesthetic, but unfortunately so many of the patterns just whip into the first frenzied patterns the guy can seemingly slide across on the fretboard, without much thought put into anything, and they become increasingly predictable as a footnote for an intense, agile Hellhammer performance which I found infinitely more interesting just on its own. Granted, the abbreviated leads and the higher range chords often sound efficaciously malevolent, and oftentimes clinical enough to match the album's lyrical style, but I'll be damned it there were more than a handful of fingers worth of rhythm guitars on the entire experience that I wasn't bored with. Most are just too predictable, and it gets to the point that even the primal, slow chugging in a tune like the unusual "MILAB" grows even more fresh on the ear. Speaking of which, that is one of my easiest favorites on the album, with its spidery bass lines, dissonant and disheveled architecture and really grasping the full range of Csihar's vile, filth smeared, unique presence, and ditto for "Posthuman", which captures an almost minimalist Voivodian atmosphere (not the only case here) until the noisy blast breaks; suitable for an album that many might describe as PostMayhem.

So I was really leaning towards these less structured moments on the album, and whenever they burst into another stock deathened black riff I just found myself phasing out. Maybe this was intentional, or maybe it's that the new guitarist Teloch was channeling a bit too much of his alma mater Nidingr, which has long thrived on this very same style of riffing, sometimes to its detriment. Either way, it gradually de-escalated my initial appreciation for the record's grimy intensity to levels of a more lukewarm reception. The production here is also pretty threadbare and dry sounding, which on the one hand makes much of the procession clear to the ear, but on the other doesn't exactly help give the rather averagely scripted rhythm guitars much meat or impact. I liked most of the lyrics (except perhaps "Pandaemon" which is just a shopping list/incantation of the names of various devils, demons and idols through religious mythology), and Csihar is just all over this, truly the Mike Patton of black metal. But apart from the themes and the potential of what Mayhem might have created within this wasteland of post-apocalyptic vision, I only ever found myself semi-satisfied. Never truly impressed.

Verdict: Win [7/10] (a detour to suicide)

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Mayhem - Ordo Ad Chao (2007)

Man, I would not want to be Attila Csihar's psychiatrist, nor would I even want to sit in on such a session. I'd quickly lose touch with all his various accumulated personalities, dizzied by his emotional contrasts. But then, I'm not really talking about an hour with a licensed shrink, but the 40 minutes one spends locked into the vices and disjointed devices of Ordo Ad Chao, the fourth Mayhem full-length in a career well over two decades deep. Attila returned to the fold shortly after the release of Chimera, Maniac off to pursue other interests, and yet again we are faced with a massive transformation in the band's core sound. If you thought the leap between Wolf's Lair Abyss and Grand Declaration of War was wide, then compare and contrast this one to its predecessor.

Ordo Ad Chao is quite the antithesis of Chimera. Where that album boasted some punishing and slick production values, meaty guitar tones and violent yet dynamic riffing, this one sounds as if its being performed in the basement beneath you. Like you're a fly on the wall of some infernal, subterranean gathering. In fact, it might not be a bad idea to discount this as a Mayhem album altogether, but instead what might occur if a trio of known and respected Norwegian musicians brought a tape recorder along to an unfortunate encounter with a bag of bad mushrooms. Or, if you will, a deconstruction of the principles upon which the previous full-lengths were built. Up to this point, I realize I'm not painting a very positive outlook on this album, but in truth I did actually enjoy it quite a lot.

Or 'not enjoy' it, depending on your perspective.

Csihar was hardly a candidate for sanity on De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas 13 years prior, but the guy is simply all over this thing, as if it were some galleria of sickness. He very often seems to be improvising his lines, for how else could such a clutter manifest itself and still manage to seem authentic. In "Key to the Storms", he transforms from a sobbing, decrepit miser into a cackling lunatic. In "Anti", his guttural growls and heightened shrieks are enough to send anyone to the suicidal hotline. Wants us to hear every tremor upon his tongue. The schizophrenia and sadness presented through these eight pieces is a noted contrast to Maniac's more robust delivery on the last album. Sure, neither of these guys are the first you'd want to invite to a family dinner, but Attila's performance is far more scatterbrained and broken, which fits the music here like a needle to a vein.

