#495. Windwalker- The Dance of The Elves

Genre: Blackened Epic Heavy Metal
Origin: Sweden
Release date: 1997
Label: VOD Records

Here we have the band Windwalker, which is pretty much a very early Ereb Altor. This is instrumentally melodic black metal, but with mostly clean vocals, though there are still normal black metal croaks. The thing about this album is that it should sound terrible. Later Bathory-esque vocals with a lo-fi sounding guitar fuzz, and power metal-like drums with a bouncy "epic" feel to it doesn't sound all-together wonderful. But it works tremendously well. Every guitar melody flows with the drums, which are of the creative class, instead of just blasting away. There are epic clean sections mixed with the black metal, which sound very nice, and somewhat relaxing.

This is recommended for those who aren't very mych into black metal, but like folk metal. Actually, this is recommended for anybody into melodic metal at all.

Tracklisting

1.	Mandolinintro	01:29
2.	Seeker	06:32
3.	The Song of a Bird	05:51
4.	...And You Will Forget My Name	09:08
5.	Postludium	03:33
6.	Still Is the Night	17:15
Total playing time		43:52

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#496. Slavia- Strength and Vision

Genre: Black Metal
Origin: Norway
Release Date:2007
Label: Drakkar Productions

National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) usually isn't my type of black metal. I usually don't enjoy the fast, aggressive, angry type of black metal as much as I like the Burzum-esque relaxing atmospheric type. This is an exception, however. This is even angrier and more hateful than most NSBM bands, so it's a wonder I even like this at all, let alone put it among my top albums list! Slavia is a mostly one-man project from Norway, and this is their debut album Strength and Vision.

The first thing you notice, after the intro, is the amount of distortion on...everything. The whole thing is almost the polar opposite of Rhapsody or Hammerfall production-wise. This fits, though, and makes the album as a whole sound dirtier, grittier, and just plain filthy! This is the angriest black metal I've ever heard! Sure, it isn't the most "br00t4l" black metal band, the atmosphere of pure hatred surpasses anything that brutality can show. The band was obviously somewhat influenced by Deathcrush-era Mayhem, except this is much, much better. Recommended for those who can handle it.

1.	Pissdrained Castles of Gold	09:22
2.	The Blasphemic Art	02:08
3.	Divided by Three	05:53
4.	Detector of Evil	02:06
5.	Not Even Human Fucking Beings	03:58
6.	The Ancient Light	03:02
7.	The Abyss Desecrator	05:24
8.	Trifolium Repens	03:06
Total playing time		34:59

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#497. Legend- From the Fjords

Genre: Epic Heavy/Traditional Metal
Origin: USA
Release Date: 1979
Label: Empire Records

Legend. One of the most generic band names out there behind Damnation or Dungeon. That is ironic, because, for the time, this is unique. This is viking themed metal from...1979?!? That's right. 70-fucking-9. This is hardly metal as we know it today, because it has a hard-rockish feel with the obvious folk influences. This sounds a bit like a heavier Led Zeppelin, which isn't a bad thing in the least. The songs on here just scream "classic" and they aren't just pitching a fit! The whole band fits well together, and they are all very talented at their instruments. For the late 70s, this is pretty complex. The drummer is endlessly filling, yet keeping a steady beat, while the guitar and bass lay classic riff-after-riff with vocal melodies that will stick in your head for days.

1.	The Destroyer	05:06
2.	The Wizard's Vengeance	03:39
3.	The Golden Bell	07:14
4.	The Confrontation	03:31
5.	R.A.R.Z.	05:13
6.	Against the Gods	03:47
7.	The Iron Horse	06:32
8.	From the Fjords	08:14
Total playing time		43:16

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#498. Aäkon Këëtrëh- Dans La Foret

