I grabbed the last copy at Reckless today on my way in from class. Such nice packaging too. Little things like that really get me. The gold vinyl looks awesome.

Just found out I can see them July 8th at the Record Bar. It's rare that bands come through Kansas City, & I have a feeling they will never be back after the show. Not much of a metal scene in KC.

Sounds like you need to start one. Go burn a church

Seems like i'm the minority on Deafheaven.

^ I'm with you sir, its good but I don't know....i'm just not all that skippers about it like everyone else seems to be. And I fucking hate the cover. Part of what draws me to black metal is the crazy imagery and themes, and pink w/ ghost letters ? Nope.

I love the cover, it's the sucker punch. Sets you up so much and matches the feel of the album.

But I don't really put this in the same bracket as traditional black metal so I get your point if that's what you're looking for. I enjoy this so much because it's NOT traditional. I really don't even put it in the BM (make a poop joke) catagory myself but that's a whole inernet fight for someone else to have.

this to the millionth degree.

from a pitchfork interview:

Pitchfork: The record has this pinkish cover art, and the songs have this uplifting feel. Is the color supposed to demarcate the overall feel?

GC: The color scheme is what it looks like when you’re laying in the park and your eyes are closed and you’re looking at the sun. The cover is so simple and elegant and modern, but its classic, too, and the typography is gorgeous. It definitely coincides with a lush guitar sound. But the most annoying thing is that writers want to point it out as being purposefully controversial, like, “Oh, they made the most un-black metal record [cover] they could.” But we just like the way it looks. That’s all I care about.

Pitchfork: At this point, do you guys still consider Deafheaven a black metal band or are you just a band?

GC: We’re just a band. The black metal thing makes my hair curl, because we get the question all the time, like, “How do you feel about being alienated from the metal community?” I’m like, “Are we, really?” I mean, we have other stuff going on, but anyone that hears Sunbather can clearly see that it’s extremely metal. I still listen to black metal all the time-- that’s obviously one of my favorite kinds of music-- but I steer from it very strongly these days. Are we even a metal band? I don’t know. I just want to ask people if they like it. If you don’t like it, that’s fine-- get the fuck out of my way. If you did, thank you, let’s hang out.

It doesn't do anything for my either.
I'd rather listen to Lemonheads and then some Mysticum or something
Got the latest Burzum earlier this week. It sounds like the ambiant tracks off Filosofem. Not bad.

Ha, yeah, I don't get why people are so hung up on labling it. I have my idea of what I think, and always have, black metal is. I don't care though. Like people were being turds when Ghost hit, "that's not black metal blah!" WHO CARES?! People are just as into defending them as black metal as they are into saying they're not.

I joke with my wife that Deafheaven is guitars and melodies her type of music (she's into mostly indie/shoe gazer type stuff) then drums and vocals my thing (blast beats/screaming.)

I look at it as an album too. Roads to Judah didn't knock me down. It's ok, I didn't freak for it. This album really pulled me in as a whole though. I wasn't a fan of theirs in any real way before.

But I mean if someone's not into it, that's cool, I'm not gonna try and sell them.

One of my friends commenting on deafheaven said that it sounds as if thrice had gone black metal. He didn't like em much.

They're a fun thing to listen to and they can write some music, so they get a pass from me. I gave up on the labelling thing years ago. It never satisfies anyone.

As far as Deafheaven, I wasn't too into their first album either, and it could be something as simple as their recording or tuning just doesn't agree with my ear. I'm also not too into 'post rock' creeping into the proceedings either. I would point to Altar Of Plagues here, whose work I enjoy ( for the most part ) but the new album just isn't doing it for me....I feel like shouting ' quit it with the feedback and weird sounds and just get to the fucking point !!! ' ( Also hate the new Altar Of Plagues cover )

I kind of feel like starting a 'Heavy Metal' thread. As much as I enjoy the Black Metal and Stoner/Doom threads, it would be cool to just have a place where any kind of metal is fair game.

