Black Metal: Evolution Of The Cult: The Restored, Expanded & Definitive Edition

by Dayal Patterson

The most acclaimed book on black metal is finally released as originally intended, and beyond: Rewritten from the ground up, the book features over 130,000 words of new content • 23 new chapters • 20 extended chapters • 30 updated chapters • Over 80 new interviews, over 150 interviews in total • Approximately 340,000 words in total • Improved cover art and layout • A wealth of new images. Bands featured include: VENOM • MERCYFUL FATE • BATHORY • HELLHAMMER • CELTIC FROST • SODOM • DESTRUCTION • SEPULTURA • VULCANO • HOLOCAUSTO • MYSTIFIER • BLASPHEMY • SAMAEL • ROTTING CHRIST • NECROMANTIA • DEVISER • TORMENTOR • MASTER’S HAMMER • VON • MAYHEM • THORNS • DARKTHRONE • BURZUM • IMMORTAL • EMPEROR • GEHENNA • GORGOROTH • TRELLDOM • BEHERIT • IMPALED NAZARENE • CRADLE OF FILTH • DIMMU BORGIR • LES LEGIONS NOIRE • MARDUK • DISSECTION • VINTERLAND • THE BLACK • WATAIN • SHINING • STRID • FORGOTTEN WOODS • BETHLEHEM • SILENCER • FORGOTTEN TOMB • LIFELOVER • GRAVELAND • INFERNUM • BEHEMOTH • HADES • HELHEIM • ISENGARD/STORM • KAMPFAR • WINDIR • PRIMORDIAL • OCTOBER FALLS • ENSLAVED • SATYRICON • ULVER • MORTEM • ARCTURUS • FLEURETY • IN THE WOODS… • MANES • VED BUENS ENDE • DODHEIMSGARD • SIGH • DEATHSPELL OMEGA • MYSTICUM • ABORYM • BLACKLODGE • BLACK WITCHERY • HECATE ENTHRONED • WINTERFYLLETH • FEN • PROFANATICA • ABSU and more

Genres: Music, History, Nonfiction

800 pages, Hardcover

Published February 1, 2024

About the author

Founder of Cult Never Dies publishing

Dayal is a writer, photographer and designer. He began writing professionally in 2005, having previously created a self-published music journal entitled Crypt Magazine. Since that time he has contributed regularly to the likes of Record Collector, The Quietus, Terrorizer, Decibel, Classic Rock Presents... and, most prominently, Metal Hammer magazine, whom he has written for since 2006, providing numerous lead and cover story features. Since completing a BA honours degree in photography at London College of Communication Dayal has been taking live, portrait and promotional pictures for numerous magazines including Record Collector, Terrorizer and Metal Hammer as well as for bands, individuals and companies.

Reviews

[Marko Kivimäe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dayal Patterson on inglise (aja)kirjanik, kes on teinud palju kaastööd metali žanriajakirjadele nagu näiteks "Decibel", "Terrorizer" and "Metal Hammer". Lisaks on ta kirjutanud raamatuid, peamiselt black metal muusikast - ning mis teeb ta raamatud eriliseks on see, et need ei ole vaakumis sündinud, need on loodud tihedalt koostöös asjaosalistega ning tulemust kiidavad muusikud väga. See raamat siin on 2014. aastal ilmunud "Black Metal: Evolution of the Cult" ("Black metal: kultuse areng") uuendatud, täiendatud versioon, kuna autor ei olnud tegelikult algse variandiga üldse rahul. Suhtlemine kirjastajaga oli aeglane suure ajavahe tõttu, kirjastus dikteeris ette mahu, kujundus oli lipa-lapa, osasid pilte ei saanudki kaante vahele. Frustreerunud Dayal Patterson tegigi omal ajal otsuse, et edaspidi loob ta oma kirjastuse, selle ka tegigi ning nüüd siis aastal 2023 sai sama raamatu korralikult välja antud.

