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Requiem

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On 5/8/2019 at 5:46 AM, Requiem said:

I certainly hope it hasn't been uploaded to that realm of falseness, youtube. Hail physical copies exclusively. Hail the old spirit. 

There are probably a few versions of it floating around, but this was the first time I've seen it. I found it on ebay - not sure if there are any others but I presume they're out there. 

I found it on discogs, but no one was selling any copies.

7 hours ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

The trve necro kvlt black metal fan does not believe in internet. His news is delivered by raven and all his albums are bootlegs recorded on discs made from the bones of goats he has sacrificed. The booklets printed in his own blood onto the skins of said goats.

Hey!  Physical copies are my preferred method for listening to music too, but the internet is both how I purchase it and discover new bands.  There is just something about the culture of Southern California, USA that is not conducive to black metal and harsh noise being popular enough to easily find in person...

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19 hours ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

I just don't have the space for physical copies. Plus I don't have the money to buy any new music at all so the internet is the only place I can hear things. Things I do intend to buy when I can afford it.

Sure. 

But there’s something really special (to me at least; but my wife shakes her head in bemusement) in literally holding in my hands a rare rehearsal or rough mix by Mayhem. It’s a cool thing to own and just stare at basically. And listen to occasionally. 

I just paid money for a whole heap of Mayhem mp3 disks. It doesn’t get any more daft than that...

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On 5/10/2019 at 4:39 AM, Requiem said:

But there’s something really special (to me at least; but my wife shakes her head in bemusement) in literally holding in my hands a rare rehearsal or rough mix by Mayhem. It’s a cool thing to own and just stare at basically. And listen to occasionally. 

Especially when you already know that the amount of copies is limited (and/or numbered).  I think it is the difference between an everyday and an extraordinary collection.

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2 minutes ago, Balor said:

True.  A collector should strive for both, I guess.

I'd just call myself a fan, I don't care about owning every rare LP a band has ever pressed. Having said that I've hunted for years to find a rare split Mournful Congregation did with Worship and Stabat Mater...with no luck.

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52 minutes ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

I'd just call myself a fan, I don't care about owning every rare LP a band has ever pressed. Having said that I've hunted for years to find a rare split Mournful Congregation did with Worship and Stabat Mater...with no luck.

It depends on the band I guess.  Sometimes I find myself liking a particular band so much that I just want to track down everything from them that I possibly can.  Other times, even if I like a band a lot, I feel no need to gain a complete collection of their work.  As to finding rare items, every once in a while they just suddenly seem to appear.  I just bought a tape off of Discogs that I thought I would never find ever due to its rarity - but then someone just happened to post it for sale.

Also, what split are you looking for specifically?  The Mournful Congregation Discogs page lists two separate splits with the bands you mentioned, but not both together.  That being said, some of each are currently for sale.

As a side note, I never realized that Mikko Aspa had a doom project.  I only ever knew of his noise stuff.  I will have to check it out.

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39 minutes ago, Balor said:

It depends on the band I guess.  Sometimes I find myself liking a particular band so much that I just want to track down everything from them that I possibly can.  Other times, even if I like a band a lot, I feel no need to gain a complete collection of their work.  As to finding rare items, every once in a while they just suddenly seem to appear.  I just bought a tape off of Discogs that I thought I would never find ever due to its rarity - but then someone just happened to post it for sale.

Also, what split are you looking for specifically?  The Mournful Congregation Discogs page lists two separate splits with the bands you mentioned, but not both together.  That being said, some of each are currently for sale.

As a side note, I never realized that Mikko Aspa had a doom project.  I only ever knew of his noise stuff.  I will have to check it out.

I didn't even know about the second split, I only thought they did one, and of course they come up after I have my bank account hacked and drained completely.

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1 hour ago, RelentlessOblivion said:

I didn't even know about the second split, I only thought they did one, and of course they come up after I have my bank account hacked and drained completely.

That's horrible.  Hopefully it will be resolved quickly.

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Back to Mayhem. 

My copies of Peaceville's 2019 official releases of 'Live in Jessheim' and 'Live in Sarpsborg', both from early 1990, have arrived. 

When I ordered them I was amazed to discover that they both came with DVDs of the shows, as I hadn't realised that the shows were filmed. That was quite a revelation. I've only watched the 'Sarpsborg' show so far, and it's more of a novelty really as you can't see a thing, but it's still quite incredible that such a film exists. 

