RVCA

The Caretaker is awesome! Love Comraderie at Arm's Length

CanwllCorfe

It really is. I've never heard anything quite like it. I love that it doesn't sound like something from "now", but rather something you may have heard a long time ago, filtered through memory.

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Your eyes were never yet let in to see the majesty and riches of the mind, but dwell in darkness; for your God is blind.

RVCA

Yeah, exactly. I blasted it really loud when I first listened to it because I really wanted to hear the artificial scratch of the vinyl spinning in its place.

CanwllCorfe

Details like that completely transform a song. I love it. It's pretty common in Dubstep nowadays, thanks to Burial.



Before I get too off topic, let me tell you all what I'll be talking about: Depressive Suicidal Black Metal! So wipe that goddamn smile off your face.

The average person, or maybe the normal person, might wonder what the hell it even is I look for in a genre such as this. Well that's a very good question, friend. Like everything, it's all about balance. I like it to be rough and raw, but not to the point that it's just noise. I like for the moans and wails that are synonymous with DSBM to be rich and full, like Xasthur's, over the screechy and high pitched ones like Sterbend's. I'm certainly okay with ones that are somewhere in the middle, like ...'s and Amfarek's in this here song.



In addition, I'm partial to songs that have a drone like quality, but aren't excessively long. ... is especially good at this. Bands like Hanging Garden make the most accessible DSBM out there and isn't drone-like at all, but I still like it. It's just not exactly in line with most of the other stuff from the genre that I enjoy. There are, of course, bands who could break all of this and I would still like them, like Cold Cry. These are just the general things I look for.



Without further adieu, here's a quick rundown of some of the bands I found that I enjoy, along with a few examples of their musik.

Dead

It's a pretty fitting name, innit? I could try and find information, but googling "dead suicidal depressive black metal" wasn't exactly helpful. Now, I'm not sure if it's the same guy behind Hordah Blaästhiir, but it certainly sounds like it. Between the symphonic elements and the wails being so similar, at least in this song, I'm relatively sure it's him. Having said that, it's pretty much a mix of what I like, as I mentioned earlier, in addition to things that are far out of the norm. Not counting HB (who I almost KNOW is involved), I can't tell you of damn near any other artist that made a DSBM song without guitar, but still left the vocals and drums. I quite like it. See, there is TONS of evolution in DSBM. You just have to find it! Lmao.





Hopeless

Gee, these names are really misanthropic aren't they? I wonder what's wrong. Anywho! Hopeless, a band from Spain, was a band I was quite surprised by. I heard one song, figured that would be his "sound", only for it to vary completely from song to song. Some short, some long, some with prominent vocals, some without, some more sad, some more angry, etc. The thing he does best, I feel, is evoke a specific atmosphere. Each song is rich with its own imagery, of course, very misanthropic and depressing imagery. Most bands usually stick with a very specific sound, make an EP and maybe an album, then call it quits. For him to change it up from song to song is fantastic. Definitely a good find.





Cold Cry

Cold Cry, hailing from Iran (yes, Iran), is by far the most intense and unusual DSBM band I've heard yet. The other stuff I've posted is bubblegum pop compared to what these guys have come up with. While most of DSBM utilizes wails and moans, Cold Cry has opted for that "what-a-murder-would-sound-like-on-tape" vocal technique. I can't actually spot much rhyme or reason, it just sounds like death and anguished screaming and crying put to keyboard melodies. You know, the usual. What else would you expect?

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Your eyes were never yet let in to see the majesty and riches of the mind, but dwell in darkness; for your God is blind.