Yet, while he's clearly the side attraction here, it's the music itself which takes center stage at the asylum talent show. Ordo Ad Chao is by far the least comfortable of Mayhem's records, in that it seems to shun the concepts of accessible melody and predictable structure altogether. Both the guitars and bass were performed by Blasphemer, and he seems to second guess himself through the whole runtime, offering sodden, dissonant grooves and brief spurts of razor tight tremolo licks that immediately pierce the surrounding atmosphere (as in "Great Work of Ages"). Even more bizarre: the drums. Hellhammer lays down a lot of grooves here, but he also bursts into some sick footwork on tracks like "Deconsecrate" and "Illuminate Eliminate" which is so damn dense and thundering that it almost explodes right out of the muffled, tenebrous mix that drags the entire album down into the murk of desolate, metaphysical symbolism of the lyrics.

And that (the sound) will understandably prove a hurdle for most. Clearly we're looking at an entire different realm of aural transgression here, which bears more in common with most of the recent cavern-core retro death of the past few years than the black metal genre. In fact, outside from a few of the riffs and growls, it feels more like a somnolent, perturbing death metal journey than one we'd normally associate with Mayhem. The intentional under-wrought production is all too fitting to the composition, or rather the 'lack' of composition, and I can't see how else it would come across so harrowing and adventurous. Unlike other deconstruction's of sound, like 1349's miserable Revelations of the Black Flame, Ordo Ad Chao is almost hypnotic. A lattice of swollen, infected veins that loose pus into the listener's ears. A vortex of grime and agony. A welcome therapy for the mad, BY the mad.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (nourishment for the non-physical forms)

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Chimera (2004)

Where De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas might represent that gang of greasy, intimidating 'cool' kids that hang out smoking cigarettes behind the ruins of your old town library, and Grand Declaration of War the crowd of nerdy, preachy PoliSci hopefuls at your community college, Chimera is the clean-cut heartthrob that you will most likely deem fit to bring home to Mom. That is, if your Mom is the fucking Devil, and plans on seducing and devouring such a wanton sacrifice. Mayhem have honed in on their production values this time out, and presented what must be their glossiest, most straightforward effort to date. The surgical precision of the riffing from the prior album are retained, and yet there's a backslide into extremity here that recalls the Wolf's Lair Abyss EP. The guitar tones are far thicker, and the vocals more ghastly and copious, abandoning the spoken word bits, and for many alienated souls, this might damn well have been the return to crushing form that they so desired.

That said, this album is not nearly so callous or grim as the band's early recordings. Mayhem are still taking some chances here, just not a lot of them. In truth, I'd say that Chimera serves as a solid 'point of entry' for fans of more technical, brutal death metal, or perhaps the more potent black/death hybrids. They'll appreciate its musicianship and dynamic range more than either the strangeness of Grand Declaration or the cold breath of De Mysteriis. The Norwegians make an appreciable showing themselves as individuals who have their fingers on the current, and can blast and burst along with the brightest, brashest younger demons in the field. I never really got the impression that they were going solely for that same, out of control momentum that they displayed on Wolf's Lair, but it's difficult to deny the pure bruising hostility of opener "Whore", or the bludgeoning speed and fire of "Slaughter of Dreams".

Still, the moments here that I found most interesting were those where the band continued to explore their dynamic potential. Like "Dark Night of the Soul" with its dire, grooving inaugural riffs that reminded me of something Carpathian Forest might pull. Or the chants that break out in the middle of "My Death", perhaps the atmospheric pinnacle of the entire album. Or that majestic blend of deep percussive bombast and melodic bending that inhabits the warlike rush of "You Must Fall". For sheer punishment, it's hard to ignore the wealth of riffing present in "Rape Humanity With Pride", or the blitz of distorted bass grooves that set up the hammering entropy of "Impious Devious Leper Lord", which also features some clinical, creepy melodies at the half way point. I'd also be remiss not to mention the closer, the titular "Chimera" and its alternation between lurching rock grooves and spasms of tremolo and double bass.

It's not the best of Mayhem's albums, and admittedly, I like it the least of the four full-lengths to date. Half the songs don't really jump out at me, even when they've got 1-2 interesting riffs or sequences within. But as far as the general metal audience is concerned, who could give a shit about the raw aesthetics being heralded by most genre advocates, the production here will go a great length to compensate. This is the Mayhem album that will probably sound the best as it booms out of car speakers, pissing off parents, parishioners and high school principals. Dethklok fans will sport instant wood. It's not a record that one wishes to experience for its atmosphere, but the concrete rhythmic currents and slavish, churning Maniac vocals that drive it. It never sticks its neck out quite far enough that it's head could be chopped off, and to this extent, it's a success, although not an incredibly compelling one outside the lyrical sphere, in which it often feels the most deeply personal.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10] (conclusions are never to be trusted)

