Fleurety

In a genre that is inherently extreme, FLEURETY stands out as particularly far out there. I'm not talking about the experimental/avant-garde turn they took in the new millenium---I'm talking about the vocals on their early releases. Fleurety has become known for having some of the most inhuman vocals in extreme metal. But more on that shortly. Let's set the stage first....

Part of the explosion of Norwegian black metal bands in the early 90s, Fleurety (from Norway's Viken region) was formed in 1991 by Varg and Nebiros, taking their name from a demon mentioned in several grimoires.

This is the title track from their Black Snow demo

Initially a death metal band called Transmogrification, it was hearing early second wave black metal masterpieces like Samael's Worship Him and Darkthrone's A Blaze in the Northern Sky that inspired these lads to shift their sound. With this shift, Fleurety joined the still-young Norwegian scene and got to work on new material. The result was the infamous Black Snow demo in 1993.

While the songs on the demo utilized fairly typical guitar riffing for the times, it was---as stated above---the shrill, piercing vocals that set Fleurety apart. They were more high-pitched, with a sound that hurts just to listen to. Fleurety were considered just too weird for even such an extreme genre as black metal. Many fellow Norwegian black metallers lambasted their sound, with some even going so far as to physically attack Nebiros and Varg.

From the 1994 EP, this is "My Resurrection in Eternal Hate"

But they soldiered on. Their demo had caught the attention of record labels, and they signed with British label Aesthetic Records. They released the 7" EP A Darker Shade of Evil through that label. This release showcased a more mature approach to black metal than their demo. It was still in the same style (roughly), but the guitar playing and song structures in general were less amateurish.

Fleurety, however, were just getting started. They returned to the studio and recorded a full-length album: 1995's Min tid skal komme. The weirdness that was only hinted at before had now blossomed into full-fledged progressive tendencies. While the acoustic passages and creative guitar playing could be said to resemble other bands in the Norwegian scene, their songs as a whole veered too far off to the left for the black metal purists now dominating the scene.

"En Skikkelse I Horisonten" is from the '95 full-length

In a way, this progressive approach to black metal could be seen as a precursor to the experimental black metal bands to come. The ethereal atmosphere of Min tid skal komme can be thought of as post-black metal before such a thing existed. Oh, and gone were the shrill inhuman vocals of the early years. Varg (Alexander Nordgaren) could no longer perform those vocals, as he had damaged his vocal chords with such shrill screeches!

Min tid skal komme was Fleurety testing the waters. The band has admitted that progressive music, jazz, and electronica were in heavy rotation at the time, and made its way into their music. The 1999 EP Last Minute Lies was hardly black metal at all, and as a result, Fleurety was dropped from their record label. They were soon, however, picked up by Supernal Records.

A taste of the weirdness that is Department of Apocalyptic Affairs

Their second full-length album, Department of Apocalyptic Affairs, was released in 2000, and it took the experimentalism of the earlier years and ran with it. This album bore little resemblance to anything black metal, yet it featured a host of guest musicians from Norway's black metal scene (including from such stalwarts as Mayhem and Arcturus).  Since this release, Fleurety's style has more or less remained firmly in the realm of the weird and experimental, and would probably not appeal to most black metal fans. That said, if you're an open-minded music lover, it might be worth your while.

Select Discography:

Black Snow (demo) (1993)
A Darker Shade of Evil EP (1994)
Promo '95 (demo) (1995)

Min tid skal komme  (full-length album) (1995)

Next time: FUNERAL WINDS

Korova

The boundaries of black metal are, as I've said before, more expansive than a lot of people think. Sure, there's straightforward stuff like Bathory or Mayhem, but there's also the weird and the experimental, like Abruptum or Arcturus or KOROVA, from Innsbruck, Austria. And I think it's important to best understand the genre in all of its aspects.