Where's the Thrash thread. Fuck.

^ I'm not familiar with half of these bands J, I'm giving a listen now. This made me think about a funny review I've read on Sputnik Music a while ago.

"The year is 2012 and I feel as if black metal is slowly losing its game to the ever growing legion of hipsters and indie cesspools full of never-ending irrelevant information. What is it about black metal that fascinates these outside groups of “too cool for mainstream but I’m going to tippy-toe around the edge” people and they’re never ending pursuit to drag every genre of music into the depths of self-indulgent ***? I know this is the elitist coming out of me – even though I still believe in the thought of “if it sounds good, who cares what market it appeals to” – but at heart, I still contradict and sound like an elitist prick when I say “leave our damn music alone”

And then : "Upon first reading about Wild Hunt’s debut, I first thought about the cover art, the bands promo photo, and the album title and came to these conclusions: deceptively intelligent, hipster douche bags, and a geometrically stupid concept. You can see on this basis why I thought about self-indulgent morons posing as intellectual beings. Furthermore, sandwiching your debut album between two sixteen minute tracks can either mean you’re a pretentious turd or you’ve climbed the mountain to Opeth greatness (before they went Camel on our asses). Unfortunately, any thoughts of ripping this apart were quickly swept underneath the carpet while I was treated to a fairly decent take on modernized progressive black metal"

This is what i'm saying. But also include death metal, speed metal, folk metal....etc. I LOVE ALL OF THIS SHIT !



^ Exactly what I mean for a thread Jason
Nefasth recently posted his score of Lich King for example, I love that throwback vibe to old thrash like Vio-Lence or Exodus.



I love Fell Voices and Wolves In The Throne Room, so i'm not entirely against the genre....Ash Borer is good too. Going to check for some of those other bands. Thanks for the list.

I love post rock/metal, so it makes sense that Deafheaven would hit home with me. Just read some stuff about them that made me hesitant to check them out. Is anyone here a fan of Cult of Luna? They are not black metal at all, but was just wondering if anyone appreciates them like I do.

I saw Deafheaven opening for Boris in LA both nights they were playing. Good show. I actually enjoyed it more the second night because I was more cognizant of their song structure, melodies, and what they were going for.

^^ Nothing wrong with some shaky fanboy moments
I assume the show was awesome too ?

i'll second the recommendation for Marriages. I only heard a few songs live, but they were really good.

Can't wait to see Deafheaven & Marriages on July 8th. Just wish I didn't have to go to work the next day.

So has anyone listened to any good black metal releases lately? Aosoth & Bornholm are the last ones that I really liked.

^ I really like the newest from Wodensthrone....released about 9 months ago, still enjoying the subtleties.
Wodensthrone - Curse

Picked up a used copy of (the book) Black Metal: Beyond the Darkness recently and was wondering if anyone else has read it and what your/their thoughts are... It seems pretty sophomoric, but what's most ridiculous to me is the re-printed crap piece "Transcendental Black Metal." I've never quite understood how people can take probably the most laughable of all the metal genres and try to turn it into some sort of social manifesto or doctrine. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy black metal (obviously), but I've always felt the theatrics and the (dare-I-say) aesthetics of the genre visually are just that, props. I'm not about to judge a musical genre on the actions of a small handful sociopaths and daft kids with too much time on their hands and deem it as some sort of ____________________ (fill in the blank with whatever political, social, anti-social, blah, blah, blah nonsense you want)... Not to mention, most of these so-called edumacated individuals who write about this stuff seriously tend to do so like it's a Bret Easton Ellis trash novel, too much unnecessary description...

Anyway, I'm just curious to hear (read) what others think.

Ugh,.. Deafheaven. I just hope this isn't the direction black metal is turning for the future.

Black metal is commercial shit now. It's dead Too played out, we heard it all before. No your not evil and no you don't worship Satan. Black metal lived and died in the very early 90's.

Amen