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Grand Declaration of War (2000)

For Mayhem, Grand Declaration of War was THAT album. You know, the one that nearly every Norwegian band releases to the dismay of a fraction of its fanbase, provoking cries of alienation and disrespect, spurned lovers wiping tears from their eyes as they turn their backs on the present and commence endless cycles of fellatio with the past. Yes, THAT album. Sure, some might argue that this had already occurred with their previous EP, Wolfs Lair Abyss. Hell, a handful of people will tell you that they sold out on De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, but I think at large, Grand Declaration brought a lot more change in the band's songwriting than any of their other major works. As for myself, it took a few spins to really let the album sink in, but I laud the band's ambition and experimentation here. As much as I do like it, I've never thought of De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas as a remarkable or top shelf album from this scene, so I've never had any aversion to their shifting compositional landscape.

Essentially, this a grand, philosophical exposé against Christianity, a Nietzschean rally against weakness, and I daresay a convincing argument. Maniac had decided to incorporate a wealth of spoken word passages that more clearly deliver the messages, and this was first distinction that the audience will be slapped in the face with. I rather admired the technique, it's sort of like a political and ethical speech set to metal, a Winston Churchill for the Abyss. Often these are set against a series of salacious, traditional rasped vocals for an odd effect, and I can see where this might turn some off. But if there was one gripe I actually had about Maniac's performance here, it would be the constant elevation of pitch near the end of many of his clean lines. It eventually grows a little cheesy and predictable. Where it actually comes across the most poignant is in the interlude track, "A Broadsword and a Colder Sun (Part I of II)", where he whispers the prose with some added distortion.

But this is not the only difference you'll find between this and the earlier albums. Blasphemer's performance is my favorite on the entire disc, and it's here that in my opinion the guy has really earned his keep with this band. Clinical, technical and incredibly dynamic, he tears along these varied courses with crisp, fulfilling tone, and it's fascinating to follow his the splicing of his rhythm tracks. There's a surgical penetration to this material that wasn't present on Wolfs Lair Abyss, and tracks like "Crystallized Pain in Deconstruction" and "In the Lies Where Upon You Lay" are saturated with superb riffs and nuances. In fact, I'd go so far that he's channeling a bit of tech thrash from the late 80s, ala Watchtower or Deathrow, and it runs marvels as a contrast to the pomp of the vocals. Probably my favorite guitars on any Mayhem album, to be honest. The rhythm section also deserves mention, particularly Hellhammer who proves he's as great at jazz or progressive rock percussion at blasting (I found Necrobutcher more interesting on Chimera).

There is yet another layer of experimentation on Grand Declaration of War, and that comes in the pair of two of the band's most eclectic cuts to date. On "A Bloodsword and a Colder Sun (Part II of II)" they create this mesmeric electro/industrial piece with whispered vocals, light thumps of bass and these great, fading and rising guitar patterns behind the pulse of the synthesizer. I can see half of their early 90s audience heading for hills within 30 seconds of the opening, but as a fan of all manner of electronica, I rather liked this even more than several of the metal tunes. "Completion in Science and Agony (Part I of II)" is another bizarre standout, a hybrid of black metal, classic doom and even some progressive rock, Hellhammer turning in beats that remind me of some of Fates Warning's stuff circa Perfect Symmetry with Mark Zonder. The vocals are freakish, a pair of arching and unnerving melodies in which Mayhem is joined by Øyvind Hægeland of Spiral Architect (and numerous other bands), and I really dug the minimal electroscape near the end.

Like a white avian ensnared in barbwire, I found myself glued to this album's eccentricities, and took no real issue with its deviations from the predicted, or expected. Most of the larger names in extreme metal delve into the avant-garde, and Mayhem deserve some credit for doing such in a daring exhibition that no one had really tried before. Sure, progressive rock traits had been incorporated into other such albums, and spoken word passages, but never assembled with this precarious a balance. Grand Declaration of War is not perfect by any means. I've already noted how the spoken vocals can grate on the ears due to their pitch, and the guitars do not feel 100% inspired in their entirety, but nonetheless this is a curious collection of compositions that in no way plays it safe.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (all that proceeds from weakness we loathe)

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Mediolanum Capta Est (1999)

Mediolanum Capta Est is basically Live in Leipzig and Beyond, in that it was performed with much of the same material as the band's cult live. By this point, Mayhem still didn't have a large body of work from which to draw upon, and thus the content here is still primarily Deathcrush and De Mysteriis dom Sathanas, with a bunch of the Wolf's Lair Abyss songs added. The primary difference here is in the lineup changes: Maniac is handling the vocals in this Milan, Italy performance and Blasphemer has settled into his guitar role. So whether this is 'The True Mayhem' or 'The False Mayhem' is really up to each individual to decide, since I'm sure to some it seems the very pinnacle of blasphemy to even pay pittance to the Norwegians' continued existence.