First off, their name itself reflects their penchant for weirdness. The word "korova" is Russian for "cow", and as odd a name as that is for a black metal band, it was chosen because it was the name of the milk bar in the dystopian novel/film A Clockwork Orange and because Christof Niederwieser, the driving force behind and founder of the band, wanted a name that represented the musical "herd" Korova was seeking to separate itself from.

Off of their debut album, this is "Entlebt in tristem Morgenblut"

Although formed in 1990, Korova labored in the underground for a few years as--mostly--a one-man band under the leadership of Christof. By 1994, Korova was a full band and recorded their debut album, A Kiss in the Charnel Fields. Released in 1995 on Austrian label Napalm Records, Kiss is an odd slab of jarring avant-garde black metal. Filled with unusual time signatures, riffs that range from the atonal to the melodic, clean vocals, and eerie synth passages, only very adventurous black metal fans would embrace such an album.

Korova recorded material intended for a second album, and even shopped it around to several labels. However, it was repeatedly rejected for the music being too odd. This unreleased material apparently exists in the form of the Echowelt demo. Christof has even said in interviews that some of the Echowelt material is actually some of their more popular material when they perform live.

"Europa in Flammen" is a great song from 1998's Dead Like an Angel

They did end up releasing a different second album, 1998's Dead Like an Angel. It's a pretty solid follow-up to 1995's Kiss. That being said, it pushes boundaries even more than its predecessor. In addition to the above-mentioned elements, Korova was now incorporating more electronic sounds, female vocals, and more dissonant passages.

"Drown Symphony" is an excellent example of KorovaKill's millenial weirdness

The turn of the millenium saw some pretty radical changes for Korova. Christof and drummer/guitarist Moritz Neuner more or less disbanded Korova and reformed as KorovaKill, with new keyboardist Renaud Tschirner in tow. The resulting album was even more avant-garde and off-the-wall than anything Korova had done up to that point. This was 2001's Waterhells, an expansive, mind-bending concept album not for the faint of heart.

Since that time, KorovaKill morphed into yet another iteration: Chryst. Chryst is continuing the avant-garde, progressive industrial tendencies of KorovaKill's Waterhells. For fans of black metal as it is traditionally understood, Korova's first album is probably your best bet. For the more adventurous, their entire catalogue is worth a listen.

Select Discography:

A Kiss in the Charnel Fields (full-length) (1995)

Echowelt (demo) (1997)

Dead Like an Angel (full-length)  (1998)

Waterhells (full-length) (2001)

Next time: GOATPENIS

Arcturus

One of black metal's more unique bands, ARCTURUS formed in 1990, predating the Norwegian explosion by a couple of years. They initially formed as an off-shoot of death metal band Mortem with the intention of creating a more atmospheric, eerie-sounding music. The initial line-up featured some of the Norwegian scene's more well-known musicians: Hellhammer (of Mayhem fame), Sverd (later of Ulver and Covenant), and Marius Vold (of Thorns). 

Their first release was the 1991 single "My Angel". The title track showcased the eerie, atmospheric vibe that Arcturus were striving for. At the time, it didn't really resemble anything else in the Norwegian scene, but it still had a strongly occultic feel to it.

This is 1991's "My Angel"

Some major line-up changes happened not too long after the release of the "My Angel" single. Marius left the band, and Sverd decided to switch over to keyboards/synths. As a result, they soon recruited Samoth (guitarist from Emperor) and Garm (from Ulver) on vocals. Newly reinvigorated with this line-up, they released the Constellation EP in 1993.

"Du Nordavind" is a classic track off of Constellation

This EP expanded on their earlier sound in a rather noteworthy way. With a cold, unforgiving  guitar sound to complement the creepy synths, Arcturus entered into new territory for black metal. Their style was strongly atmospheric in a way few bands had been.

After some additional line-up changes the following year, Arcturus set about recording their first full-length album: 1995's Aspera Hiems Symfonia. With a title that translates from Latin as "harsh winter symphony," Aspera is one of the absolute classics of Norwegian black metal.