"Black Metal: kultuse areng - taastatud, laiendatud ja lõplik väljaanne" võiks raamatu nimi olla eesti keeles. Eesti keeles see ilmunud ei ole. Sõnu on raamatus palju, 340000, mis kingariiulisse vaadates on tips rohkem kui Stephen Kingi algne "The Stand" või "Under The Dome", ehk siis paras tellis, tavaraamatu mõttes mitte 430 vaid pigem 1000 lk. Pattersoni raamat on küll juba füüsiliselt hoopis teistsuguse olemusega, kaalub 2,5kg ning on suuremõõtmeline fine art, kaunite kunstide raamat. Seega kuna ma olen harjunud lugema voodis kägaras, siis ega väga mugav polnud, käed väsisid ära. Lisaks kriitpaber läikis teatud nurga alt, pidi veel lisaks balansserima lugemisnurgaga.

Black metal... ma isegi ei tea, kas ma peaksin seletama, millega on tegu või kas üldse on võimalik muusikat tekstina edasi anda. Ma vahel ikka loen plaadiarvustusi ning... jah. Igaljuhul - black metal on üks paljudest heavy metali harudest ning ma ei taha üldse minnagi kuhugi liigitamise, täpsustamise maailma, kuna mingist piirist alates pole mu arvates võimalik ega vajalik kunsti lahterdada. Küll aga võin lühidalt ütelda, et mustmetall on kärinamuusika üks tumedamaid, ekstreemsemaid harusid, kus keerati mitmeid vinte peale ning minu jaoks on sealt tulnud erakordselt palju väärt muusikat, mida ma ikka ja jälle kuulan. Eriti just Norrast teises laines tulnud värki, kus mõne aastaga pandi väga korralik vundament järgnevateks aastakümneteks.

Eks muusika, väärtused, inimesed on ikka seotud ning ekstreemsus võib teinekord kumada päris kaugele välja näiteks üheksakümnendate alguses, eriti just teises laines Norra kandis, lisandus ka muid mõõtmeid. See oli periood, kus olid läbisegi põimunud kriminaalsed lood, suurepärane muusika, mõrvadki ning kõige selle taga olid tihtipeale samad inimesed, geniaalsed muusikud, kelle vaated ühiskonnale, kultuurile, ajaloole, religioonile... olid teinekord jah, ekstreemsed, nagu ka loodud muusika. Väljendusviise oli erinevaid aga nii mõnigi puukirik sai maha põletatud, sekka jäi osade muusikute selja taha ka üksikuid laipu. Et kui võtta kasvõi üks laineid löönud seltskond nimega Emperor, siis mingi hetk läks kogu pändivärk pausile, kuna trummar pussitas ära ühe mehe, kes väidetavalt oli talle külge löönud ning kitarrist istus samuti üle aasta kinni kirikute põletamise eest. Ning see laienes ka mujal, näiteks Poolas juhtus vägagi sarnaseid asju nii tulekahjude kui mõrvade näol. Kuid eks kõige selle põhiväärtus oli ikkagi muusika - see, et osad muusikad oma nooruspäiseid veendumusi muuhulgas ka ellu viisid, on erand, mis kinnitab reeglit. Aga eks laiem avalikkus ja kõmumeedia mäletab ikka seda, mis lugejate mõnunäärmeid rohkem kõditab.

Lisaks on ka igasuguseid muid lustakaid olukordi ajaloos olnud, ma ei tahagi siin tingimata rohkem rääkida kuritöödest. Aga kui vaadata, milliseid erinevaid alamžanre norra teise laine black metal on sünnitanud, siis näiteks depresiivne-suitsiidne black metal oli alguses selline leebem, Burzum ja Forgotten Woods olid musikaalselt suunanäitajad, aga n-ö eraelus või artistina noh, selles kontekstis "tavalised". St kui vaadata, kuhu suunas seal Shining, Lifelover kogu kujundi edasi viisid ning enam polnud tegu lihtsalt sõnadega, ei - kogu sõnum läks väga äärmuslikuks, eneselõikumine (laval) oli täiesti tavaline ning pole mõtet kaanekujundustest, visuaalsest poolest rääkidagi.