Comparatively, though, I've got to hand it to Mediolanum Capta Est: it might not have that same, raw and authentic edge of Live in Leipzig or the bootleg The Dawn of the Black Hearts, but I think the sound here is a little better balanced in preservation. And then, of course, there is Maniac, who I simply find to be a more engaging front man, what with his cruel snarling diatribes and what I'd consider a more inspiring stage banter between songs, as obvious as it all might play out (perhaps less so to an Italian audience). I appreciate Dead's theatrical contributions to the whole genre, mind you, but it's Maniac and Attila that really broke me into this band through Deathcrush and DMDS, and their inflections that I prefer on the songs. That said, though, there are still a few issues with this record that hold it back from being one of the better lives in my collection: the guitars, while clear, still seem fairly repressed behind Hellhammer's pulverizing punishment and the ghastly vocals. And the bass under even that...

Thus, it's a little difficult to be blown over here, even if the track selection seems well rounded and the set flows well enough along. Wolf's Lair Abyss tracks like "Fall of Seraphs", "Ancient Skin", "I Am Thy Labyrinth" and "Symbols of Bloodswords" mesh rather well with the older, cruder material, not necessarily creating the sore contrast one might expect. But anyone not feeling that latest studio outing need fear nothing, since they break out "Deathcrush", "Chainsaw Gutsfuck", "Necrolust", "Pure Fucking Armageddon" and even the "Silvester Anfang" intro that was composed by Conrad Schnitzer. If anything, DMDS gets hamstrung here, with only two proxies in "Freezing Moon" and "From the Dark Past", but by this time I can imagine they were a little sick of performing that lot, and wished to favor the Maniac-fronted material. They also perform their compilation track "Carnage", which was also on Live in Leipzig, and they get Attila to join them on "From the Dark Past", which is frankly my favorite point of the set.

Honestly, though I would recommend this over the more beloved Live in Leipzig, I cannot claim that it's in any way essential since the production doesn't really hit me with the same impact that I expect. The guitars are competent but a little washed out on most of the songs, and there's nothing all that exciting outside of maybe Hellhammer's bludgeoning consistency. Even Maniac does not sound at his most snide and raunchy here. In the end, as I would always recommend, just go pay the money to see the band if you're able. They tour often enough throughout the civilized world, but if you're not in the vicinity, then something like Mediolanum Capta Est is at least a passable replacement for the experience, if nothing special.

Verdict: Indifference [6.5/10]

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Live in Leipzig (1993)

As one of the earliest instances of a proper black metal live recording, it's only natural that Live in Leipzig has developed somewhat of a cult respect among the genre's audience. It's raw, punishing and honest, and it captures one of the most infamous bands of its type during what some consider their halcyon days, between the disgusting and excellent Deathcrush EP and the forthcoming full-length debut De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas. That is correct, Mayhem had a live disc out before even one proper album. But what's probably even more appealing to many is that this is one of the more satisfactory efforts to involve the band's early vocalist Dead, who among other things was a crucial component in bringing over the whole 'corpse paint' look to the newly coined black metal genre, before killing himself in '91.

I'll come right out and say that I've never been as much of a fan of Dead's voice as I have been of the sniveling Maniac or creepy Attila Csihar. It suits the music, especially this earlier material, but it's naught more than a grainy bark which often feels phoned in. It's quite 'everyman', in that I can't imagine an audience member being pulled out at random and not being able to match it. But that said, this is likely the appeal of the guy to so many fans of the band's vintage recordings. The other negative factor to Live in Leipzig is simply that the production is pretty cruddy. Yeah, it's totally authentic and sounds like a band pressing [RECORD] on the tape deck in their garage and basement. I understand the spirit behind it, and in no way is it the worst I've heard of its type, but throughout this whole album I felt like the riffs were taking a backseat to the drums and the vocals are often intolerably loud.

