Tag Archive: Behemoth


Behemoth’s “Lucifer”

Filed Under: Music, Music Videos by The Space Pope — Leave a comment
October 4, 2011

Call me crazy, but I am going to go out on a limb here and venture that the visual motifs in this video were inspired by Nergal’s recent battle with leukemia. I know, I know, I might be reaching here, but I think I’m onto something.

The models doing their high-fashion Hellraiser thing are pretty funny too. Pink eye shadow is the most EVIL of all eye shadow! Well, here at The Black Laser it certainly is.

Evil unicorn! With red eyes!

The devil in a red smoking jacket speaking Polish!

Crispy corpse paint!

Drinking blood (messily) from a chalice!

Chewing on a rosary!

Ash falling from the darkened sky!

Hammering stuff!

Reversed footage of sparks!

Floating little girl!

A priest with tears of blood!

Really though, I think the most evil thing in this video is the crown-bearing chick’s unfortunate breast implants. Oy vey, those things are horrendous.

All in all, some fun, silly, horror-movie evilness from Poland’s death metal masters. It’s about as frightening as your average Halloween haunted house at the end of the cul-de-sac, but it’s still pretty awesome.

Tags: , , , ,
Comment

Behemoth’s “Conquer All” and “Slaves Shall Serve”

Filed Under: Music, Music Videos by The Space Pope — Leave a comment
August 26, 2010
YouTube Preview Image YouTube Preview Image

Nergal has leukemia. LAME. But, because I believe in the power of darkness, I will send some good juju to Nergal by sharing some of his unbelievably evil music.

Get well soon, Nergal. I expect many more Behemoth records down the road.

Tags: , , , ,
Comment

Behemoth’s “Alas, Lord Is Upon Me”

Filed Under: Music, Music Videos by The Space Pope — Leave a comment
August 11, 2010
YouTube Preview Image

Behemoth are back with another Grupa 13 produced video for a track from Evangelion. While I don’t think it quite lives up to the sheer evil awesomeness of “Ov Fire and The Void”, this video is still pretty bad ass. Mind that there are a couple of NSFW shots of a clergyman nailing a blonde chick. You’ve been warned.

Let’s examine the elements that make it awesome.

  • Sewn-mouth kids water priests with blood.
  • Nergal as Iron Indian Evil Dude.
  • Faces writhing in some black goop which we come to realize at the end is actually the Hell living inside Nergal. Awesome.
  • A chick cutting her own throat.
  • Swarms of flies.
  • The chick floating out of the slime.
  • An awesome fucking song.

God damn it, Behemoth rule. These guys are just awesome. This video is not as well made as the last, but who cares? It still kicks the ass of about 99% of other metal videos out there by miles. And because The Black Laser is awesome, I am linking you to the uncensored video from Vimeo rather than the bullshit censored version from Youtube. Unfortunately, Metal Blade decided that I shouldn’t be able to embed it on this domain. SUPER LAME, METAL BLADE. It’s never very metal of you.

Yes, you’re welcome. Get well soon, Nergal!

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Comment

New Old School Death Metal (NOSDM)

Filed Under: About Music, Music by The Space Pope — 10 Comments
January 20, 2010

Today I learned about a genre of metal called “New Old School Death Metal” or NOSDM. While I think the resurgence of old school style Death Metal is awesome, I’m a little surprised by it. Had it really gone anywhere? I was always of the opinion that since its inception, there have been dudes playing Death Metal the same way. Sure, the bands change and the members of the bands change, but hasn’t there always been a core of old school Death going on somewhere?

Did I miss out on something? Was I too busy listening to Old Old School Death Metal (OOSDM) records to notice?

Did Death Metal change so much that we’re experiencing a revival of the classic form much in the same manner as thrash suddenly became huge again about three years ago? Do we refer to Municipal Waste and Toxic Holocaust as “New Old School Thrash Metal” or NOSTM? Are all these labels really necessary? If we didn’t call these new DM bands NOSDM, but just plain called them Death Metal, would it be so hard to understand? Would it be wrong?

Let’s posit that Death Metal in its traditional form peaked about 1994, to be superseded by the Swedish style that dominated the later 90s and early 00s. (No, nü-metal doesn’t fucking count.) The earliest known uses of the term “Death Metal” were found somewhere around 1984, giving Death Metal a 10 year run. Now, if a style falls out of favor but does not disappear completely, can we really call its resurgence by a new name? Composers wrote Baroque music for 160 years. It’s not like when Baroque first showed up, went through a wave of initial popularity, decreased slightly in public opinion, and then showed up again they called it New Old School Baroque Music (NOSBM), did they?

The whole thing, and really the extreme fragmentation of metal subgenres in general, seems pretty silly to me.

And, because I am such a caring person, I won’t let you go without some examples.

Let’s do a chronological survey of some of my favorite Death Metal, shall we?

