There are few better ways of saying “hello” than by saying “hello”. So. Ahem. Hello. It seems that I’m the new kid on the block at PodcART, and I’m here to fill a potentially controversial slot: that of extreme metal.

Now, there are probably a handful of readers slapping their heads in horror, or perhaps clutching desperately for the nearest art-rock album within reaching distance, but I implore the more open-minded of you to read on.
Music has been one of my dearest friends for as long as I can remember. If I’m feeling introspective, I crave emotional or bleak soundscapes; if I’m chirpy, I want something old-school, something ridiculous, or something sweary with a phat beat; if I’m drinking, I want something ballsy and loud; but if I’m feeling creative, I want something proggy or, preferably, something skull-smashingly heavy.

Though my tastes are now wide-ranging, I suppose I have always listened to metal more than any other genre. I heard Guns ‘N’ Roses for the first time when I was 9, and ever since then I’ve psychically bummed the sound of a feedback-soaked guitar. From G’n’R I went on to Metallica, where I banged my pre-pubescent bonce for a good few years until nu-metal raised its handicapped head (and middle finger).

At about 17 my preferences took a sudden swerve. With a sensation that I had finally found what I had always been searching for, I went from the embarrassing white-boy pap of Limp Bizkit to the blast-beating, maniacal elitism of black metal. It was so totally unlike anything I had ever heard before that for a few years I lived, breathed and slept bludgeoning brutality. Few albums were obscure enough or discordant enough for me, and if I could tap my feet to a single moment of a CD it was probably fit for the bin.

I’ve matured since that teenage descent into tinnitus, but I can state without irony that this music has inestimably improved my life. Those formative years remain deeply important to me, as they taught me a brand new way of listening to music.

Now, here’s the slightly controversial bit, so pay attention.

The black metal, death metal, and thrash metal scenes are filled with some of the most mind-bendingly talented musicians in the world. If you are one of those countless people who says “It’s just noise – anyone can do that”, then I’m sorry: you are a moron and you have simply admitted to a lack of comprehension.

It may not be everyone’s cup of poison, but structurally and technically extreme metal is better compared to orchestral masterworks than anything that comes within a mile’s radius of the charts (unless you live in Scandinavia, that is). Black metal in particular, with its badger-painted berserkers (just type ‘Immortal band’ into Google and you’ll see what I mean), takes pride in its inspired song structures. The best examples of the scene disregard verses and choruses entirely, in favour of passages, moments of clarity and explosions of shrieking cacophony.

Absorbing such madness takes time and effort, and the trick is to brace yourself against the storm rather than be swept away by it. The uber-mathematical genius of Meshuggah, the progressive and folk-tinged wonders of Opeth, the gloriously pretentious sweeps of Emperor, the twisted eccentricity of Sigh and the obliterating break-neck speed of Akercocke are all testament to the wonders of this often-mocked subculture.

If you consider yourself a true music fan, then I would argue that it is your responsibility not to neglect such skilful artistry, simply because it feels like your eardrums are being raped by a herd of demons from hell.

Sadly, I know that for many listeners extreme metal will remain too abrasive, but that’s fine. It was never meant for the masses anyway. But for those of you who are intrepid enough to see past the gurning faces, the taboo-baiting lyrics and the apparent chaos of it all, there is a whole world of music out there that dares to tread beyond the limits of what most would call “acceptable”.

Suggested listening:

Opeth – Bleak
Enslaved – Return to Yggdrasil
Isis – So Did We
At The Gates – Under a Serpent Sun
Meshuggah – New Millenium Cyanide Christ
Emperor – The Eruption
Sigh – Scarlet Dream
Cult of Luna – Leave Me Here
Aborym – The Triumph
Akercocke – Praise the Name of Satan

Jonathan Butcher