As for the rest of the packages, Peaceville has done a brilliant job. The booklets are fantastic, with excellent liner notes and interviews from key players in the scene. There are some photos I've never seen before, which is incredible at this point of my collection and indicative of how many damn photos they took of themselves over the few short years that they were a band with the classic, Dead, line-up. 

The front covers are also inspired, with Hellhammer appearing on 'Jessheim' and Necrobutcher on 'Sarpsborg'. This now means that with Dead ('Leipzig') and Euronymous ('Zeitz'), all of the four members are on the cover of one of the live show official releases. Very clever on the part of Peaceville and reminds me of the Darkthrone trilogy that featured Zephyrous, Nocturno Culto and Fenriz respectively. It's a really good idea and fits perfectly. 

By a strange quirk of fate, the Sarpsborg show - while not their best live show by any stretch of the imagination - is now easily the one I have most copies of. I think it could be five or six different copies of this one show now in my collection. I'll know once I complete the inventory. 

Well done, Peaceville Records. Hats off to you. 

 

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  • 1 month later...

I came fairly late to the Mayhem party even though de mysteriis dom sathanas was one of the first black metal records i ever bought. But at the time the vocals were too much for me and i found the songs (except Freezing Moon) pretty lacklustre. So i forgot all about Mayhem and went on to discover other bands first.

But as with most extreme bands i revisited them once i was more familiar with the genre and then all things fell into place. As for my favorite album i'm hard pushed to pick a favorite. I'll just say i love the Atilla fronted records and the Maniac fronted albums are okay with me. Mayhem without Atilla just isn't Mayhem to my ears. The man has such a unique vocal style that adds so much to the overall sound of the band. Although i can certainly understand that some people despise his vocal style.

I also love the fact they aren't afraid to experiment even when it means the results are always up to par. Only annoying thing about Mayhem is Hellhammer's horrendous drum sound. I don't understand why such a talented drummer wants his drum to sound like some out of control typewriter. It almost ruins the Grand Declaration of War album for me. So i'm probably one of the few who's actually glad with the remastered version of the album.

Oh yeah, the band has also the tendency to wildly vary in quality while playing live. I've seen them three times so far (October will be the fourth time) and two times they were tremendous while the first time was just pure shit and incredible sloppy. I've heard this complaint from other metalheads as well, but if your band is called Mayhem people tend to be more forgiving right??

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Here is the latest version of my Mayhem collection. I've also finally got around to cataloguing it. I think my collecting will slow down a bit now because I seem to have most things that are floating around the planet, and there are only so many times you can have the 'Dawn of the Blackhearts'/'Sarpsborg' show on CD... By my count I also have about 20 copies of the song 'Freezing Moon', most in unique versions. @Balor @RelentlessOblivion @Vampyrique @True Belief @salmonellapancake @Benjaminc81

 

Requiem's Mayhem Collection - Hail the True Kings of Black Metal

AAFE1-B8-C-EE63-46-A2-8-CE2-87-CAE87-DAE

Mayhem Collection

Here is what is in the photo. Unless stated as ‘Official’, the CD is a bootleg/unofficial.

1.       Pure Fucking Armageddon (CD demo)

2.       True Legends in Black – Mayhem and Darkthrone (CD, original uncut version of ‘Deathcrush’ and Darkthrone’s ‘Thulcandra’ demo)

3.       Deathcrush (CD, Official, Deathlike Silence Productions)

4.       Deathcrush – The Dead Version (CD, ‘Deathcrush’ with Dead on vocals plus other Dead tracks)

5.       Live in Jessheim (live CD and DVD, Official, Peaceville Records)

6.       Dawn of the Black Hearts (live CD, Warhammer Records)

7.       Dawn of the Black Hearts (live CD, DVD case)

8.       Dawn of the Black Hearts (live CD, Blackmoon Records, Alternate Cover)

9.       Live in Sarpsborg (live CD and DVD, Official, Peaceville Records)

10.    Live in Zeitz (live CD, Official, Peaceville Records, Digipak)

11.    Live in Leipzig (live CD, Official, Avantgarde, Digipak)

12.    Live in Leipzig (live CD, Official, Peaceville Records)

13.    Out from the Dark (CD, Rehearsal, Bloodstone Productions)

14.    Jihad/Freezing Moon (split CD with Meads of Asphodel, Semi-Official, Supernal Records)

15.    Freezing Moon/Carnage (CD, Blackmoon Records)

16.    Morbid/Mayhem – A Tribute to the Black Emperors (CD, Warhammer Records)

17.    Life Eternal (CD, Official, A5 size digipak, Saturnus Productions, Box, rough tracks of 'De Mysteriis')

18.    (The True) Mayhem – The True Armageddon (CD, ‘Deathcrush’ and ‘De Mysteriis’ together)

