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DARKTHRONE 'Hate Them' Moonfog(2004)
You have probably heard me many times declaring the importance of Darkthrone to Black Metal music. This is something totally understandable, since we’re talking about the band that created albums such as "A Blaze in the Northern Sky", "Under a Funeral Moon", "Panzerfaust" and "Total Death". I think that most of us got really scared when they decided to call it a day back in 1997, but luckily the release of the collection tribute to them by some of the most important extreme Metal bands at the time, probably made them realise how important they were to the extreme Metal world. Since then, the members of Darkthrone have been going through a second childhood which led to the release of colossal Black Metal albums such as "Ravishing Grimness", "Plaguewielder" and their latest effort "Hate Them".
This is another amazing effort from the duet Fenriz (drums) and Nocturno Culto (guitars/bass/vocals) which will not easily go unnoticed. "Hate Them" has elements from every previous Darkthrone release, but still manages to sound as fresh and as extreme as every release from this unique band should.
I cannot remember a single interview with Fenriz where he forgets to mention that the band’s music is mainly based on Nocturno Culto’s guitar riffs, and that is quite understandable. In this case though we are dealing with an album that also contains some of the most inspirational drumming Fenriz ever recorded.
"Hate Them" starts with one of the most important and impressive compositions of the album, "Rust". The sound of the guitars resembles that of Burzum’s in "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss", the bass is clearly audible (something that we’re not quite used to) and adds to the general feeling, and last (but definitely no least), Nocturno Culto’s evil Black Metal vocals that we all like and appreciate. I don’t think that you can easily find a band that manages to sound equally heavy when they compose mid-tempo songs and when they play riffs that run at 300 mph, but this is the case here. Darkthrone chose to be less fast this time, but the rhythmical riffs that are on display here are more than rewarding.
After this amazing introduction to the new album, you will find that "Det Svartner Na" is an equally interesting composition. Celtic Frost have always been the band’s main influence and this song is another tribute to the amazing Swiss trio. If you belong to the people who are mostly inspired by the band’s faster compositions, the introduction to "Fucked Up and Ready to Die" will bring a huge smile on your face, but that will last only for a while, since the song develops into another mid-tempo composition. It has been a while since Darkthrone released a full Norwegian song, so "Ytterst I Livet" comes as a very pleasant surprise. What’s so special about this composition? Well, this song has one of the best riffs that I’ve ever heard from the band, and what makes it even better is the fact that it’s ideally accompanied by Fenriz’explicit drumming.
I have to admit that I was not really prepared for the next composition of the album, which was also destined to become my personal favourite, the amazing "Divided We Stand". Once again, an excellent collaboration between Fenriz and Nocturno Culto, and a killer riff that will be harassing my memory for the years to come. The last two songs of the album, the classic Darkthrone composition "Striving for a piece of Lucifer" and the Black Metal anthem "In Honour of thy Name" will be the epilogue of another classic Black Metal release that will influence hundreds of young musicians throughout the world.
Ladies and Gentlemen, things are quite simple here: Darkthrone are one of the leading (if not The leading) Black Metal bands as we speak. They have been around for the last 14 years, and the experience that they gained while serving this extreme genre of our beloved music makes them what they are – the best! I cannot believe that there will be a single Darkthrone fan out there that will not be satisfied with "Hate Them". This album is going to go down in history as another impressive release from this unbelievable band. That’s why I don’t feel guilty that I decided to give this album the highest ranking- five stars. Let’s see what the next album will sound like, I really cannot wait!
*****
Review by John Stefanis
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