Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emphasis on atmosphere. Artists often appear in corpse paint and adopt pseudonyms.
National Socialist black metal, also known as NSBM, Aryan black metal, and Neo-Nazi black metal, is a political movement and subgenre within the black metal music scene that promotes neo-Nazism, neo-fascism, and white supremacist ideologies. NSBM artists typically combine neo-Nazi imagery and ideology with ethnic European paganism, Satanism, or Nazi occultism, or a combination thereof, and vehemently oppose Christianity, Islam and Judaism from a racialist viewpoint. NSBM is not seen as a distinct genre, but as a völkisch movement within black metal. According to Mattias Gardell, NSBM musicians see this ideology as "a logical extension of the political and spiritual dissidence inherent in black metal".
Gylve Fenris Nagell, known professionally as Fenriz, is a Norwegian musician, part-time music journalist and online radio host who is best known as being one half of the black metal duo Darkthrone, alongside Nocturno Culto. Although primarily a drummer and songwriter, he has also played bass, guitar and done vocals for Darkthrone and several other metal bands. Fenriz is famed for his encyclopedic knowledge of metal music, his eager promotion of underground bands and the DIY ethic, and his rejection of the "showbiz side of the music industry". Fenriz was also the studio drummer for doom metal band Valhall, and has had several solo projects, including the folk black metal project Isengard and the dark ambient project Neptune Towers.
Season of Mist is an independent record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal, and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing albums of avant-garde metal, gothic metal and punk bands as well. The label has two offices, one in Marseille, France and one in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Deathspell Omega is a French black metal band formed in 1998 in Poitiers. The group is an anonymous collective which has never confirmed the identity of any of its members.
Soulburn is a Dutch death metal/black-doom band.
Dødheimsgard is a Norwegian extreme metal band formed in 1994. Dødheimsgard originally played black metal, but 1999's 666 International saw them change their style into experimental and avant-garde/industrial metal. In 2000, they shortened their name to DHG.
Behexen is a Finnish black metal band founded in 1994. They adopted a more traditional approach to black metal by incorporating raw characteristics. Their first full-length release was Rituale Satanum, released in 2000 and followed by By the Blessing of Satan in 2004. They have also released a split with Horna and a 3-vinyl set From the Devil's Chalice.
Korpiklaani is a Finnish folk metal band from Lahti who was formerly known as Shamaani Duo and Shaman.
Krieg is an American black metal band originally from Somers Point, New Jersey.
Satanic Warmaster is a Finnish black metal project from Lappeenranta, Finland, consisting of the sole musician "Werwolf". Penttilä began recording under this name in 1998. Satanic Warmaster has sold tens of thousands of albums worldwide without the support of any major distribution companies or record labels. The band has toured around the world in countries such as Finland, Germany, Russia, Mexico, Japan and Italy. In November 2014, Satanic Warmaster's album "Fimbulwinter" reached the Finnish official chart on place #14 and the Rumba specialized stores' chart on place #2.
Baptism is a black metal band from Finland. The band was formed in 1998 by vocalist/guitarist Lord Sargofagian and drummer Demonium. The summer of that year the band released their first demo, Satanic Rituals, although very few copies were released. Following a two-year hiatus the band released their second demo, Sons of Ruin & Terror, in 2000. Similar to the last demo the release was limited. After the addition of bassist Slaughterer the band released their first full-length album, The Beherial Midnight, on June 12, 2002. The band release three more albums in 2004; a split CD with Uncreation's Dawn, and the EPs Wisdom & Hate and Black Ceremony. Slaughterer and Demonium left the band following the release of Wisdom & Hate, leaving Lord Sargofagian as the only official member. The band has continued with various session musicians, and have released four more full-length albums.
Watain is a Swedish black metal band, formed in 1998. The band's name is taken from an early recording by the American black metal group Von. The band have become famous for their Theistic Satanist views and for their live shows which involve pyrotechnics, candles, Satanic rituals, animal carcasses, and blood. At a now-notorious live performance in Brooklyn in 2014, they doused audience members in animal blood, allegedly causing some members of the audience to vomit. This was picked up and publicised by TMZ, generating controversy around the incident. To date they have released seven full-length albums, as well as three live albums and a number of demos and EPs. Their most recent album The Agony & Ecstasy of Watain was released on 29 April 2022 through Nuclear Blast. The band's core lineup has remained stable since their formation, consisting of Erik Danielsson, Pelle Forsberg, and Håkan Jonsson, though as of 2015 Jonsson no longer performs live, Emil Svensson of fellow Uppsala death metal band Degial was recruited as live drummer.
Clandestine Blaze / Deathspell Omega – Split is an album released by the black metal bands Clandestine Blaze and Deathspell Omega in 2001.
Peste Noire are a French black metal band from La Chaise-Dieu, France. The band was formed by "La sale Famine de Valfunde", also known simply as "Famine", in 2000. Their music uses standard black metal elements mixed with traditional Gallic instrumentation, and influences from genres like punk and electronic music. The band is sometimes referred to as P.N. or K.P.N.
Archgoat is a Finnish black metal band formed in 1989 by twin brothers Ritual Butcherer on guitar and Lord Angelslayer on bass and vocals. It was one of Finland's first black metal bands along with Barathrum, Impaled Nazarene and Beherit. The members of Archgoat openly identify with the philosophy of Satanism and the occult as expressed in their lyrical content, which also consists of anti-Christian themes.
Mgła is a Polish black metal band from Kraków, formed in 2000. The duo consists of vocalist, guitarist and bassist M. and drummer Darkside.
Ville Pystynen, also commonly known by his main stage name, Shatraug, is a Finnish-born musician. In 1993, he formed the Finnish black metal band Horna. Besides Horna, Pystynen has played in several bands of different genres of metal. He founded and has played bass and guitar for Sargeist since 1999. He is also known for playing bass and guitar for Behexen from 2004–2015. Pystynen also has several solo and smaller projects which, in some, he plays all instruments and sings for.
Frozen Niagara Falls is a double album by the American musical project Prurient, the performing name of Dominick Fernow. It was released on May 12, 2015 through Profound Lore Records. Leading up to its official release date, Frozen Niagara Falls was promoted with online streams of "Dragonflies to Sew You Up" and "Greenpoint".