19.    From the Darkest Past (CD, Demonancy Records, ‘De Mysteriis’ rough mix without vocals plus rehearsals, Digipak)

20.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas – The Dead Files (CD, ‘De Mysteriis’ tracks with Dead on vocals plus ‘Freezing Moon’/’Carnage’ studio tracks, Anti-Mosh Music)

21.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (CD, A5 Digipak, Deathlike Silence Productions, Instrumental rough mix)

22.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (CD, Official, Century Black Records)

23.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas Alive (live CD, Official, Peaceville Records, Digipak)

24.    Wolf’s Lair Abyss (CD, Official, Misanthropy Records, Digipak)

25.    Mediolanum Capta Est (live CD, Official, Avantgarde Music)

26.    European Legions (live CD, Official, Season of Mist)

27.    A Tribute to Mayhem – Originators of the Northern Darkness (CD, Official Tribute, Avantgarde Music)

28.    Grand Declaration of War (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Digipak)

29.    Grand Declaration of War (CD, Official, Season of Mist – signed in person by all members)

30.    Grand Declaration of War (CD, Official, Peaceville, Digipak, Remixed and Remastered)

31.    Nordic Metal – A Tribute to Euronymous (CD, Official Tribute, Hammerheart Records)

32.    Chimera (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Digipak)

33.    Ordo ad Chao (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Tin Slip-Case)

34.    A Season in Blasphemy (3xCD, Official, Season of Mist – includes ‘Grand Declaration of War’, ‘Chimera’ and ‘Ordo ad Chao’)

35.    ‘MP3 Collection’ (MP3 CD, All Official Releases and Some Bootlegs up to 2004 = 13 albums/120 songs, Russian Bootleg)

36.    Esoteric Warfare (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Digipak)

37.    The Death Archives by Jorn Subberud (Necrobutcher) (Book, Hardcover)

38.    Live in Marseille (live DVD, Official, Season of Mist)

39.    Pure Fucking Mayhem (DVD, Documentary, Index Verlag)

40.    ‘Mayhem’ logo hoodie

41.    ‘De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas’ album cover short sleeved shirt

42.    ‘Ordo ad Chao’ album cover short sleeved shirt

43.    ‘Euronymous and Dead’ patches, badges on sleeveless jacket

44.    Copies of letters written by Euronymous 

45.    Copies of Euronymous, Dead and Hellhammer’s passports

 

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Holy shit, now this is what i call dedication! I don't believe i've been a fan of band to such an extent. I'll collect a bands entire discography but that's where it stops for me most of the time. 

Anything of interest in those letters of Euronymous? I know he corresponded with people worldwide so i'm sure there are some interesting things in there. Kind of jealous of the "From the Darkest Past" CD and the "De Mysteriss Dom Sathanas" rough mix CD. Heard snippets on youtube and i really like the rough vibe from those rehearsals.

Don't know if you knew but Soulseller Records just re-released the Wolf's Lair Abyss EP but with two additional bonus tracks (Ancient Skin & Necrolust) which were initially released a limited edition single (only 500 copies) before the EP was released. http://www.soulsellerrecords.com/pre-order-mayhem-wolfs-lair-abyss-cdlpcassettedigital/

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2 hours ago, Benjaminc81 said:

Holy shit, now this is what i call dedication! I don't believe i've been a fan of band to such an extent. I'll collect a bands entire discography but that's where it stops for me most of the time. 

Anything of interest in those letters of Euronymous? I know he corresponded with people worldwide so i'm sure there are some interesting things in there. Kind of jealous of the "From the Darkest Past" CD and the "De Mysteriss Dom Sathanas" rough mix CD. Heard snippets on youtube and i really like the rough vibe from those rehearsals.