Eks ekstreemsus voolabki mustmetali veenides, kasvõi kui mõtelda NSBM peale ehk siis kui mängu tulevad natsionaalsotsialistlikud elemendid. See on jällegi üks pikem teema, aga äärmusparempoolsust leiab ka siinses muusikamaailmas, kus igasugune aaria rassi ülistamine, valge võimu esileupitamine ja rassism jooksid paljudest kohtadest läbi. Mis on ka kohati arusaadav, kuna taaskord Norras oli ja on esivanemate pärandi alleshoidmine väga tugevalt juurdunud ning see piir, kuskohast täiesti mõistlikust rahvuslusest saab tõrvikurongkäik, võib teinekord olla kas hägus või siis kiirelt kohale jõuda.

Kui korraks peatuda poliitikal, erisustel, sallivusel ja inimsuhtlusel, siis ma ütleks, et päris palju on laial maailmal õppida siinsest muusikanurgast ja inimestest, sest kui ka teinekord on inimeste vaated olnud üsna äärmuslikud, see kumab välja plaadikaantel ja laulusõnades kasvõi NSBM näitel - siis kasvõi festivalidel esinevad kõrvuti väga erinevate vaadetega bändid, ning nende vahel pole mitte mingit konflikti, keegi ei lähe nugade peale ning aetakse sõbralikult juttu, vahepeal visatakse teineteisele lava ees näppu. Eks muidugi on mingil määral ka draamat olnud, aga see läheb pigem sinnakanti, et ikka inimesed teinekord tülitsevad, pole üldse muusikaga seotud. Aga suures plaanis on tegelikult väga huvitav, kuidas see äärmiselt agressiivne muusika, jõuline, lärmakas olemus... selle tagant leiab palju sooje ja toredaid inimesi, kes on inimesed nagu ikka. Jah, muidugi on ka osad, kes on vägagi omas karakteris sees olnud ning taaskord kasvõi Norras, 90nendate alguses, seal oli ikka väga omamoodi tüüpe teinekord. Aga need on pigem üksikjuhtumid. Eks ma tean ju natuke omast kogemusest Eestis ka.

Aga see selleks. Eks see mu jaoks paras kognitiivne dissonants ole teinekord olnud, aga kunst ja päriselu ei ole alati lahutamatud ning minu seisukohast on teatud juhtudel teised instantsid, kes oma tööd teevad. Antud juhul ma keskendun ikkagi raamatule, kus siis räägitaksegi, kuidas konkreetne muusikaline žanr on arenenud, tullakse sealt kaugelt Black Sabbathist alates, teinekord kaugemaltki ning Dayal Patterson selgitab kujunemislugu ning puudutab mitmeid olulisi muusikuid, pände läbi aja. Stiil on väga mõnus ja asjalik, pikituna asjaosaliste enda kommentaaridega ning juurde on kõvasti pilte, üle 650. Seega korralik tükk, kvaliteetne nii sisu kui vormi poolest.

Minu jaoks olid seda raamatut huvitav lugeda mitmes mõttes. Sest ma omal ajal olen päris palju selle kõige kohta lugenud, uurinud, vastavalt sellele palju tollal igasugust infot liikus, kusagil seal sajandi algusepoole, kus õnnestus sõbra tööjuures arvutit kasutada ning seal mitmeid artikleid, materjale välja printida, edasine töö järgnes kodus. Kusjuures mul on kogu see klade veel seni alles, peakski natuke minema ja sirvima, kuna ma olen üsna kindel, et kõik need omaaegsed lehed on ammu kadunud Geocities jms kohtade surnuaeda. Seega sirvisingi, päris huvitavaid asju tuli välja, igasuguseid omaaegseid intervjuusid, tolle aja käsitlusi black metalist. Mnjaa....täitsa huvitav, et mul on ju oma infokogumik ka olemas.

