Let's compare
Hellfire
,
1349
's third full-length album, to a professional dominatrix or a horror movie. Just as there are different approaches in
metal
, there are different approaches in S&M and horror. There is the dominatrix who favors nuance and offers some hugs and caresses along with her whips, chains, and riding crops; there is, on the other hand, the domme who goes right for the cat-o-nine-tails and immediately inflicts as much pain as possible. There are nuanced vampire movies of the '30s and '40s that leave much to the imagination; there are the
Jason
and
Chuckie
bloodfests that leave absolutely nothing to the imagination. And when it comes to
death metal
/
black metal
(more
than
on
),
is clearly the headbanger equivalent of Chuckie rather than
Barnabus Collins
(the nuanced vampire on
Dark Shadows
) and the cruel, consistently harsh dominatrix rather than the kinder, gentler dominatrix. Oh, the kinder, gentler dominatrix still knows how to crack her whips when she feels it's appropriate -- and the Scandinavian bands that are considered symphonic
or melodic
will never be mistaken for
Enya
. But they value nuance and melody as well as forcefulness. You won't find nuance on
, however; like
's second album,
Beyond the Apocalypse
, this 52-minute disc is a long way from the more intricate
and goes right for the jugular. No ifs, ands, or buts --
is the sort of extreme
that leaves nothing but bloody destruction in its path and absolutely delights in doing so.
isn't any less predictable or one-dimensional than
, but these Norwegians are obviously good at what they do -- and
, limitations and all, does nothing to hurt
's reputation as masters of skillfully vicious sensory assault. ~ Alex Henderson