27 November 2023
I really appreciate the fact that Fenriz and Nocturno Culto have been hanging out for years as they wish without listening to anyone. After all, Dakthrone is one of the 3-5 biggest bands of Norwegian black metal movement, which has left a great impact on the world extreme music history. Fenriz and Nocturno have been continuing the band as a duo since their 1994 classic Transilvanian Hunger. They started their career with Death Metal and continued with Black Metal, and they continue their musical journey with the spirit of the first day without caring about anyone. We have always seen how great success disrupts the balance of musicians and whets the appetite of music companies. After all, of course I have nothing to say about bands like Opeth that are making non-commercial changes, but I feel sad when I see how some of them have turned into parodies.
After all, it is not easy for one to control his/her ego or cope with fame, but Darkthrone puts music before everything else and does not listen to anyone. We know that they reject the great offers from numerous European Open Air festivals. In a My Dying Bride interview I read a long time ago, Aaron talked about stage fright. Since then, I have wondered if Fenriz also had stage fright, but we see in many places like the documentary Until The Light Takes Us, that he at least has no fear of being in front of the camera. Likewise, we can talk about Nocturno Culto’s documentary The Misanthrope. However, Nocturno went on stage with Satyricon at Wacken 2004, sang 4 Darkthrone classics and performed the first partial Darkthrone performance in history.
Since the band started hanging out in their own studio in 2005, they have continued to surprise us for years and show us why they are great. Their dirty crust/punk/NWOBHM-influenced music since 2005 is a salute to the starting points of Black Metal heirs Venom and Celtic Frost. Having great respect, I have always thought their real composition talent was in black metal. I have listened to every album they released since The Cult Is Alive, but I could never get used to it. Until “The Underground Resistance”.
This album, which I haven’t been tired of listening to since it was released, is, in my opinion, the best thing they’ve done since Transilvanian Hunger. Crust influences are kept to a minimum, Venom, Celtic Frost, Mercyful Fate and old school thrash influences are at their peak. In the album consisting of 6 songs in total, Nocturno and Fenriz shared the vocals fifty-fifty. Nocturno wrote the songs with more foul vocals, while Fenriz surprises with his vocals reminiscent of classic heavy metal vocalists and King Diamond. Especially “Valkyrie”, the secong song of the album with Fenriz on vocals is a great example to these songs. Apart from this, Come Warfare with Nocturno on vocals, The Entire Doom and Leave No Cross Unturned with Fenriz on vocals, are also great songs.
This is a spirit-filled album very entertaining to listen from beginning to end without getting bored. I think their search for returning to their roots, which they have been expressing for years, finally came true in this album. As a music lover, I would like to thank them for not caring about anyone and continuing to do whatever they want. If you want a stone-cold metal album, you’re in the right place.
9/10