Kui ma veel oma mätta otsast mõtlen: päris palju oli nii üldises mõttes sellist, mida ma aastakümnete jooksul ise siit ja sealt olin varem lugenud või kuulnud. Aga mul oli hästi palju detaile, Patterson seob need oma raamatus paremini kokku, lisab tausta, annab palju infot, millest mul õrna aimu polnud ka. Näiteks kuidas Portugali ja Brasiili skeene (jaa, andke mulle palun parem eestikeelne sõna siia) on sarnase mustmetalmuusikaajalooga, kuna riigid on olnud diktaatorlikud. Või kogu Prantsusmaa saladuseloori mähitud aeg, kus tehti ikka korralikku undergroundi, päriselt ei levitatudki muusikat laiemalt, liikus käest kätte suletud siseringis, tihtipeale polnudki teada, kes nimede-logode taga olid. Või kui Norra põigata jälle, siis Fleurety EP "A Darker Shade Of Evil" kohapealt on näiteks arvatud, et laulja tegi oma ebainimliku kriiskamisega oma häälepaeltele liiga ja seetõttu loobus edaspidi vokalisti rollist. See võis ju nii olla - aga siin raamatus arvas pändiliige, et pigem oli tegu ajaga, mil noor poiss murdis üsna hilja häält ja ta hiljem ei suutnudki enam sellele tasemel püüelda. Noh, ei tea, pole ka tähtis - aga see mõttekäik pani muhelema küll.

Raamat on mahukas, aga samal ajal on ta... kuidas seda nüüd üteldagi, fragmenteerunud. See pole isegi kriitika, kuigi tegu on subkultuuri ja niššivärgiga, siis tegelikult on seal äärmiselt palju detaile, ansambleid, muusikuid, arvamusi. Ning see, et suurem rõhk läks raamatus Norra teisele lainele, on ka arusaadav, kuna sealtkandist tuli palju maailmapaikapanevat muusikat, mis rajas uusi suundi igalepoole. Nii "tavalises" suunas kui segati metalit folgi, jazzi, progerocki, industriaaliga. Rääkimata siis n-ö vaimsest poolest, kus oli siis nii satanismi, paganlust, suitsiidsust, depressiooni... no mida iganes ning igaltpoolt arenes see edasi, mindi detaili, süveneti.

Lisaks - eriti viimase ca 10 aasta jooksul on võimalused luua misiganes muusikat, näiteks black metalit, meeletult avardunud, seega bände on praeguseks rohkem kui oli tuhakübemeid Fantoft kiriku põlemises. Vee teeb veel segasemaks see, et eraldi maailm on black metal ise kui muusika, suhtumised, väärtused, kohati ka religioon (kaasaegne satanism) on kokku põimunud. Ning siis on eraldi palju bände, kes kasutavad black metalist mingeid jooni, võivad teinekord kõlada ka sarnaselt - aga näpuga järge ajades on nad midagi muud. Ning kui minusugused lihtsa muusikanautleja jaoks pole väga vahet, kuidas seda Peemotit nimetada, peaasi, et suu avades kähinal mahe muusika kõlab, siis saan aru ka sellest, miks teinekord on hea liigitada, et kuskohast nüüd ikka jooned jooksevad. Ega siinkohas popmeedia ka väga kaasa aita, kuna metalhammerid ja terrorizerid kajastavad mõõdutundetult mida iganes "see on nüüd black metali tulevik" sildi all. Samas eks näis, võib-olla mingi aja pärast nimetataksegi seda kõike hoopis muu nimega.

Muusikast endast ma polegi väga kirjutanud ning ka põhjusega, sest mu arvates on muusikat võimatu tekstina kirjeldada. Panen lihtsalt paar linki, esimene on selline popurrii, näeb esteetikat, kuuleb juppe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jBKm... . Ning üks pikem näide ka, Mayhem "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eACw... . Mitte, et see oleks nüüd see üks ja ainus, minu tõesti top 1. Tippteoseid on palju, võtsin ühe paljudest.

Kokkuvõttes: võimas raamat. Mu jaoks oli palju ka sellist, mis oli täiesti uus, nii mõnegi eraldi peatükki väärinud bändi puhul polnud ma isegi nime kuulnud varem. Seega ma peangi raamatut mõneski kohas uuesti sirvima ja kõrva peale viskama. Palju pildimaterjali, asjalikud artiklid, eraldi on puudutatud mtmeid alamhoovuseid. Muidugi on mõnes kohas ka küsimus, et "aga miks seda ei olnud?!" - kuid maht on niigi piiratud. Pealegi on Patterson kirjutanud ka muid raamatuid, läinud rohkem detaili. See raamat siin ongi selline hea kokkuvõte, kus on nii üldisemat juttu kui ka võtmeisikute, sündmuste, esinejate puhul mindud süvitsi. Müts maha ja kraaps!