Genre: Dark Ambient
Origin: France
Release Date: 1996
Label: Self Released

Les Légions Noires, also known as the Black Legions, were a circle of French Black Metal musicians who produced some of the rawest, grimmest, "tr00est" black metal ever laid on tape. There was another side of the Black Legions, however, which took a more serene, sometimes terrifying, approach to making strange music. It's mostly known as "LLN Dark Ambient." Lord Aakon Keetreh sticks out on his Dans La Foret demo, because it's so simple, yet so foreign. It sounds nostalgic, yet it feels like we have heard it for the first time in our life. There are no drums, no rhythm, no beat, and it only utilizes the guitar as an instrument throughout the recording. Sometimes there is a voice, doing some sort of Gregorian Chant. The production is absolutely perfect, with a little bit of distortion on the guitar, but nothing to make it unclear. There are mistakes everywhere, which, surprisingly, adds to the feel of the demo. They might even be intentional, I'm not sure. The demo as a whole is very relaxing and good to lay down to sleep to, or rest to after a day of watching TV and eating pizza (a hard day).

1.	Untitled	02:54
2.	Untitled	04:40
3.	Untitled	01:19
4.	Untitled	01:53
5.	Untitled	01:32
6.	Untitled	01:33
7.	Untitled	03:16
8.	Untitled	04:53
Total playing time		22:00

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#499. Aspid- Krovoyziliyanie/Extravasation

Genre: Technical/Progressive Thrash Metal
Origin: Russia
Release Date: 1992
Label: Independent / Ritonis / RONEes

Now, that is a cool fucking cover! Why the hell wouldn't you want to listen to an album that depicts a fucking dragon launching from below a city and completely obliterating it? It's just plain awesome, and the music reflects that. The is hard-hitting thrash with a dash, but not too much, of Anacrusis. Yes, there is a hint of prog in this, but don't let that fool you. Unlike most progressive thrash bands, the prog doesn't detract from the aggression. In fact it adds to it, making this a brutal, yet well-written and angry thrash record.

The lyrics are in Russian, and for some reason those crazy Russians have an accent that makes everything sound like sneering, and the vocals reflect that. The guitar solos really stand out here as well, and each and every one fits perfect. They just come unrelenting and screaming like a child coming out of a minivan after he lost his soccer game. The guitar tone is pure buzzsaw, throwing back memories of Destruction's early days. The drumming is excellent as well as the bass (yes, you can actually hear it) , and I'd bore you if I were to extensively fanboy them.

Essential to any thrash lover's collection.

The English titles are given in brackets [].

1. Intro 02:29 2. On Prishel (Aspid) / [It Came (Aspid)] 07:32 3. K Celi Odnoiy / [Towards One Goal] 05:53 4. Daiy Mne (Pesa Dila Baleta) / [Give Me (Play for a Ballet)] 08:27 5. Eiy Ty / [Hey, You] 04:15 6. Tam Gde Noch / [Where the Night] 06:11 7. Komatoznoe Sostoianie / [Comatose State] 05:05 8. Krovoizliianie / [Extravasation]

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#500. Wombbath- Internal Caustic Torments

Genre: Death Metal
Origin: Sweden
Release Date: 1993
Label: Thrash Records/Infest Records

I've always loved old-school Swedish death metal, before the Gothenburg scene ruined it. This album especially stands out for me. Sure, to the casual listener this sounds like 50,000 other albums released around the same time period, and that is probably the reason that it was forgotten. But, man, once you start listening to this you need to be chained to a wall in a padded room to not get the urge to destroy something. This is what the Scandinavian scene was all about. This is what Death Metal should have become. The crunchy guitar tone, hard-hitting riffs, and a bit of atmosphere to boot.

1.	Prevent Anemia	05:01
2.	Intestinal Bleeding	04:48
3.	As Silent as the Grave	03:55
4.	Corporal Punishment	05:07
5.	Performed in Depth	03:54
6.	Conceal Interior Torments	06:39
7.	Beyond the Gloomy	04:32
8.	Abandon	02:15
9.	Several Shapes	04:10
Total playing time		40:21

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Welcome!

On this blog I'm going to list the top 500, although not in any particular order, UNDERGROUND heavy metal metal albums from my admittedly biased point of view. They will be from mostly every metal genre, although only a couple from my lesser favorites (Gothic, Folk Metal). Even a few non-metal, but metal-related albums that are the result of side projects, post-metal, etc. will be posted.

Hope you enjoy it, first album goes up tonight, after I get the layout set up :)