Don't know if you knew but Soulseller Records just re-released the Wolf's Lair Abyss EP but with two additional bonus tracks (Ancient Skin & Necrolust) which were initially released a limited edition single (only 500 copies) before the EP was released. http://www.soulsellerrecords.com/pre-order-mayhem-wolfs-lair-abyss-cdlpcassettedigital/

Thanks for posting that link to the a new version of 'Wolf's Lair Abyss'.

It looks great, and I'll definitely be picking up a copy. Just goes to show how quickly a photograph of a collection can become out of date! There's always something new turning up. 

I really love 'Wolf's Lair Abyss' too and it's one of my favourite Maniac/Blasphemer releases. It's a stunning way to re-introduce the band. 

As for the collection, I didn't start off with the intention of collecting a whole heap of Mayhem stuff. It just turned out that way after I realised that I had a great deal of their releases. It got to the point that, just through casual purchasing, I had a cool mini-collection, so from that point I consciously started to track down other more random releases. 80% though, was just purchased without any great goal or intention. 

Regarding the letters, they are mostly concerned with Mayhem's intended tour to Turkey, as they were sent to the Turkish promoter originally. So they date from around 1990 and they're full of Euronymous's great plans and ideas.

The passports copies are really interesting and an unusual thing to have. Again, I got those from the Turkish promoter who received them from Euronymous as part of the planning for that visit. There is also an itinerary of all the stops they would make on a tour, including train times and things like that. 

The letters are definitely some of the most interesting things that I have and are real documents of history. 

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10 hours ago, Requiem said:

Here is the latest version of my Mayhem collection. I've also finally got around to cataloguing it. I think my collecting will slow down a bit now because I seem to have most things that are floating around the planet, and there are only so many times you can have the 'Dawn of the Blackhearts'/'Sarpsborg' show on CD... By my count I also have about 20 copies of the song 'Freezing Moon', most in unique versions. @Balor @RelentlessOblivion @Vampyrique @True Belief @salmonellapancake @Benjaminc81

 

Requiem's Mayhem Collection - Hail the True Kings of Black Metal

AAFE1-B8-C-EE63-46-A2-8-CE2-87-CAE87-DAE

Mayhem Collection

Here is what is in the photo. Unless stated as ‘Official’, the CD is a bootleg/unofficial.

1.       Pure Fucking Armageddon (CD demo)

2.       True Legends in Black – Mayhem and Darkthrone (CD, original uncut version of ‘Deathcrush’ and Darkthrone’s ‘Thulcandra’ demo)

3.       Deathcrush (CD, Official, Deathlike Silence Productions)

4.       Deathcrush – The Dead Version (CD, ‘Deathcrush’ with Dead on vocals plus other Dead tracks)

5.       Live in Jessheim (live CD and DVD, Official, Peaceville Records)

6.       Dawn of the Black Hearts (live CD, Warhammer Records)

7.       Dawn of the Black Hearts (live CD, DVD case)

8.       Dawn of the Black Hearts (live CD, Blackmoon Records, Alternate Cover)

9.       Live in Sarpsborg (live CD and DVD, Official, Peaceville Records)

10.    Live in Zeitz (live CD, Official, Peaceville Records, Digipak)

11.    Live in Leipzig (live CD, Official, Avantgarde, Digipak)

12.    Live in Leipzig (live CD, Official, Peaceville Records)

13.    Out from the Dark (CD, Rehearsal, Bloodstone Productions)

14.    Jihad/Freezing Moon (split CD with Meads of Asphodel, Semi-Official, Supernal Records)

15.    Freezing Moon/Carnage (CD, Blackmoon Records)

16.    Morbid/Mayhem – A Tribute to the Black Emperors (CD, Warhammer Records)

17.    Life Eternal (CD, Official, A5 size digipak, Saturnus Productions, Box, rough tracks of 'De Mysteriis')

18.    (The True) Mayhem – The True Armageddon (CD, ‘Deathcrush’ and ‘De Mysteriis’ together)

19.    From the Darkest Past (CD, Demonancy Records, ‘De Mysteriis’ rough mix without vocals plus rehearsals, Digipak)

20.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas – The Dead Files (CD, ‘De Mysteriis’ tracks with Dead on vocals plus ‘Freezing Moon’/’Carnage’ studio tracks, Anti-Mosh Music)

21.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (CD, A5 Digipak, Deathlike Silence Productions, Instrumental rough mix)