[Kostas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this restored edition of Black Metal: Evolution of the Cult’ I felt both exhilaration and melancholy.

Exhilaration because this is a thrilling read about one of the more interesting musical subgenres in the world. This -surely- definitive edition gives an overview from the early days (first generation BM) through the Norwegian explosion, significant scenes for the development of the genre ( I’m delighted to see an extensive focus on the Hellenic black metal scene), and thoughts on the current state of affairs and its possible future.

Melancholy because, as someone who has chosen the doom metal genre as my personal mode of expression, I can only get jealous at a musical subgenre so diverse, versatile and still exciting after all these years. Unlike doom metal, where the template was set musically by Sabbath and the early doom metal masters -and where the main significant development was the blending of that early doom sound with death metal elements, black metal rather focused on its inherent spiritual message and preoccupation with the mystical and the occult, allowing it to musically experiment and develop in completely unforeseen ways, while still maintaining a core of ‘conservative’ bands preserving the first -and early second- generation sound.

Dayal doesn’t shy away from discussing the more controversial topics within the genre either: its dabbling with fascism, crime and violence in some cases; its unrelenting negative end misanthropic outlook and the coming of the new Messiahs who seek to appropriate elements of the genre while claiming -without any authority- to be its saviours from stagnation and mediocrity. He tackles the topic akin to a cultural anthropologist, in an erudite manner and with clear respect for the subject matter, while maintaining throughout a detached, neutral outlook.

This is a book that will thrill and excite all fans of extreme metal and no doubt will lead many -such as myself- to the (re)discovery of previously unknown or unloved bands.

Once again fiendishly recommended to anyone, including those who read the original ‘Evolution of the Cult’ book because believe me, this is a different beast altogether.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The study of history serves the needs of the present. New agendas lead to new interpretations of old facts. New theoretical frameworks reappropriate the meaning behind key events and source materials. Despite being a pre-digital phenomenon, the history of black metal has largely been written in the internet age, subject to all the rumour, scrutiny, revisions, misconception, and projection this entails. The needs of its present have long been for some kind of official history. There have been many such attempts from writers and film makers to step above the partisan mire and institutionalise its notoriously opaque origins into a set of agreed facts. But such efforts are afforded only the briefest honeymoon period before a severe backlash and yet more partisanship is revealed; Lords of Chaos (the book) and the Until the Light Takes Us film both notable examples of this.

It’s therefore important to understand Dayal Patterson’s expanded and revised edition of ‘Evolution of the Cult’ in this context. Despite being clear at the outset that the goal is empiricism over “fanciful theories and wishful thinking”, leaning heavily on source material, his extensive archive of interviews, and a fat book of contacts amassed over many years as a metal journalist, this is simply the latest of many attempts to stand above the online racket, dispassionately treat the often infantile image black metal projects into the world, and distance the scene’s zeitgeist from its immature or otherwise problematic past.

Based on the limited feedback I had received online as to the quality of this book, I went in expecting to be somewhat bored, annoyed, or otherwise disappointed by the experience. It’s with some surprise that I come away keen to bat for Patterson and what he has achieved with this new edition.

Yes, it’s a social and scenic history first and foremost. Any treatment of the music itself is broadly superficial, although largely uncontroversial. Equally, although ample space is given over to the thornier aspects of black metal, the author is light on opinions of his own, preferring to frame the issues and foreground the statements of musicians themselves.

And there’s no escaping the fact that this book, in trying to be a definitive last word, tries to do too much, ending in a place a mile wide and an inch deep. Further, as with many Cult Never Dies publications, it’s difficult not to view this as a beautifully packaged gossip magazine. Each chapter (for the most part) focuses on one band, tracking their career in black metal, featuring interviews conducted for the book or lifted from older magazine articles (most of which were conducted by Patterson himself), with supplementary chapters framing key topics and providing context.


