Belial

 

Part of that brutal scene of early nineties Finnish black and death metal, BELIAL is one of those bands that doesn't get the respect they deserve. From the city of Oulu, Belial's members never really went by evil stage names. Perhaps this was because of their close connection to fellow Finns Impaled Nazarene, all of whose members went by their regular names. In fact, when Belial did eventually break up, some of their members went on to play in Impaled Nazarene.

Forming in early 1991, it was their first demos--especially Gods of the Pit, released in October of that year--that really made them known in the extreme metal underground. Limited to 500 copies, this cassette-only demo featured a raw and brutal black/death style that compares favorably to fellow countrymen Archgoat. In terms of genre, even the members of Belial themselves have acknowledged that it was "basic death metal...with a flirtation in the direction of black metal."

This is their first demo, simply titled Rehearsal. It was released in August of '91

From the Gods of the Pit demo, this is "Voices Beyond"

Their brutal sound caught the ears of a few labels. Belial signed with Lethal Records with the intent of entering the studio to produce actual albums. The result was 1992's Wisdom of Darkness EP. The sound was a refined version of their demo brutality, cleaned up a little with better production values. 

"The Hypocrisy of God's Sons" is a killer track from Wisdom of Darkness

This was also the time when the band began unraveling. They kicked out guitarist Jukka Valppu because of differing artistic visions (he then joined black/death band Mythos), but then the entire band went on hiatus because they wanted to do something different musically. However, Lethal Records reminded them of their contractual obligations, so they entered the studio and recorded their one official full-length album of black/death, Never Again.

The music on this album was more brutal black/death madness, but some of the songs leaned in the direction of modern death metal. It's almost as if Blasphemy tried to incorporate Swedish death metal riffs. It's still a brutal underground Finnish release, though.

Off of Never Again, here is "As Above So Below"

After the release of Never Again, the band started moving in a new direction. They began experimenting more with a grunge- and electronica-influenced sound. This resulted in their second major album, 3. Having not heard this album, I cannot comment on it. That said, it is not well-liked and it is not black metal.

As Belial's popularity peaked in 1992-93, the American label Moribund Records sought to capitalize on it and wanted to release the Gods of the Pit demo as an album. The result was Gods of the Pit II (Paragon So Below), an EP with some of the demo's songs in a slightly better sound. This release has been re-issued by Moribund Records several times, including as recently as 2023!

After the release of 3 and Gods II, Belial broke up. As noted above, many of their members went on to play in Impaled Nazarene.

Select Discography:

Rehearsal (demo) (1991)

The Gods of the Pit (demo) (1991)

The Wisdom of Darkness EP (1992)

Never Again (full-length) (1993)

The Gods of the Pit Pt. II (Paragon So Below)  EP (1993)

Next time: ABUSIVENESS

Black Crucifixion

Despite never exploding into international prominence the way Norway's black metal scene did, Finland has been home to a thriving black metal scene since the very beginning. With bands like Vadertopsy, Beherit, and Archgoat dating back to the late 1980s, Finland has never lacked for black metal.  By the early nineties, of course, things had truly exploded. BLACK CRUCIFXION, hailing from the northern city of Rovaniemi, was part of that explosion.

Originally formed in 1991 under the name Horned Lord by Forn and Blacksoul, they soon changed their name to Black Crucifixion. As Forn has stated in interviews, Black Crucifixion had more of an edge to it and fit with their artistic vision better than did the name Horned Lord. Rounded out by members of Beherit, Black Crucifixion claimed not only 80's black metal pioneers  Venom, Bathory, Hellhammer, and Sarcofago as inspiration, but also the hellenic scene as well. They soon made themselves known on the extreme metal scene in Finland not only with the release of an obscure three-song demo, but by their performance at the Day of Darkness festival in the summer of 1991.

"Flowing Downwards"--from their '92 demo--is perhaps their most well-known song

By the end of 1991, they had recorded a proper demo that saw the light of day in 1992: The Fallen One of Flames. The sound showcased on this demo indicated that Black Crucifixion played by their own rules. That is, they didn't sound like either of the major styles associated with Finland--not the raw brutality associated with Archgoat, Beherit, Belial, etc., and not the in-your-face punk-influenced style of Impaled Nazarene either. Black Crucifixion's style was a gloomier, more morose one than that of their fellow countrymen. The influence of Greek black metal can easily be heard.

In 1993, the band's first real true and proper release, the Promethean Gift EP, made waves in the Finnish black metal scene. Continuing down the twisted path carved by their '92 demo, the band didn't necessarily think of themselves as part of the "black metal" movement. At various times, they have labeled their music "dark metal" or even "extreme metal". And their music, as stated above, never fit into neat categorization either. As heard on Promethean Gift, there was a melancholy--which Forn himself had attributed to the extreme environment of Lapland--at the heart of their music.

