Darkthrone is an influential Norwegian metal band. They formed in 1986 as a
death metal band under the name Black Death. In 1991, the band embraced a
black metal style influenced by Bathory and Celtic Frost and became one of the
leading bands in the Norwegian black metal scene. Their first three black
metal albums—A Blaze in the Northern Sky, Under a Funeral Moon and
Transilvanian Hunger—are considered the peak of the band's career and to be
among the most influential albums in the genre. For most of this time, Darkthrone
has been a duo of Nocturno Culto and Fenriz, who have sought to remain
outside the music mainstream. Since 2006, their work has strayed from the
traditional black metal style and incorporated more elements of
traditional heavy metal, speed metal and punk rock, being likened to Motörhead.
History = Death metal years: 1986–1990=
The band that would become Darkthrone formed in late 1986 in Kolbotn, a small
suburb of Oslo. They were a death metal band by the name of Black Death whose
members were Gylve Nagell, Ivar Enger, and Anders Risberget. Main inspirations
were Venom, Celtic Frost, Slayer and Cryptic Slaughter. In fall 1987, the
band changed their name to Darkthrone and were joined by Dag Nilsen. Ted
Skjellum joined in spring of 1988. During 1988 and 1989, the band
independently released four demo tapes: Land of Frost, A New Dimension,
Thulcandra, and Cromlech. They were subsequently signed to the
independent record label Peaceville Records with a four-album contract. In
1990, they recorded their first studio album, Soulside Journey. Because of a
small recording budget, the band could not afford the kind of studio they
wanted but, thanks to the members of Nihilist and Entombed, they were able to
record their album at Sunlight Studios. Although mainly death metal in style,
there were some elements of black metal present in terms of artwork and
songwriting. Immediately following the release of
this album, the band continued writing and recording new material, recording
every new song on tape until it was a full album. These demos were entirely
instrumental but they demonstrated the band's gradual shift towards black
metal. In 1997, they would be released on the compilation album Goatlord.
= Early black metal years: 1991–1994= During 1991, Darkthrone adopted the
aesthetic style that would come to represent the black metal scene, wearing
corpse paint and working under pseudonyms. Gylve Nagell became
"Fenriz", Ted Skjellum became "Nocturno Culto" and Ivar Enger became
"Zephyrous". In August 1991, they recorded their second album, which was
released at the beginning of 1992 and titled A Blaze in the Northern Sky. The
album contained Darkthrone's first black metal recordings, and Peaceville Records
was originally skeptical about releasing it due to Darkthrone's extreme diversion
from their original death metal style. After the album was recorded, bassist
Dag Nilsen left the band, and is merely credited as "session bass" with no
picture on the album. The band's third album, Under a Funeral
Moon, was recorded in the summer of 1992 and released in early 1993. It marked
Darkthrone's total conversion to the black metal style, and is considered a
landmark for the development of the genre as a whole. This album also marked
the last album on which guitarist Zephyrous would perform.
It was followed by their fourth album, Transilvanian Hunger, which was released
in February 1994. This was Darkthrone's first album to have just two members,
Nocturno Culto and Fenriz. The band would remain a duo from this point
onwards. Transilvanian Hunger was characterized by a very "raw" or "low
fidelity" recording style and musical simplicity. The album's release caused
some controversy: some of its lyrics were written by the infamous Norwegian
black metal musician Varg Vikernes, and its booklet contained the phrase "Norsk
Arisk Black Metal", which translates into English as "Norwegian Aryan Black
Metal". = With Moonfog Records: 1995–2004=
Darkthrone moved to another independent record label, Moonfog Productions, for
subsequent releases. The label was run by Satyr of the black metal band
Satyricon. Their fifth album, Panzerfaust, was
released in 1995. The album was received well, although its production, which is
similar to that of Transilvanian Hunger, encountered some criticisms. Their sixth
album, Total Death, was released during 1996 and is notable for featuring lyrics
written by four other black metal musicians, and none at all written by
the group's main lyricist Fenriz. During the years 1993–1995, drummer
Fenriz was involved with numerous side projects. This included his solo ambient
project Neptune Towers, recording an album with Satyr as the duo Storm, and
playing bass on Dødheimsgard's debut album. Also he began playing drums for
Valhall again, after having been one of the founding members in 1988 but leaving
in 1990 to concentrate on Darkthrone. In 1999, Darkthrone released the album
Ravishing Grimness, and in 2001 their following album, Plaguewielder. While
Transilvanian Hunger and Panzerfaust had songs written solely by Fenriz, these
two albums had songs mostly written by Nocturno Culto and were both recorded in
Ronny Le Tekrøe's studio at Toten, Norway. This explains the somewhat
"clearer" sound on those records. In the last years of the 90s, two
Darkthrone tribute albums were released: Darkthrone Holy Darkthrone in 1998 and
The Next Thousand Years Are Ours in 1999. The band also released Preparing
for War, a compilation of songs from 1988–1994. In 2002, the intro of their
song "Kathaarian Life Code" appeared in the last scene of the film Demonlover.