Despite Patterson being explicit in calling forth his inner Louis Theroux, this often comes across as genuine confusion on the subject matter. The framing of Marduk and Watain as uniquely extreme yet broadly popular and a further chapter on underground ethics in general fails to unpack the correlation (or lack thereof) between extremity and popularity, leaving the words themselves only loosely defined (are Watain all that extreme, or only superficially so? How has the ability to parse extreme music evolved within a broader music loving audience?). Daniel Lake’s recent book on USBM also published (in Europe at least) on Cult Never Dies adopts a similar episodic structure. But comparing Lake’s brief but delightful commentary on the music itself, it’s clear that Patterson’s abilities (and perhaps interests) as a music journalist lie more in networking and interviewing than they do in hardcore musical analysis (the words “unholy”, “infernal”, and “possessed” do not describe anything in the music, stop using them without qualification, although sentences like “possessed, almost bird-like screeching” to describe Hat’s vocals on ‘Pentagram’ raised a chuckle).

We also can’t escape referencing the presentation of the book itself. The back cover is cluttered with testimonials from familiar names and a list of the bands featured, each chapter opening with further testimonials from notable figures in the scene, as if the book is constantly trying to market itself to the reader well after the initial purchase. The fact that each chapter follows the same biographical structure makes for a clunky, at times tiresome read. Having to trawl through how each artist got into black metal through Venom, Bathory, Hellhammer, Motorhead and so on becomes repetitive.

The cynic in me wants to chalk this up to the slick marketing behind Cult Never Dies. The distro with above average customer service (shout out to Christine, thanks for helping me out with my order so promptly) has cornered a certain market in metal writing, but scratch beneath the surface of these chunky, beautifully presented books and one finds a whole lot of repurposed magazine clippings and recycled content. Why not rearrange all this valuable source material into a tighter narrative? The story of black metal is confusing and non-linear sure, but it’s hardly the British Empire or the Reformation (to pick two recent examples of perfectly concise narrative history I have read recently).

The book moves through the key bands and events largely free of controversial omissions or inclusions. Although I suspect the list of bands included was largely dictated by who Patterson had access to. With a book this size there are bound to be points of contention. So let’s get this bit out of the way so we can move on.

The Burzum chapter is well written and gets across the artist’s universal appeal that transcends Vikernes the man, despite the fact that it flows as if the author can’t wait to be done with it (Burzum are afforded the same space as forgettable also rans Gehenna and Winterfylleth, nearly half that of Darkthrone and Emperor).
Fenriz explaining that Darkthrone were not converted to black metal by Euronymous was important to emphasise, ditto the likes of Sigh who arrived at a similar sound in parallel.
Mayhem would inevitably be a centrepiece of the book, but they are not musically interesting enough to warrant three times as many chapters as any other artist, on top of the three chapters already dedicated to the non-musical story of Norwegian black metal tracking the evolution of Euronymous et al.
There is an over emphasis on Norway all round, with chapters given over to all the major players, and subsequent sections on folk and experimental black metal featuring yet more Norwegian acts such as Dødheimsgard, Ulver, In the Woods…, Arcturus and so on.
Of course some of these artists warrant inclusion, but not at the expense of Varathron, Root, Krieg, the Blazebirth Hall group or any Ukrainian bands (to suggest a few). It’s not a question of politics either. Patterson doesn’t shy away from the Nazi hot potato, with a whole chapter given over to the Polish far right, Graveland and Veles etc.
A Gorgoroth chapter followed by one on Trelldom gets very Ghaal heavy, again revealing the guy to be an arrogant, slick media operator who knows how to use more talented people to make a name for himself, and play the Vice crowd for clout within the black metal-curious indie crowd.
Whenever the question of religion or spiritual philosophy arises, the musicians often tail off with comments about how complicated, abstract, or otherwise esoteric their beliefs are without further elaboration, I kept being reminded of the Nietzsche quote on the matter “Mystical explanations are considered deep; the truth is, they are not even shallow”.
I could go on, but ultimately, given the enormity of the task, covering all the major players in black metal and contextualising such a huge archive of source material, Patterson does an excellent job of marshalling everything into a semblance of coherence.