"Wintry Grey" may very well be Arcturus's best song

Aspera Hiems Symfonia takes black metal in a different direction. By the time of its release, the Norwegian black metal boom was in full swing,  and all of the features associated with black metal were well-established: tremolo picking, lo-fi production values, screeching vocals, etc. However, Aspera didn't aspire to these stylistic norms: clean vocals, epic symphonic passages, and varied tempos abounded. It is a darkly beautiful album that transcends the label 'black metal'.

Aspera Hiems Symfonia marked an important transition for Arcturus. The seeds for a more avant-garde direction, one not bound by genre labels, had been sown. 1997's La Masquerade Infernale was a radical departure from black metal, but with an eerie, haunting atmosphere all its own. And since that album, Arcturus has continued to challenge people's ideas of what extreme metal is capable of.

"Chaos Path" is very representative of the avant-garde sound of Masquerade Infernale

Select Discography:

"My Angel" (single) (1991)

Constellation EP (1993)

Aspera Hiems Symfonia (full-length) (1995)

Next time: INQUISITION

Sigh

An early photo of Sigh

SIGH, hailing from the capital city of Tokyo, is probably Japan's most famous extreme metal export. Upon their initial formation in 1989, they were primarily a band that covered old-school thrash and speed metal (and Venom, too).  They eventually decided to try to write some original material after months of performing covers, and the result was 1990's Desolation demo.  Desolation can best be described as an old-school black metal style, but with jarring guitar patterns and highly atmospheric keyboard playing.  It was a bit odd, and that oddness would become Sigh's signature over the years.

Here is Sigh's Desolation demo in its entirety

After another 1990 demo (Tragedies), Sigh's unique sound caught the attention of record labels the world over, and they signed with Wild Rags Records and released the Requiem For Fools 7" in 1992.  This, in turn, caught the attention of Mayhem's Euronymous.  He signed Sigh to his Deathlike Silence Productions, and the phenomenal full-length Scorn Defeat was released in 1993.  Scorn Defeat is a unique release, with the dark and evil atmosphere one expects from black metal, but more of their angular and unusual guitar riffing--as well as the aforementioned keyboard playing--made this album stand apart from the then blossoming Scandinavian black metal scene.

Off of Scorn Defeat, this is "Ready for the Final War"

With Scorn Defeat, Sigh had arrived on the world black metal stage.  Unfortunately, the events surrounding Norway's Inner Circle led to the demise of Deathlike Silence Productions, and this left Sigh without a record label. They then signed with Cacophonous Records and released a slew of albums, including a split EP with Greek black metallers Kawir, an EP of Venom covers and their 1995 and 1997 albums, Infidel Art and Hail Horror Hail. While Infidel Art can be seen as a continuation of their 1993 debut, Hail Horror Hail is where Sigh's oddness and slightly avant-garde tendencies began to dominate their sound.

"Desolation" is off of 1995's Infidel Art

Title track from 1997's Hail Horror Hail

Hail Horror Hail marked a definite turning point in their sound.  While the music rested upon an extreme metal foundation, the members of Sigh were not afraid to experiment with epic synth passages that resembled horror movie soundtracks, as well as unconventional instruments. Jazz, funk, even reggae--all of this was fair game. I think it's fair to say that Sigh's appeal to the average black metal fan diminishes more and more with each release.  For the adventurous, however, their more recent output is worth checking out.

An example of their increasing experimentation,

this is "Scarlet Dream" from 2001's Imaginary Sonicscape

Select Discography:

Desolation (demo) (1990)
Tragedies (demo) (1990)
Requiem for Fools EP (1992)
Scorn Defeat (full-length) (1993)
Infidel Art (full-length) (1995)
Hail Horror Hail (full-length) (1997)
Scenario IV: Dread Dreams (full-length) (1999)
Imaginary Sonicscape (full-length) (2001)

Next time: SHUB NIGGURATH