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Black Metal: Beyond the darkness (book)
15/02/13 || BamaHammer
Is there anything more kvlt/ridiculous than a coffee table book about black metal? Opinions on that may vary, but one thing is for sure: “Black metal: Beyond the darkness” is one thorough and finely constructed black metal memoir that encompasses much of the genre’s most compelling and nostalgic subjects in a single 192-page high-quality paperback volume. This is clearly a book for fun, casual skimming as opposed to deep intellectual reading. The volume is essentially a 50-50 split comprised of a collection of photos, many of which are obviously rare and candid shots, and very succinct yet descriptive passages. The whole package is impressive and extremely interesting.
If you’re looking for the same old same old Varg-Euronymous-church-burning-blah-blah black metal bedtime stories, you’re not going to find it here. For once, you’re actually going to find some literature on the subject that feels like a worthwhile breath of fresh air. The book places very little focus on the epic second generation bands that set the world ablaze both figuratively and literally. Instead, the essays by the various authors turn attention to the more obscure scenes from elsewhere around the globe. Entire chunks are dedicated to the scenes from Greece, Poland and the United States, and many of the bands discussed were relatively unknown to me before I read this. After reading and doing some hunting, I even realized that a vast majority of the bands mentioned were quite good.
Other chapters focus on the other non-musical nuances of the history of black metal. My absolute favorite section of this book is undoubtedly the last half of it which explores the construction of the all-important black metal image. The aesthetic impacts that figures like Metalion and Fenriz had on the way the image of black metal was constructed and spread are of course mentioned, but there is a wealth of interesting information about how albums were distributed and even how covers and sleeves were designed in order to appear as “kvlt as fvck” as possible.
The last twenty-ish pages of this book even features a “Selected Discography” which holds some real diamonds in the rough that I guarantee you’ve overlooked. If black metal is what you love and live, you need to get your spiked wristband-clad hands on this. It’s an in-depth and enjoyable read from start to finish and you’ll pick it up to read parts of it time and time again. This is one of the coolest books I’ve ever picked up regarding black metal and even music in general.
- Authors
- Louis Pattison
- Nick Richardson
- Brandon Stosuy
- Nathan T Birk
- Information
- Released: 2012
- Publisher: Black Dog Publishing