This can come across awkward when he's doing some lame inter-song stage banter and then the drums and guitars erupt, but there isn't really a lot happening in between tracks. Perhaps the most blood pumping intro is to "Pure Fucking Armageddon", which closes out the album. He at least seems to incite some reaction here. Another thing is that the guitar tone is pretty 'meh'. It definitely favors the slower material from the Deathcrush era to the later songs, where the faster flow of notes seems to be washed out by the drums, but it also rather sucks during the chug sequence of "Necrolust". However, this was November 1990 in a country not their own, so you sort of have to take what you can get. I can imagine that actually being there, with the severed pig heads, dirt and rotted chunks being hurled around would have proven more fulfilling.

As for track selection, you've got basically got the whole of the relevant, original material from the prior EP: "Deathcrush", "Necrolust", "Chainsaw Gutsfuck" and "Pure Fucking Armageddon" are all accounted for, in addition to the songs "Buried by Time and Dust", "Funeral Fog", "Pagan Fears", and "Freezing Moon" which would be included with the coming full-length. There's also a rare compilation track "Carnage" used in the set, and some versions also contain the studio version (and also a studio for "Freezing Moon" with Dead on vocals, if I'm not mistaken). At any rate, I've never come away from this album impressed. Like the band, and of course the track list was drawn from what must be their best material, but it sounds rather bland and I'm not that into the vocals. Live in Leipzig is loud, raucous and very 'real', but it's not one of the more compelling live records I've experienced.

Verdict: Indifference [6/10]

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Life Eternal EP (2009)

Are you willing to exchange currency for slight variations of things you have already owned? Are you stuck forever in the early to mid 90s? Do you have a Mayhem hardon the size of a shadowy cathedral? These are all questions to mull over when considering a purchase of Life Eternal, which is a tape of rough mixes from the De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas sessions, originally made by Attila Csihar. If this were any lesser band, of course, something like Life Eternal would be almost guaranteed to be ignored, but Mayhem have the advantage of an almost Beatles-esque rabid following who collect bootleg recordings, rare and vintage clips and just about anything else they can get their hands on. Such is the reward for notoriety. Necrobutcher, Hellhammer and Euronymous could have recorded themselves chatting over beers at a noisy disco, or taking a piss on a camping trip while shooting the breeze, and people would pay for it.

So, at least with Life Eternal, there is some music to experience. Five cuts from the full-length album the band were about to unleash, with some altered vocals that didn't all make the final cut of the record. Side by side, there's not much of a difference in the actual music. You'll hear a click track here, where on DMDS it disappears. The guitars sound slightly more subdued than on the full-length, where they are more potent and bright. But the biggest deviation is likely in Attila Csihar's performance. The style is pretty similar, but his enunciation on several of the lines is changed. You might hear some more of his cleaner, low-end droning style than on the 'official' version of a track, and because the guitars are not as prominent here, he does stand out slightly more. There is also a brief drum intro to "Funeral Fog" which the band clipped off during the full length mixing and mastering, but it's all of about a second and really adds nothing...I can see why it was castrated.

All told, this is not something I really cared for. I enjoy Attila a great deal, but I'm not sure I'm willing to exchange his dialed up presence for the less resilient guitars, and even so, I never found the varied vocals to be all that more compelling than DMDS. It makes a lot of sense to me why these are not the versions on the final album, and thus it seems like no more than a means to rake in a few bucks with a limited edition release. Granted, with its DVD box packaging and other baubles, Life Eternal is a sure collectors' item, and a cool little 'peep' from Csihar's personal label Saturnus, which hasn't seemed. But for its musical value, it's a pretty vapid affair best suited to those that like to pore over the details, and in no way supercedes the quality of the tracks' inevitable evolution.

Verdict: Indifference [5.5/10]

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Wolf's Lair Abyss EP (1997)

Wolf's Lair Abyss was the first 'major' piece of new studio material to be released by Mayhem after the murder of Euronymous by fellow artisan of extremity Varg Vikernes, and thus it's no surprise that it is welcome with only a bittersweet reception. There exists a faction of the black metal underground which likely rues the continued output of this franchise, just as there would be with any act whose celebrity core had its candle snuffed out. Imagine INXS without Michael Hutchence. Or The Doors without Jim Morrison. Oh, wait, they both actually did that. So is it really a surprise that Mayhem would plow forward, and was it the right decision? The only one, in my estimation, who could answer that, would be Euronymous himself.