Here is the title track off of Promethean Gift

This was a crucial time in the Finnish black metal scene. Archgoat, Beherit, and even Black Crucifixion--for various reasons--went silent in the black metal scene for a number of years. Whereas Beherit disappeared into dark ambient in the mid and late 90s, and Archgoat broke up before eventually re-forming, Black Crucifixion worked on the follow-up to Promethean Gift at a glacial pace. While they started writing and recording material for a new album as early as 1995, they didn't finish it until 2005. In 2006, they then put out the full-length album Faustian Dream.

From Faustian Dream, this is "Wrath Without Hate"

The reasons BC took so long aren't nefarious or obscure. Forn has stated in interviews that they "were busy and had other things to do" and waited until "the music felt relevant again". Perhaps as a result of the passage of time, or the maturing of the band members, Faustian Dream--even moreso than the earlier releases--does not fit well into the black metal pigeonhole. It is, as stated by the band, a "darker metal".

Following the release of 2006's Faustian Dream and a live album from a 1991 concert (2009's Satanic Zeitgeist), BC has been fairly consistent. They have since released a trio of well-received albums, meant to be listened to as a trilogy, and they have been regulars on the festival circuit, introducing themselves to a new generation of listeners.

Select Discography:

Demo 1  (demo) (1991)

The Fallen One of Flames (demo) (1992)

Promethean Gift EP (1993)

Faustian Dream (full-length album) (2006)

Satanic Zeitgeist (live album) (2009)
Hope of Retaliation (full-length album) (2011)
Coronation of King Darkness (full-length album) (2013)
Lightless Violent Chaos (full-length album)  (2018)

Next time: MANIAC BUTCHER

Impaled Nazarene

It can be argued that right after Rovaniemi's Beherit, IMPALED NAZARENE--from the city of Oulu--are Finland's second most important black metal band.  Owing to their more prolific output and being signed to a big label like Osmose Productions, it is likely that Impaled Nazarene is actually more well-known outside black metal circles than Beherit.

Forming in late 1990, Impaled Nazarene quickly came to make a mark on the Finnish extreme metal scene.  They released the demo Shemhamforash in early 1991, and soon thereafter were performing shows alongside bands like Sentenced, Amorphis and Beherit.  By the end of 1991, they had released a second demo entitled  Taog Eht Fo Htao Eht as well as the Goat Penis 7".  Their sound was clearly indebted to the old-school 80s black thrash, but with a very heavy punk influence.  They definitely were not as raw and necro sounding as fellow countrymen Beherit nor did they have the pummeling brutality of Archgoat.

This is the Taog Eht Fo Htao Eht demo in its entirety

Following on the heels of the underground success of these early demos, Impaled Nazarene released the 1992 full-length album Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz.  It continued in the same vein as the demo material, with a black metal sound that paid homage to the 80s underground and old-school punk, but at the same time ramped up the chaos.  The album broke into the charts in Finland, apparently--a first for black metal.

From Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz, here is "I Al Purg Vonpo/My Blessing"

Supposedly, an alleged feud erupted in 1992-3 between Impaled Nazarene and members of the Norwegian black metal circle, with the result being that Impaled Nazarene began to distance themselves from not just the black metal scene (eschewing corpsepaint and Satanic stage names), but even the very label black metal was something they dropped.  To this day, they would insist they are not black metal.  But if you listen to ImpNaz, it squarely falls within the black metal style.

"Total War-Winter War" is from 1994's Suomi Finland Perkele

After Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz, Impaled Nazarene's style never changed radically.  The black/thrash, the punk, the chaos--it's present in every Impaled Nazarene album since.  But thematically, they did begin to expand beyond goats, Satan, and sex.  They begin to explore Finnish history in their music, writing songs about Finnish military history.  1994's Suomi Finland Perkele, for example, was a very proud-to-be-Finnish album, while still maintaining ImpNaz's signature style.

Impaled Nazarene has continued to release a steady stream of albums since their inception.  1993's Ugra Karma, 1996's Latex Cult, 1998's Rapture, and 2000's Nihil were all more or less a strong blackened continuation of their initial sound.  But with 2001's The Absence of War Does Not Mean Peace, there was a slight shift in their sound: the punk and thrash influences became even more pronounced.

Off of 1998's Rapture, this is "Goat Vomit and Gas Masks"

And from 2003's All That You Fear, here's "Armageddon Death Squad"

And they still release albums down to this day.  2003's All That You Fear, 2005's live album Death Comes in 26 Carefully Selected Pieces, 2006's Pro Patria Finlandia, 2007's Manifest, and 2010's Road to the Octagon are all indications that Impaled Nazarene has no intention of slowing down.  I will now leave you with a clip of them playing live....

Here is a live version of ImpNaz's "The Horny and the Horned"


Select Discography:

Shemhamforash (demo) (1991)
Taog eht fo Htao Eht (demo) (1991)
Goat Perversion EP (1992)
Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz (full-length) (1992)
Ugra-Karma (full-length) (1993)
Suomi Finland Perkele (full-length) (1994)
Latex Cult (full-length) (1996)
Rapture (full-length) (1998)
Nihil (full-length) (2000)
Absence of War Does Not Mean Peace (full-length) (2001)
All That You Fear (full-length) (2003)

Next time: ABHORER