But one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, nor the first four hundred pages apparently. Having rounded off a section on UKBM with Winterfylleth and Fen, the book segues neatly into a concluding chapter on post black metal and blackgaze. It’s at this point that Patterson pulls no punches with an argument I could not have written better myself. The main contention is best summed up by this quote:

“the presentation of post-black metal/blackgaze/blackcore as the forefront of artistic vitality within black metal is as embarrassing as it is inaccurate, and when fans of black metal-influenced bands attempt to speak definitively on a genre they know very little about, it doesn’t do much to endear such bands to the black metal community”.

He points to the fact that many post black metal musicians themselves have often stated that they are only inspired by black metal, but are not themselves in any way related to black metal. He calls out the spate of articles appearing in the likes of Vice, Metal Sucks, and Terrorizer throughout the 2010s framing bands like Mykur, Alcest, or Deafheaven as the cutting edge of the genre, and lambasting black metal fans as elitist gatekeepers for not accepting them, a view we were constantly browbeaten with at the time (I remember being sent the Vice article by a number of non-metal friends in what remains a particularly sour episode in inter-genre relations, and one of the formative events that led me to blogging in the first place).

Patterson defends black metal fans as uniquely open minded individuals, the musicians as fiercely experimental, both of which should be self-evident given the breadth and variety in the genre even by 1994. He likens placing post black metal at the forefront of the genre to placing The Clash at the forefront of reggae and accusing anyone who disagrees of gatekeeping.

The chapter is so well argued and precise that it made me go back and revise my impressions of the book as whole. Sure enough, the book is littered with corrective barbs. We tend to misunderstand the contemporary experience of early black metal acts. Isolated, innovative, with little in the way of community or inspiration from within the genre to draw upon, but more importantly, unaware of what they were starting, and often stumbling into new ideas by accident. Or the fact that the Norwegian black circle were for the most part teenagers partying hard (albeit spiced with a quintessentially Scandinavian stoicism), or the emphasis placed on the contrast between the fun loving 80s version of Mayhem to the darker, early 90s iteration. All are neatly framed in this book.

For all my criticisms, the inevitable differences in personal taste, methodology, and emphasis, it’s clear by the end that Patterson is coming from a very similar place. He is respectful of the artists as individuals even at their most posturing and infantile. He is respectful of the fanbase despite its many problems. But most importantly, despite the insistence on structuring the book as a series of loosely collected magazine vignettes, Patterson has his eye trained on history. The roots of black metal in early heavy, speed, and thrash metal are thoroughly covered off, ditto punk and death metal. The importance of emphasising that the second wave was in its first iteration a largely nostalgic genre, pushing against death and thrash metal’s progressive turn, and only later expanding into lavish orchestration, antiquarianism, and experimentation. The non-Scandinavian perspective in bringing to the fore South America, the Czech Republic, Poland, Greece, the US, and latterly the UK is all present and correct (Canada, Russia, Ukraine, and Austria are sadly missing).

All this context and detail ultimately strengthens the impact of the arguments laid out in the final chapter. They are placed at the end of a lengthy narrative on black metal’s many tangents prior to the 2010s, foregrounding how important innovations came from within the scene itself. You may not like all of the examples he uses, I for one despise Deathspell Omega, Shining, and can only appreciate the first two Dødheimsgard albums, but there’s no denying the changes they have wrought on the music, and their continuity within black metal despite their overt experimentation. Something that cannot be said of Liturgy, Deafheaven, or Alcest, all of whom have openly distanced themselves from black metal, distinguishing themselves (accurately) as black metal influenced. Something their fans should be mindful of next time they wish to write off the broad and novelty-hungry fanbase of black metal as naught but purist gatekeepers.

Ultimately, this is the first piece of (relatively) popular writing on black metal that does not seek to mark black metal’s homework, accuse the scene of rampant traditionalism, or claim that the music must be somehow “saved” or “fixed” by individuals largely unaware of or indifferent to historical context and the complexity of its evolution. Any differences I may have with Patterson are so much minutia in the face of how important this intervention is in terms of allowing black metal to write its own story.