22.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (CD, Official, Century Black Records)

23.    De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas Alive (live CD, Official, Peaceville Records, Digipak)

24.    Wolf’s Lair Abyss (CD, Official, Misanthropy Records, Digipak)

25.    Mediolanum Capta Est (live CD, Official, Avantgarde Music)

26.    European Legions (live CD, Official, Season of Mist)

27.    A Tribute to Mayhem – Originators of the Northern Darkness (CD, Official Tribute, Avantgarde Music)

28.    Grand Declaration of War (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Digipak)

29.    Grand Declaration of War (CD, Official, Season of Mist – signed in person by all members)

30.    Grand Declaration of War (CD, Official, Peaceville, Digipak, Remixed and Remastered)

31.    Nordic Metal – A Tribute to Euronymous (CD, Official Tribute, Hammerheart Records)

32.    Chimera (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Digipak)

33.    Ordo ad Chao (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Tin Slip-Case)

34.    A Season in Blasphemy (3xCD, Official, Season of Mist – includes ‘Grand Declaration of War’, ‘Chimera’ and ‘Ordo ad Chao’)

35.    ‘MP3 Collection’ (MP3 CD, All Official Releases and Some Bootlegs up to 2004 = 13 albums/120 songs, Russian Bootleg)

36.    Esoteric Warfare (CD, Official, Season of Mist, Digipak)

37.    The Death Archives by Jorn Subberud (Necrobutcher) (Book, Hardcover)

38.    Live in Marseille (live DVD, Official, Season of Mist)

39.    Pure Fucking Mayhem (DVD, Documentary, Index Verlag)

40.    ‘Mayhem’ logo hoodie

41.    ‘De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas’ album cover short sleeved shirt

42.    ‘Ordo ad Chao’ album cover short sleeved shirt

43.    ‘Euronymous and Dead’ patches, badges on sleeveless jacket

44.    Copies of letters written by Euronymous 

45.    Copies of Euronymous, Dead and Hellhammer’s passports

 

Wow, this is definitely one of the best collections (of metal or otherwise) that I have ever seen!  I wish I had a signed copy of Grand Declaration of War.  How did you get the letters/passports from the Turkish promoter?  Also, are you looking forward to the new album?

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A short but sweet interview with Hellhammer where he also reveals some details about their upcoming album. Supposedly they are going for a more old school occult vibe in the same vein as "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas". Sounds pretty promising so far but knowing Mayhem they´ll probably suprise everyone again and do something totally different. Can´t imagine them simply doing a lazy copy of their classic album.

https://www.nocleansinging.com/2019/07/08/an-ncs-interview-hellhammer-mayhem/

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5 hours ago, Benjaminc81 said:

A short but sweet interview with Hellhammer where he also reveals some details about their upcoming album. Supposedly they are going for a more old school occult vibe in the same vein as "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas". Sounds pretty promising so far but knowing Mayhem they´ll probably suprise everyone again and do something totally different. Can´t imagine them simply doing a lazy copy of their classic album.

Hellhammer interview

Your Hellhammer interview seems to just link to this forum page rather than to the site of the interview! Very meta! 

 

6 hours ago, Balor said:

Wow, this is definitely one of the best collections (of metal or otherwise) that I have ever seen!  I wish I had a signed copy of Grand Declaration of War.  How did you get the letters/passports from the Turkish promoter?  Also, are you looking forward to the new album?

The whole band signed 'Grand Declaration of War' during their visit to Melbourne for the tour of that album. Was a really cool experience. The letters were sent to me from the Turkish guy himself via my nefarious underground international 666 links. 

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On 7/10/2019 at 1:29 AM, Balor said:

Wow, this is definitely one of the best collections (of metal or otherwise) that I have ever seen!  I wish I had a signed copy of Grand Declaration of War.  How did you get the letters/passports from the Turkish promoter?  Also, are you looking forward to the new album?

Shit yeah I’m looking forward to the new album.

I’ve been a big critic of Teloch the False, but if they sensibly do a great album that harkens back to their earlier sounds then I will be 100% behind it. I think less prog theatrics and more atmosphere is exactly what they need right now to stay relevant. We need a huge album of true darkness. 

My fear is that it will be ‘Esoteric’ part 2 which would be a huge waste of everyone’s time. Let’s hope the constant touring for ‘De Mysteriis’ has some effect on these guys/Teloch. 