In 2003, the band released the album Hate Them. Although this record and
their next contain electronic introductions, they remain true to
Darkthrone's early black metal style. Sardonic Wrath was released in 2004. It
was the band's last album with Moonfog Productions and their last to be
recorded solely in the black metal style. This album was nominated for
Norway's Alarm Awards; however, the album's entry was withdrawn at the
band's request. Their next releases would feature strong crust punk traits.
= Change in direction: 2005–present= In 2005, Darkthrone confirmed that they
had returned to Peaceville Records, after leaving the record label in 1994.
They had also started up their own record label, Tyrant Syndicate
Productions, to release their future albums. To celebrate their return,
Peaceville re-issued the Preparing for War compilation with a bonus CD of demos
and a DVD of live performances. Darkthrone's first four albums were also
re-released with video interviews about each of them.
Darkthrone released their eleventh album, The Cult Is Alive, during early
2006. The album represented a shift in the band's style as the music
incorporated crust punk traits. While Darkthrone's black metal roots were
still evident, their shift from the genre's typical sound was more
noticeable. The Cult Is Alive was the first Darkthrone album to appear on the
album chart in Norway, debuting at number 22.
In July 2007, the band released the EP NWOBHM as a preview for their next
album. In September that year, Darkthrone released the album F.O.A.D..
The phrase was used by many thrash metal and punk bands during the 1980s. While
the music partially continued the punk-oriented style that was introduced
on The Cult Is Alive, this time the band focused more on traditional heavy metal.
Also during 2007, Nocturno Culto completed and released The Misanthrope,
a film about black metal and life in Norway. It includes some of his own solo
recordings. In October 2008, Dark Thrones and Black Flags was released,
using much the same style as the previous album. In 2010, the band
released the album Circle the Wagons, which again mixed crust punk along with
speed metal and traditional heavy metal. In late 2010, Peaceville acquired the
rights to the band's Moonfog albums and re-issued Panzerfaust as a two-disc set
and on vinyl. The re-issue of Total Death was set for March 14, 2011. In
July 2012, Darkthrone announced a new album, titled The Underground
Resistance; it was released on February 25, 2013.
Discography = Studio albums=
= Demos= 1988 – Land of Frost
1988 – A New Dimension - rehearsal demo 1989 – Thulcandra
1989 – Cromlech - live demo 1991 – Goatlord – instrumental rehearsal
demo spread without artwork; recorded in late 1990 and early 1991 and released on
CD as an album by Moonfog Productions in 1996, including vocals overdubbed by
Fenriz in 1994. = EPs and singles=
2005 – Under Beskyttelse av Mørke – outtakes from the Under a Funeral Moon
rehearsal sessions; released only in Japan.
2006 – Too Old, Too Cold – outtakes from The Cult Is Alive recording sessions.
2006 – Forebyggende Krig – single. 2007 – NWOBHM – outtakes from the
F.O.A.D. recording sessions. 2013 – Peaceville Presents... Darkthrone
= Compilations and tribute albums= 1998 – Darkthrone Holy Darkthrone –
tribute album featuring eight Norwegian bands.
1999 – The Next Thousand Years Are Ours – tribute album featuring fourteen bands
and a multimedia disc. 2000 – Preparing for War – compilation
of songs from 1988–1994; re-released in 2005 with a bonus CD of demos and a DVD.
2008 – Frostland Tapes – compilation containing the band's early demos, the
original instrumental version of Goatlord, and a recording of a concert
in Denmark. 2011 – Sempiternal Past – The Darkthrone
Demos – re-mastered versions of Darkthrone's demos.
2013 – Introducing Darkthrone – eighteen song album containing Darkthrone songs
from past albums and singles. 2014 – Black Death and Beyond -
compilation released as a vinyl box set and book
Band members = Current members=
Nocturno Culto – guitar, bass guitar, vocals, lyrics
Fenriz – drums, guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, vocals, lyrics
= Former members= Ivar Enger – guitar
Dag Nilsen – bass guitar Anders Risberget – guitar
Related artists Aura Noir – Fenriz has recorded vocals
and written lyrics for the band, and two Aura Noir members have done the same for
Darkthrone. Burzum – the albums Transilvanian Hunger
and Panzerfaust feature lyrics by Varg Vikernes.
Dødheimsgard – Fenriz, 1995. Isengard – solo project of Fenriz,
1989–1995. Neptune Towers – solo project of Fenriz,
1993–1995. Sarke – Nocturno Culto
Satyricon – Nocturno Culto has recorded and performed with the band.
Storm – Fenriz, 1995. Valhall – Fenriz, 1987–1989, 1993–2000.
References External links
Darkthrone on AllMusic Darkthrone biography on Peaceville
Records