1987′s “Beyond the Unholy Grave” – Death

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1987′s “Bleed for the Devil” – Morbid Angel

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1989′s “Sacrificial Suicide” – Deicide

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1990′s “Burden of Evil” – Monstrosity

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1991′s “Jesus Wept” – Suffocation

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1992′s “Hammer Smashed Face” – Cannibal Corpse

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1993′s “Preacher of Sodomy” – Broken Hope

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1994′s “Born Headless” – Cryptopsy

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1995′s “Nothing But Fear” – Morbid Angel

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1996′s “Permanently Disfigured” – Dying Fetus

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1997′s “Save To The Cross” – Deicide

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1998′s “Flame To The Surface” – Cryptopsy

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

1999′s “Blowtorch Slaughter” – Cannibal Corpse

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2000′s “Christians To The Lions” – Behemoth

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2001′s “Blind The Vision That Shatters” – Neuraxis

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2002′s “Dead Sea Scroll Deception” – Lock Up

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2003′s “History Is Rotten” – Misery Index

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2004′s “Sensual Sickness” – Decapitated

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2005′s “The Victorious Reign” – Hate Eternal

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2006′s “The Crawl Inside Me Uninvited” – Coldworker

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2007′s “Rebirth In Blood” – Blood Red Throne

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2008′s “Slaughtering The Will To Live” – Bloodbath

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

2009′s “Carrion Sculpted Entity” – Cannibal Corpse

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Sorry, for some reason I don’t have any Death Metal from 1988 on my iPod right now. I’ll fix that oversight when I get home tonight.

Now, listen to the bands on an article by Decibel Magazine about NOSDM. It seems to me that besides some basic evolution in the quality of the productions, that Death Metal has been alive an well since at least 1987. So, do we need this new label at all? Can we not just keep calling it Death Metal? Do we need OOSDM, MEOSDM (Mid-Era Old School Death Metal), and NOSDM? What happens when NOSDM becomes Old New Old School Death Metal (ONOSDM)?

For the initiated and uninitiated out there who take the time to read and listen to this, what do you think? Comment away.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Behemoth’s “Ov Fire And The Void”

Filed Under: Music, Music Videos by The Space Pope — 2 Comments
September 19, 2009

Oh, Nergal! You’re so cute with your insistence on using a V instead of an F in words where the F makes the V sound! I just want to pinch your Polish, Satan-worshipping cheeks! Adorable! Oh, by the way, did you notice that this might be one of the most metal videos ever made? Oh you did? Good good. Because I’m pretty sure that this is the second most metal video I have seen in a long time, though this Behemoth video is more metal in the “I worship Satan and ascribe to demonic imagery” kind of way where the link is more metal in the “Holy fuck did you see that gnarly horror movie where the dude killed everyone and bathed in their blood” kind of way. So I guess they’re tied.

By the way, there’s a bunch of super evil naked crap in the video, so, like, be careful or something. Or get a more fun job. Love you!

Tags: , ,
Comment

The Metal Claw, and why I love it.

Filed Under: Music, Music Videos, Thoughts by The Space Pope — 7 Comments
December 4, 2008

I have no doubt that many of you are familiar with the Metal Horns, the typical hand sign associated with heavy metal appreciation. I have no problem with the horns on principle. They serve to show how fucking into the music you are. When the metal gets so fucking intense that you just can’t take it anymore, the extended index and pinky fingers are excellent heatsinks for all the metal intensity built up in your frail, human form. God knows that I threw the horns more times than you could believe when I was a teenager. I love the horns. The horns are awesome.

Here are a couple of examples of the horns being used appropriately.

Ronnie James Dio - Popularly considered the inventor of the horns

Ronnie James Dio - Popularly considered the inventor of the horns

Nergal of Behemoth throwing the horns

Nergal of Behemoth throwing the horns

Nevertheless, the horns are subject to rampant abuse. Watch the MTV music awards sometime and notice how many kids in the front throw the horns for all sorts of random bullshit, none of which falls under the “metal” header. You’ll see pop stars and country music stars and assholes on American Idol throwing the horns. What the fuck? Don’t you fucking dipshits get it? The horns are not for you and your bullshit music; the horns are an expression of metal. Yet sometimes the horns aren’t sufficient. And the horns are expected, practiced. The horns, for as great as they are, leave something to be desired these days.

For this reason, I am a supporter of the Metal Claw. When the horns just can’t do it, then you must make the claw. Where the horns send metal from only two fingers, the claw sends metal from all five. That’s 150% MORE METAL.

Typically associated with Satan, though not actually so, the horns can be divisive. The claw on the other hand promotes unity across all metal genres. Here is an example of my favorite Christian as Fuck death metal band of the moment making HEAVY use of the claw. I mean, seriously, check out his Jesus t-shirt.

In contrast, we have Nergal of Behemoth, a profound believer in Darkness, making the Claw while recording.

THE CLAW!!!!!

THE CLAW!!!!!

See the difference here? In the first photo he is on stage, performing, throwing the horns to a photographer. In the second he is focusing on the task at hand in the studio, feeling the slaughter erupt in his veins. Thus the Claw is made.

You might say, “But Joe, this claw you speak of is a new phenomenon. Was not the almighty Dio throwing the horns in the early 80s?” This is a good point, but I have evidence to the contrary. Here is 1995′s “Slaughter of the Soul” by At The Gates.

Too new for you? How about some proto-Claw throwing by Bruce Dickinson? Check it at about 1:30 into the video.

And so, it is with this incredibly persuasive argument in mind that I am pleased to unveil The Official The Black Laser Seal of Approval. Check it out:

How sweet is that shit? My Photoshop skills are legendary.

In conclusion, let us agree that while the horns have their rightful place in the Metal culture, the Claw is a true and brutal expression of what metal is and should be to the true aficionado. If I ever see the Claw thrown on American Idol—I don’t watch the show, so I guess I never will, however—then we’ll have to reevaluate its stance in my heart. But really, I think it’s as likely as hearing blast beats and harmonized growls in pop music, so I feel secure in the Metal Claw’s status as niche expression of intense metal power.

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Comment