But regardless of where emotions run on this matter, Wolf's Lair Abyss exists. The band has never ceased the churning of its creative gears, as few and far between as their studio outings might have seemed for a while. This EP happened, and so did the three ensuing full-lengths that have arrived between the late 90s and today. So it's got to be judged on its merits alone, rather than on some subversive vengeance for the fallen who may or may not be aggrieved as to its actual contents and presentation. Some of the other core personalities remain in the rhythm section. Bassist Necrobutcher returned for this, and Hellhammer stayed in his drum seat. Mayhem introduced the young Rune Eriksen to the fold, who would remain through the release of Ordo Ad Chao in 2007. From a technical view, I'd say he does a decent job here, perhaps a more intensified version of the very style Euronymous was producing. His acquisition feels seamless.

Perhaps the bigger surprise here was that the band reconnected with Maniac, who had provided some sick ass vocals on the band's legendary Deathcrush EP. He sounds as wretched as ever, even though I did not necessarily find the harried, blasting pace of these tracks as good a match to his suffocating rasp as the slower, earlier material. On some tunes, though, like the "Fall of Seraphs", both his gnarled and cleaner tones prevail. And did I mention the blasting? Because one of the most prominent characteristics of Wolf's Lair Abyss is just how much Hellhammer beats the everliving fuck out of his drum set. Seriously, his snare, bass and cymbals all tried to appeal to the local Union for their mistreatment, but there was sadly no clause for inanimate objects. That they're dialed up in the mix is one thing, but the sheer punishment this guy is meting out on "I Am Thy Labyrinth" and "Fall of Seraphs" is admittedly intimidating.

Unfortunately, as fresh and violent as this music is, which feels like a steady flow of bitter effluvia after a stubborn stretch of creative constipation, it's not all that memorable. The bass is loud and atrocious, the vocals injected with the heroin heights of Maniac's personality, and it's appreciably 'extreme' enough to outpace even it's full-length predecessor. But aside from its belligerent, beatdown sheen, I did not exact much from its content. The noise/ambient intro "The Vortex Void of Inhumanity" with its horns and vocal samples was an interesting experiment, but not really conducive to the ensuing eruption of "I Am Thy Labyrinth". Almost all the riffs here seem rather predictable and uninspired, merely projected along the same course as the drumming.

There are some thrashing breaks in the material ("Fall of Seraphs"), and a few psychedelic, haunting streams of notation ("Symbols of Bloodswords"), but all in all, I've always felt like I was listening to an eerie vocal trip, a drumming tour de force, and not much else aside from guitars which feel functional at best. So, as explosive a proclamation as Wolf's Lair Abyss might seem upon initial contact, it's simply not enduring as their earlier works, nor as experimentally curious as their later full-length efforts like Grand Declaration of War. A rush of night, surely, but not one I could ever remember after the inevitable morning crash.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10] (the order of the cosmic immoral)

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - Deathcrush EP (1987)

To deny the influence of Deathcrush upon the sum of second wave (and beyond) black metal worldwide would be like denying Elvis Presley's influence on the pompadour. It would prove too difficult to imagine one with the other, and black metal, like the vintage 50s haircut, just wouldn't be as cool without its fashionable progenitor. Now, I'm not saying that Mayhem had the 'first' black metal record on their hands with this, since bands like Venom, Hellhammer and Bathory had aesthetically beaten them to the punch there, but I think as far as most of that which would follow, this is an undeniable inspiration, the original schoolyard bully that whipped its students into a frenzy of blasphemy that has yet to subside. Deathcrush does embody all of the hostility and ugliness that the niche was intended for, and does it damnably well despite any flaws in its production or death of complexity in its crude songwriting.

If, for me, this EP is less than perfect, I can't really attribute the drawbacks to the Mayhem material itself. "Deathcrush" is a disgustingly excellent piece, with its punk and speed metal clamor of dire grooves and blasted dissension. Necrobutcher's bass-lines just ooze ominously from the pores of the drums and guitar, and Maniac is far too true to his stage name, perhaps the wildest of rasping metal vocalists to the EP's date and time. Honestly, I can think of only one that could compare, Quorthon himself, and Maniac STILL feels more bloody. Then there are the pair of 'necrophiliac' anthems: "Chainsaw Gutsfuck" with it's slower paced, bass-driven wrath, and its sibling "Necrolust", which starts at a similar speed but then picks up into raw, chaotic sewage so goddamn calamitous that it's a wonder Maniac can still ride atop its primordial mass. Like some ancient jockey who scored himself a woolly mammoth, its flanks pocked by spears and their resultant viscera. Then, of course, there is "Pure Fucking Armageddon", which explodes out of its opening bass-warp and feedback into a riff that makes you want to mosh the fucking devil under the dirt. Those first vocal lines (by Messiah) are among the more menacing I've ever heard in the whole genre...

