Yes, but that's not the point of this thread.

Been listening to the Anorexia Nervosa album and despite not being a fan of symphonic black metal actually enjoyed it, the band also look pretty good as well:finger:

Alright, looks like this battle needs a jumpstart, and since I chose the albums I'll do the first honors.

I put these two albums up first because I found them to be the weakest of the bunch, as is the custom, and after re-listening to each I ended up liking one much more than the other which was surprising to me.

Mirrorthrone, a one man project that relies heavily on programmed drums and synths to create his symphonic atmosphere. The first time I heard Carriers of Dust I was impressed by the arrangements and the time and effort required on the part of Vladimir Cochet to put together such an album. However, after going back a couple times there are a couple glaring missteps that had me rolling my eyes. At times, the digital blast beats are just ****ing ridiculous. They are so fast that it numbs the mind and becomes absolutely cumbersome and overbearing. Also, the organ/harpsichord interludes really up the cheese at certain times. That being said, there are some great moments on the album, namely the slower moments on "Mortphose" and "Ils Brandiront leurs Idoles" as well as the more brutal moments on "A Scream to Express..." which work with the symphonic accompaniment to create crescendos that I think express what symphonic black metal is all about.

Moving on to Anorexia Nervosa. Well there seems to be a pervasive theme on Drudenhaus...and that is hatred. The entire album seems to just be one emotional outpouring of pure hatred. I think this consistency works in the favor of Anorexia Nervosa as the symphonic elements found on Drudenhaus don't really take precedence save for a few moments of quiet piano or slow strings that provide a nice contrast to the visceral nature of the vocals and guitars. Overall, Drudenhaus was a nice, consistent listen for me that made more effective use of its symphonic elements. So...

Anorexia Nervosa - 1
Mirrorthrone - 0

The Mirrorthrone album did have some cheesy bits but I also enjoyed the programmed drum and synth parts, after all Mirrorthrone is a one man band which brings back memories of Bathory. I accidently listened to the song "Dismay" which is one the following album Gangrene and thought that was their best song, it could be that Mirrorthone are improving with each album.

Anorexia Nervosa were a lot more consistent with their brand of symphonic black metal, the pace of the album was impressive with a couple of good breaks for quieter moments, it was clearly the better album of the two.

Anorexia Nervosa -2
Mirrorthrone- 0

I have only listened to the one album but I have read that Mirrorthrone has improved upon his formula with each album, so Gangrene very may well be a drastic improvement from Carriers of Dust.

Well looks like this battle was a big hit with the community!

Been busy, and not really interested in symphonic death metal. Will join in when I have the time. :/

Any battle dated post-2000 always gets less votes, people know the albums far less and therefore usually need the time and motivation to listen to them. On the other hand, its a great opportunity to discover new stuff, which is what I do.

I get that, but you'd think folks would want to expand a little. With services like MOG and Spotify I don't think acquiring the records is too hard. I suppose finding the time could be another issue though...