A definitive history of this genre, one making similar use of the cornucopia of source material now available, but told with a more linear narrative, with major themes perhaps articulated more cogently, is yet to be written. But ‘Evolution of the Cult’ is an important stepping stone toward this.

___

As an afterthought, it occurred to me in reading yet another account of the events in Norway in the early 90s that the police and court records are only ever accessed third hand via interviews with the individuals involved in the scene. The official history, including accounts from the Norwegian state, would make for an interesting direction by which to re-approach this particular episode of the story.

Originally published at Hate Meditations

[Damon Blanchette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm of many minds about this giant tome of black metal history. Patterson mentioned in interviews that he wanted to write a book about black metal "from the inside," telling the stories of the scene, both good and bad, and I'd say he has succeeded. The book contains first-hand interviews with many, many artists, some of whom have been very vocal over the years, and some that have spoken few times publicly. He was able to get the accounts of what happened in most cases directly from those that lived it, a feat likely not possible if attempted by an author on the "outside." The interviews are interesting and the artists are obviously comfortable talking to Patterson. He clearly lives and loves black metal - the ways in which he describes various songs and albums is passionate, deep, and insightful. He has obviously done his research and tried to write a truly full account of how black metal started and what happened once it got going. I discovered bands I had never heard before (and now very much enjoy), and the artist accounts of how their bands started were inspirational and interesting.

However, Patterson also goes out of his way to downplay the problem of racism and bigotry that plagued some of the second-wave bands in the 90s. Obvious racism by some artists is always couched in language like "ill-advised" and "unfortunate," and the book never truly digs into this quite major aspect of black metal. It is tossed aside every single time as not so much of a big deal, and all these people complaining about it don't really understand. Some of the artists themselves state similar. There is a short chapter about Nationalist Socialist Black Metal, but even those few pages (literally, it's only 4-5 pages out of 500) severely downplay the history and the problem.

Sure, I can understand many of the early bands, made up of teenagers to be clear, were trying to be as evil and extreme as possible, and what's more evil and extreme than the Nazi party? They obviously didn't think about the consequences of what they did at the time. Many of them grew up, understood what they did was wrong and changed, and they stated as much. Some didn't however, and unfortunately Patterson glosses over those aspects of their character and music. This is especially true of Burzum, Deathspell Omega, and Graveland, among others. I get that these bands were instrumental in black metal's early days, but one can't just toss those things aside. In one of the interviews, I don't remember which (I think Graveland), the artist is literally quoted right in the book talking about white power and the importance of the white race and its role in the world. Patterson somehow thinks these things are just an artist's "politics" with no real dive into what it means in the real world. One of the most egregious cases was Absu, in which one of the band's founders literally broke up the band after one of the other members came out as a trans woman (and openly stated that he ended the band because of this - he could not continue in the same way with a woman in the band). Patterson in fact joked about it, using the word "transition" in a tongue-in-cheek manner to describe the band ending. We hear nothing of that person's side of the story, and I'd be surprised if Patterson even tried to set up an interview with them (check out the band Sonja if you want to hear where Melissa Moore ended up - not black metal, but fantastic). The book is severely lacking in these kinds of stories, leaving out a good portion of what made black metal what it is today.

And then there's the final chapter, which apparently has been fairly controversial, and I can say now that I've read it, for good reason. Besides the horrible discussion of Liturgy, including the use of incorrect pronouns for Haela Hunt-Hendrix, it just reads as a whining annoyed bullshit tirade against any definition of black metal outside of what it specifically sounded like and stood for in 1993. That is, except for bands that Patterson likes, and Fen is a great example. There is a very long chapter at the end of the book about Fen, which got its start in 2006, and the only reason I can come up with for why they are even included in the book is because they appear to be good friends with Patterson. He admits they are "post-black metal" but they are still great, even though this last chapter is a full-blown rail against bands that play black metal-related music like post-black.

In general, I'm still really glad I read the book. It provides amazing context to a truly different kind of music that stands alone in the world. Patterson and I can very closely agree on that: black metal is unique and unusual in the musical world, and it is endlessly interesting and entertaining. It is a kind of music that can - and has - been combined with nearly every other musical style and still be awesome, and that's something to celebrate.