But where Deathcrush threatens to dissemble is in its balance of entrails wrenching black metal with the remainder of its content. "Silvester Anfang", a marching percussive intro which the band scored out of correspondence with electronica legend Conrad Schnitzler of Tangerine Dream, might function as a dire portent of cadence, but it really doesn't flow into the title track, and I can't help but feel that something more effectively transitory would have just KILLED this motherfucker. The cover of Venom's Witching Hour (Welcome to Hell, 1981) is brutal and messy enough to fit in with their original tunes, but I found myself caring for nothing more than the vocals, through which Maniac manages to make Cronos seem like Tony Bennett by comparison. Also, "(Weird) Manheim", while a somewhat creepy intro piece with warped piano effects, just doesn't flow for me into "Pure Fucking Armageddon".

These ideas of using martial ambient and scary acoustic sounds to flesh out and diversify the track list are certainly influential, and it became a tradition for black metal bands to utilize the 'intros' with synthesized and orchestrated keys and strings, but here on Deathcrush they just don't work for me all that much. Had this been constrained to just the four original metal tunes, I'd find it difficult to find any fault to it. The riffs might not all be memorable, but the general atmosphere of Mayhem was fucking infallible, and the songs, despite their innate, rough and tumble amateur transitional ability, are all classics in their own right...still some of my favorites from this particular band.

I think it's also important to distinguish that Deathcrush, while archetypal for so many other acts to follow, is not necessarily prototypical to Mayhem. This is not as structured as De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas by a long shot, nor is the musicianship and experimentation anywhere in range of their later works like Chimera or Ordo ad Chao. In fact, outside of the intros, this really isn't experimental whatsoever. These songs are about the attitude. The filth. Pissing in the cereal of all who would welcome offense. The lyrics are perverse, especially for the corpse copulation hymns "Chainsaw Gutsfuck" and "Necrolust". These offer a distinctly death metal aesthetic to the recording, and yet that too was a formative genre at this point. Cannibal Corpse hadn't even got out their first full-length yet. Certainly no "Meat Hook Sodomy" or "Entrails Ripped from a Virgin's Cunt" on the public conscience in 1987. We were all still shocked by Slayer.

Judging such an indisputably important record as this one is not easy. For one, I actually admire that the band were big enough Tangerine Dream fans to enlist Conrad to contribute the intro. What an honor that must have been! But as far as "Silvester Anfang" itself, I fail to see what it adds to the record outside of maybe a brief, 'military' component that jives with the title (which conjures images of tanks, certainly). "(Weird) Manheim" I could just do without, and had these two pieces been omitted or replaced with something more fitting or abusively flush with the ensuing hellfire, I might rank Deathcrush a little higher. Regardless of this minor nitpicking, the record is still a classic, and though I like all of their later full-length efforts to varying degrees, I could never justly prioritize any of them over this martyr of moral corrosion. I mean, I love Attila and all, but really...Maniac...better than Elvis.

Verdict: Epic Win [9.25/10] (the barbeque has just begun)

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/

Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994)

Not that it's necessarily possible to 'objectively' review any work of music to a fault, but when you're up against something with the wealth of history of a De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, there are even more considerations than usual. This is an album loaded with infamy, for reasons obvious to everyone. I mean, one of the members of the band killed another member. Churches were burned. Angels cried, and devils laughed their hooves off. Somewhere, a kitten or puppy was probably crushed, but nobody noticed. But let's look at the more 'positive' elements to its construction and release: it was fundamental to the careers of some of the most prominent figures in all of the black metal genre, considered so even in today's world.

There is really no comparable lineup to that of Mayhem's full-length debut, and there will perhaps never be. Sure, as far as individual talents are concerned, such collaborations have existed, but not with this level of name dropping. You had the band's leader/writer, the late Øystein Aarseth (Euronymous) on guitars. Jan Axel Blomberg (Hellhammer), drummer for many well known projects, handing out one of the most voracious beatings of his entire career. Varg Vikernes (Burzum), the most loved and hated individual in the entire genre, was bringing up the bass end. The prolific Attila Csihar slathering his unique, grimy vocals all over the rush of the rhythms. Perhaps the least noteworthy individual on the album is other guitarist, Snorre Ruch (known here as Blackthorn), but even this is a man whose underground credibility is well known due to his creation Thorns, which is perhaps the most recognized cult industrial/black metal act to date. Fuck, had they just added Fenriz on the cowbell, the record might have simply exploded, never to be experienced by mortal ears.

