The old man’s dream now has ended much too soon
Forgotten rests the wisdom that brought them once so far
Vanished until rebirth, we sleep the endless sleep
For one who knows never tries to reappear …
As expected, Fischer’s lyrics can effortlessly beget an ambiance seething with mysticism but his poetic elegance is something uncanny and a bit aberrant. Undoubtedly…there is a certain harmony across his lyrical theme and musical composition but the aesthetic aspect seems like a lone deviation from the remaining morbid like attributes, or is it?
Sonic harshness is invariably mistaken for musical dissonance, Celtic Frost’s sound is harsh but at the same time it epitomizes a sheer melodic conformance, there is a definite tonal center and hence its very much conventional (and yes extremely accessible too). The overbearing aspects of theatricality and diabolical themes act as a bulwark separating these guys from the mainstream; so from a purist stand point the core of this music is a tad wimpy.
“I always wonder why black metal isn’t atonal. Tonal center is so “pussy”, musically speaking…”
The above comment was a response to my Satyricon post on Twitter, I do believe that the conceptual complexity of black metal can only be accommodated by its musical adherence. Deviation from this blueprint might dilute the whole statement, imagine how distracting an atonal wankery can be in between “Necromantical screams”. Without refuting the existence of an avant-garde-prog-black-math-metal band I can safely say that their sound will simply fail to prod the the same emotions as say “Under a Funeral Moon”. Fischer did manage to broaden the boundaries of sanity set for musical expression but then Everything burns…. leaving the most compelling of its ashes to sift through the frosty winds.
Went on a Jeep ride with a few guys from Wrangler Forum, met some nice people, had some interesting conversations, saw some crazy stuff, nice fun trip.
Been listening to these guys for the past four years and this is the first time I saw them live, as expected they were gritty as hell. The drums, the robotic harping, custom 8 string Ibanez, blinding harsh lights and a mosh pit running non stop for over one and half hours.
The bands opening for Meshuggah face the inevitable fate of being decimated, in spite of their exceptional show not many will remember Decapitated or Baroness. There are no on stage antics, no theatricals, all these guys do is nod to the beat and that is enough for the crowd to go berserk because the music speaks for itself.
It was a well round set list with songs from Nothing, Chaosphere, Catch Thirty three, Obzen, Koloss and few from their earlier albums. Meshuggah is a phenomenon, their intricate and multi-faceted instrumentation can invoke an intense head-banging spree or just some naive thumping of fists or a still reverence of their musical genius.
Its almost impossible to convey art with vocabulary, you just need to experience <Meshuggaaah> to know them!
Technical Death Mayhem
With a Jeep you can get a free Paint Job, off road exhilaration, do mud slinging without getting nasty and the best part is that if you don’t like the new look just get it washed 
Jeep
http://www.blackmetalmovie.com/
Bought this documentary DVD called “Until the Light Takes Us” from a local record store over a month ago, was quite taken by its grey cover and the name which totally resonates with the grimness of black metal . Saw the movie yesterday and its totally unpolished and it was like the director was rebelling against stereotyped aestheticism itself. The content of the movie does not instigate any controversy or try to clarifying the commonly associated myths (see the headbanger’s journey for that) but it just takes a simple and an honest approach to the whole idea which was driving the bands like Burzum & Darkthrone.
I just got reminded of this dialogue from the movie “Batman Begins” about “Theatricality and deception”, Black Metal seems to be just about that. Mainstream press and a deluge of “extreme” metal bands have a lot to do with corrupting and twisting the ideologies of guys like Varg Vikernes and Fenriz & then the theatricality aspect can be attributed to some of the really possessed guys involved with Norwegian Black Metal. The movie did reveal that these guys were indeed on an extreme path but were definitely not anti-god but were simply crafting their own rebellion and a form of vigilante justice. Definitely a must watch if you are a person who cannot differentiate between an anti-christian and a Satanist.
Grim
