Blazemth-Fatherland
Just at the verge of the infamous year of 1996, the mark that separates the classic era of black metal with its previous foundational waves, and post 1996 with lots of late comers and also-rans, sketch a second era of sub par black metal music. A time when black metal was about everything the first waves devised turned into formulaic symbols, in other words, a time when black metal became about nothing anymore.
Blazemth speak of an ancient romantic spirit where honor and pride aim for higher goals and ideals with a careful balance of emotion, passion, fantasy and feral naturalism. Isn’t this what foundational black metal was all about? This brief EP features awesome music with a heroic spirit and palpable substance.
This is melodic black metal with occasional slight abrasive dissonance and for the most part, marching rhythms that ride with a lofty proud gait. Melodies are passionate and create an initial romantic mood normally under a stomping double bass and constant blast beats that gracefully whirl into collision and create a grand melodic atmosphere. The atmosphere created is harmonically rich yet subtle, melodically intense being both violent and beautiful as if watching the night sky burst into different colors. A typical song will undergo two or three tempo changes, fast percussive rolling chaos that will lead to the central emotional ambience, to a slower warlike marching cadence which abruptly breaks the melodic climax.
Pouring down from this melodious storm, come fervent emotions of pride and strength as if marching under the rain to war and certain death, yet with a vengeful and joyful heart. The abrasive dissonant riffs help balance what otherwise would lead to over emotionalism, and give the music both a sense of conflict and struggle through blasting noise, and a series of mood changes within each song. Vocals are of the low end range of shrieks, often times like a high pitched hiss that breaks into cleaner sung harangues arousing to battle. The overall feel of the music is not dissimilar to early Emperor with hints of early Immortal.
This is black metal about men being summoned to war, bound together by a vision of how the world could be or will be after necessary “jihad”, an unholy war to destroy all that brought the world to how it is today. Lyrics propose that misanthropy, Satanism and hatred are of lesser relevance than a love for that which one would resolutely die for, nature, land and kin. This music suggests the existence of ideals beyond the fear of death, and if by death can be reached, then an enduring motive for the spirit to rejoice.