Yes, every time I read through that roster, I find it staggering to say the least, but it wouldn't mean a damn thing to me if the music wasn't there to back it up. So, does it add up? For the most part, yes, but in some ways, not. De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas is a highly divisive album, and understandably so, because all manner of personal opinions and investment in the history of its members will always rise to the fore, influencing the emotions of the listener. But in reality, it's just a very tight, solid black metal record that may very well be the best representation of the 'generic' album of its class. There is very little variation woven through the writing, and most of the tracks spend 5-6 minutes blazing through the same 2-3 hooks. About the only element that distinguishes it from the tens of thousands of albums to follow in direct worship would be the vocals of Csihar, which trade in the predictable rasping for a more ghoulish tone, as if some pale aberration were retching all over the carefully packaged contents of the rhythm section.

There was another album around this time that cast a similar shadow: Transilvanian Hunger, one of Darkthrone's numerous masterworks. Both albums are extremely straightforward, with very few surprises hidden amongst the pacing: blast beats and repetitious riffing. I would say that Fenriz and friends easily win out by comparison, because the songs are so much more raw, cutting and effective, with enough character that they completely overcome their perceived flaws. But De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas does feature a few elements you won't find there. I already mentioned the vocals. For another, the bass is much louder, an integral ballast to the forceful momentum of each track. This creates a more tangible, if less haunting emanation. The drums are likewise much stronger than Darkthrone. Blomberg is unquestionably considered the 'greatest' of black metal drummers, more through his history and projects than a technical measurement, but he's a living storm with Mayhem, just not one that kicks up much out of the ordinary. Surely, his work here is a template for the many thousands to follow, but I found his performance here more efficient than interesting.

The lyrics are actually quite simple. Dark images pandering to the most generic of concepts, like vampires, the occult, heresy, and of course that age old standby: death. They're rarely poetic or especially insightful, and they don't conjure up images beyond the expected, but I have to say that ultimately, they service the music quite well, even though so much of it moves at the same relative pace. But when you've got Attila involved, you can take even the most pedestrian and predictable of ideas and squeeze something memorable from them, and that is exactly what happens, as the prim prose is wielded like a cautionary parable from a perverse prophet of the shadows. A lecher. An unpleasant individual that is more apt to smell your blood from the pulpit and lick its lips than offer you the blood of Christ. I actually wish more bands had adhered to a style like this, perhaps not with the same impoverished tonality, but just given their style more character. As it stands, too many have fallen to the belabored rasping camp.

Almost all of the eight songs are straight charges, and all incorporate blasting in at least some capacity. That isn't to say they are completely monotonous, for many of the tracks do have slower bridges where the eeriness of the proceedings is amplified, like the spacious, droning segue which bisects "Freezing Moon", or the brazen tremolo picking meets Black Sabbath breakdown in "From the Dark Past". The most intense of the compositions is "Buried by the Time and Dust", which brakes for no myth or man, but fails to become dull thanks to Attila's incipient lunatic raving and the subtle twists in notation that Ruch and Euronymous evoke. But my favorites are probably "Pagan Fears", with its compelling, rocking motions, or "Cursed in Eternity", of which the rhythms remind me of Emperor's epic In the Nightside Eclipse, sans the symphonic elements. "Funeral Fog" and the closing, savage title track represent the next best crop of material.

De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas does suffer from a small degree of bloat, but that being the case, I still find it myself able to listen through all 46 minutes without complaining. The dark bombast of the album's low end rhythm mechanics provides enough of a fascinating foundation for Attila. The production in general is quite good for the time, especially compared to something with a shadier sound, like the early Immortal albums (which I enjoy for their own reasons). All told, I have never felt the same pining for this as I do for Ablaze in the Northern Sky, Det Som Engang Var, In the Nightside Eclipse, Pentagram, or Frost. I feel like its all too easy to let the roster speak for itself and sway the judgment of quality, but in fact, the music here is just not that impressive beyond the consistency of its delivery. Whereas most of those aforementioned records are brimming with astute evil or majesty through their very building blocks, this album always felt like it was relying on Csihar to perform the sacrificial rites, which he does. Mayhem had a very good album on their hands here, perhaps great, and it's one of a kind as far as their own discography, but personally I've never found it a top of the line experience.

Verdict: Win [8.25/10] (my name was written with fire)

http://www.thetruemayhem.com/