Depraved

Katatonia - Tonight's Decision I've almost forgotten how good this album is. Heavy brooding atmosphere, excellent guitar work.

Katatonia is in my opinion one of the greatest bands to excel at multiple genres. Most bands I listen to, I only really like 2 or 3 albums before a drastic change in sound I can't really stomach, but I enjoy everything these guys did from the Jhva Elohim Meth demo to The Great Cold Distance (although they lost me after that). Dance of December Souls is still probably in my top three albums of all time, by any band, ever. Sure, the songwriting is more or less amateurish sometimes and the musicianship isn't the greatest, but the atmosphere and pure emotion this album elicits is unparalleled. Renkse's vocals on December are also some of my most favorite ever recorded, it's like listening to someone being tortured in slow motion or something for 50-odd minutes, yet they are so soothing and cathartic to me. I love how that entire album is drenched in reverb, people say it's a little cheesy and dated or whatever but I love it. Nothing else sounds quite like it. Beautiful lyrics too. Brave Murder Day is also, of course, fucking brilliant. My second favorite from this band.

Aw, man. I'm terrible about getting random riffs in my head out of the blue and then constantly listening to the song for days. The worst offender for this lately has been Gorgoroth - Unchain My Heart. That riff that begins at 1:05 has been looping in my head constantly for the last 24+ hours, I swear. I can't tell you how many times I've listened to this song today. It's the only way to cure the earworm. And yet that damn riff is still in my head lol. Immortal is annoying as hell about this. I get random riffs from At the Heart of Winter in my head ALL THE TIME. But really, it happens with a lot of bands. And the worst part is when I can't for the life of me remember what song it's from. It happens quite often with the opening riff of "Mother North". I could be sitting in my office at work minding my own business and then - BAM - nuh NUH nuh nuh NUH nuh nuh NUH NUH NUH NUH NUH nuh NUH NUH NUH WAOW WAOW WAOU WAOOOW WAOW WAOOOOW!

Lord Belial - Forlorn In Silence came immediately to mind. Also my personal favorite from Katatonia. Those tortured vocals and motherfucking riffs...aah...gorgeous...

I was really pleasantly surprised by Mgla. It's not the best thing I've ever heard by any means, but they do a great job of creating an atmosphere which hearkens back to the early 90s yet is somehow contemporary and unique. Paysage d'Hiver I've never heard of.

You know, despite what Frost might say about "progressing", when I first heard that album I honestly had the feeling Satyr put a gun to his head in the studio and told him "play it this way...or else."

I don't really subscribe to certain genres all that much. I would say I listen to death/doom and black metal the most, classic heavy metal too, but I listen to so many bands, I can't really say. Among my all-time favorites: 1349 Mayhem Satyricon Darkthrone Katatonia Opeth Paradise Lost I find it difficult to listen to new music. Whenever I find myself wanting to hear something new, I look to the past. Nothing I hear today feels as meaningful or passionate. I don't know why. I've been really wanting to learn to play guitar since I was a teenager, but I badly injured my shoulder many years ago and it still inhibits my playing. I haven't picked up my guitar in over a year now because of chronic pain and mobility issues. It's extremely frustrating but I'm not giving up yet.

At the moment - Paradise Lost. Recently lots of 1349, Gorgoroth, and some Burzum.

Draconian Times will always and forever be one of my most favorite albums of all time. It's just so iconic. I love the guitar tone, it has a very unique atmosphere and vibe, and the cleans are some of the most beautiful I have ever heard. I remember exactly where I was when I first heard that album in its entirety. I was burning incense on a summer evening and there were white roses in the room. Whenever I hear anything from that album, it conjures that memory so strongly I can feel the heat and smell the incense as if I'd stepped back in time. It's a really magical piece of music, and I don't think anything else in this genre even comes close to touching it. I'm not familiar with any of their recent music. After the massive change in sound, I quit following them for the most part. I don't much care for their earliest albums, either. Icon is pretty good. Self-titled is okay I guess. Their collection of B-sides is surprisingly killer.

They're one of my most favorite black metal bands, but I can't say I've been dazzled by anything they've done in the last twenty years. Dark Medieval Times and The Shadowthrone are essential listening, in my opinion. I love Nemesis Divina too, but after that, nothing really holds my interest minus a few decent songs. I probably wouldn't even bother to give the newer stuff a try if it wasn't for Frost's drumming, but there are much better avenues to hear him in his element. Don't get me wrong, I have a ton of respect for these guys, but their recent output just sounds too same-y to me, and I get bored of it quickly. It's not terrible, and Satyr plays some interesting riffs here and there, but a lot of songs kind of meander and sound tired and/or uninspired. That being said, very few albums released in the 21st century have really blown me away. I dig older music way too much.

I fucking love metal. That is all.