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10 hours ago, Requiem said:

Shit yeah I’m looking forward to the new album.

I’ve been a big critic of Teloch the False, but if they sensibly do a great album that harkens back to their earlier sounds then I will be 100% behind it. I think less prog theatrics and more atmosphere is exactly what they need right now to stay relevant. We need a huge album of true darkness. 

My fear is that it will be ‘Esoteric’ part 2 which would be a huge waste of everyone’s time. Let’s hope the constant touring for ‘De Mysteriis’ has some effect on these guys/Teloch. 

I don't think that I have even listened to Esoteric Warfare.  I was so unimpressed with Ordo ad Chao that I didn't even bother, so I share your hopes for a great comeback.

I'm hoping that they will come and play live somewhere close to where I live on the inevitable tour for their new album, as they did for their previous album.

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10 hours ago, Balor said:

unimpressed with Ordo ad Chao

That's another nugget of proof ... that there is no "right" way to see these things ... because my opinion is that OAC is probably their best album ever, even though I tend to like Maniac era Mayhem the best (starting with Wolf's Lair Abyss). Be that as it may, I think Blasphemer is a uniquely gifted artist who brought Mayhem back from the dead, in a manner of speaking. The 90s were hard on them, to put it mildly. I'm uncertain what this "new" guitar player (it's not like he hasn't been around the block) will bring to the band, but I guess we'll see. Or hear, rather.

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On 7/13/2019 at 4:10 AM, MaxFaust said:

That's another nugget of proof ... that there is no "right" way to see these things ... because my opinion is that OAC is probably their best album ever, even though I tend to like Maniac era Mayhem the best (starting with Wolf's Lair Abyss). Be that as it may, I think Blasphemer is a uniquely gifted artist who brought Mayhem back from the dead, in a manner of speaking. The 90s were hard on them, to put it mildly. I'm uncertain what this "new" guitar player (it's not like he hasn't been around the block) will bring to the band, but I guess we'll see. Or hear, rather.

Interesting, I have not heard someone pick it as their favorite before.  I will have to check it out again.  I think my problem was that I bought the album in a compilation with Grand Declaration of War and Chimera.  In my opinion, Maniac was their best vocalist, so placing an album with Attila (who is not my favorite) in such close proximity to those albums made Ordo ad Chao seem much worse in comparison.

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On 7/16/2019 at 1:38 AM, Balor said:

Interesting, I have not heard someone pick it as their favorite before.  I will have to check it out again.  I think my problem was that I bought the album in a compilation with Grand Declaration of War and Chimera.  In my opinion, Maniac was their best vocalist, so placing an album with Attila (who is not my favorite) in such close proximity to those albums made Ordo ad Chao seem much worse in comparison.

Listen away, but there's no getting away from the fact that 'Ordo ad Chao' is a smudgy mess of riffs with little structure and fewer hooks. It's obviously Blasphemer's farewell to the band and that scene, so he's gone all out to make an album that tries to order chaos, to paraphrase the title. 

For me, this means it's boring, alienating and unenjoyable. It's an art piece; a post-modern expression of one artist's self-penned epitaph. But like all things, it has its moments and I may change my opinion as I get older. 

As for 'Esoteric Warfare', it's a cheap Blasphemer rip-off, and I mean cheap.  Therefore it leaves no lasting emotional resonance - like 'Wolf's Lair' and 'Grand...' do - because it's not a new thing, it's a homage done poorly. It sounds like the self titled Thorns album except way weaker and more meaningless. 

It's little wonder that Hellhammer is talking about how the new album is going to be darker and closer to their accepted classic. Knowing bands, though, I bet it will be the same damn thing as 'Esoteric Warfare' hahaha. In fact, I'm sure it was Hellhammer and Necrobutcher who told Teloch how 'Esoteric Warfare' needed to sound, and when you lack a master like Blasphemer to just forge ahead, you're going to get the drummer and bassist's version of the album. Apparently Teloch wrote other material for the album which was rejected, so he wrote 'Esoteric Warfare' as we know it. This is a red light to the idea that he wasn't able to really pursue his own vision - either that or his own vision sucked. 

I just hope there's more to Teloch that we haven't seen yet. To be the guitarist in Mayhem you need to be an artist, a visionary, and a rebel. Euronymous was one, so was Blasphemer. Is Teloch? Not on the evidence of 'Esoteric Warfare'. The new album will be pretty important to how he's going to stake his legacy as well as his impact on this band. 

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8 hours ago, Requiem said:

For me, this means it's boring, alienating and unenjoyable.

This is exactly how I felt about the album.

I sometimes wonder whether Mayhem is nearing its end.  Their more recent studio recordings do not sound compelling, and seem more and more monotonous.  However, they are still awesome live.  Maybe they should just focus on releasing some more live albums for the time being.

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    • Whichever tier of thrash metal you consigned Sacred Reich back in the 80's/90's they still had their moments.  "Ignorance" & "Surf Nicaragura" did a great job of establishing the band, whereas "The American Way" just got a little to comfortable and accessible (the title track grates nowadays) for my ears.  A couple more records better left forgotten about and then nothing for twenty three years.  2019 alone has now seen three releases from Phil Rind and co.  A live EP, a split EP with Iron Reagan and now a full length.

      Notable addition to the ranks for the current throng of releases is former Machine Head sticksman, Dave McClean.  Love or hate Machine Head, McClean is a more than capable drummer and his presence here is felt from the off with the opening and title track kicking things off with some real gusto.  'Divide & Conquer' and 'Salvation' muddle along nicely, never quite reaching any quality that would make my balls tingle but comfortable enough.  The looming build to 'Manifest Reality' delivers a real punch when the song starts proper.  Frenzied riffs and drums with shots of lead work to hold the interest.


      There's a problem already though (I know, I am such a fucking mood hoover).  I don't like Phil's vocals.  I never had if I am being honest.  The aggression to them seems a little forced even when they are at their best on tracks like 'Manifest Reality'.  When he tries to sing it just feels weak though ('Salvation') and tracks lose real punch.  Give him a riffy number such as 'Killing Machine' and he is fine with the Reich engine (probably a poor choice of phrase) up in sixth gear.  For every thrashy riff there's a fair share of rock edged, local bar act rhythm aplenty too.

      Let's not poo-poo proceedings though, because overall I actually enjoy "Awakening".  It is stacked full of catchy riffs that are sticky on the old ears.  Whilst not as raw as perhaps the - brilliant - artwork suggests with its black and white, tattoo flash sheet style design it is enjoyable enough.  Yes, 'Death Valley' & 'Something to Believe' have no place here, saved only by Arnett and Radziwill's lead work but 'Revolution' is a fucking 80's thrash heyday throwback to the extent that if you turn the TV on during it you might catch a new episode of Cheers!

      3/5
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    • https://www.metalforum.com/blogs/entry/52-vltimas-something-wicked-marches-in/
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    • https://www.metalforum.com/blogs/entry/48-candlemass-the-door-to-doom/
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    • Full length number 19 from overkill certainly makes a splash in the energy stakes, I mean there's some modern thrash bands that are a good two decades younger than Overkill who can only hope to achieve the levels of spunk that New Jersey's finest produce here.  That in itself is an achievement, for a band of Overkill's stature and reputation to be able to still sound relevant four decades into their career is no mean feat.  Even in the albums weaker moments it never gets redundant and the energy levels remain high.  There's a real sense of a band in a state of some renewed vigour, helped in no small part by the addition of Jason Bittner on drums.  The former Flotsam & Jetsam skinsman is nothing short of superb throughout "The Wings of War" and seems to have squeezed a little extra out of the rest of his peers.

      The album kicks of with a great build to opening track "Last Man Standing" and for the first 4 tracks of the album the Overkill crew stomp, bash and groove their way to a solid level of consistency.  The lead work is of particular note and Blitz sounds as sneery and scathing as ever.  The album is well produced and mixed too with all parts of the thrash machine audible as the five piece hammer away at your skull with the usual blend of chugging riffs and infectious anthems.  


      There are weak moments as mentioned but they are more a victim of how good the strong tracks are.  In it's own right "Distortion" is a solid enough - if not slightly varied a journey from the last offering - but it just doesn't stand up well against a "Bat Shit Crazy" or a "Head of a Pin".  As the album draws to a close you get the increasing impression that the last few tracks are rescued really by some great solos and stomping skin work which is a shame because trimming of a couple of tracks may have made this less obvious. 

      4/5
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