Ghost

yes ok. you might not agree that this belongs to a black metal blog. ghost are not black metal musically, but they are spiritually, lyrically and through their image. in that sense they are more black metal than many bands. ghost are the pope, not for above, but for below, and his ghouls.

i must admit i regretted it bitterly when i didn't go see them during a festival in greece in 2015. just a few months later i got to know them and fell in love completely. so i decided to go to the UK to see them, together with my sister who has become a huge fan, too. and this was such a good idea! a club gig is anyway better than a festival performance.

ghost started playing at 9.15 pm sharp and started the night off with square hammer. after that one  great song followed the next, from all of their three albums as well as the popestar EP. my favourites were year zero, monstrance clock, ghuleh/zombie queen as well as the most anticipated Cirice. we were massively headbanging there!

what a joy it was to see this band live and scream or sing along to the blasphemous, satanic lyrics, what a joy to get emotional with "he is" and praise satan, papa, the ghouls, all the demons and devils! hail darkness, hail satan! it's something special when one entire concert hall screams at the top of their lungs those blasphemous words! wonderful.

i'm in love with ghost and what they have created, their vision and their genius idea. i hope that we will have them for many more years still. i feel more than happy to have been able to see them live and enjoy their ritual.

the world is on fire - and you are here to stay and burn with me
a funeral pyre - and we are here to revel forevermore

- Daedin

Rotting Christ

Finally the big day was here.. the day of the rotting christ concert! and i say it like it is a really big thing, and it is. i have been waiting for this so long, ever since i got to know the band, and i couldn't wait to see them!

Actually the show sold out early enough, with 2500 tickets gone, so they added a second show on sunday, where rotting christ play the whole thy mighty contract as well as some other songs. as tempting as it was, i decided to only go on saturday, and that was more than ok.

i arrived late, but this was my choice. i just left my coat at the garderobe and bought a girlie shirt, entered the hall and the opening tune began. perfect! i found a decent spot, all the way in the back but with good view on the whole band. also enough space to headbang, great!

they played 2,5 hours. only think about this. a black metal band, nearing their 30 year existence, playing for so long without a break and selling out a 2,500 venue, twice!! wow. just.. respect! they played songs from rituals, which i was really happy about, as well as other songs i knew from older albums, like nemesis and in lumen xibalba. great great songs! i didn't know all of them, but there was no need. i got so into it and went along with all, haha!

sakis is such a great frontman. he is cheering the crowd on, he is grateful, always enthusiastic, full of power and of course headbanging, like all of them! awesome to see that they enjoy it as much as we do. my garmin vivosmart reached twice the daily amount of steps needed because of all the crazy jumping, haha! what a night indeed.

the last song was of course non serviam and we all screamed it at the top of our lungs. fans stormed the stage on sakis request and the place went nuts. what a great end to this long and so satisfying night. thank you rotting christ. they are number one in greece and they showed why they are. no one can reach this level and i love them. very much!

-Daedin

with the face of angel, in flirt with sin, his voice in eternity, NON SERVIAM

Mortiis in London

well, what can i say.. Mortiis tours again and of course I'm there! :D as soon as the dates were announced I couldn't get my thoughts straight. i had to go! so as you know from my previous entries i have seen mortiis live two times, in Finland in 2004, in Dublin 2016 and now in London.

I arrived early morning on saturday and met my sister as well as a good friend. this was awesome, too, and made the trip even so much better! at 6pm i lingered around the venue for the VIP meet and greet. me and another guy were picked up and brought inside.

this was simply fantastic and the memories will stay with me forever. we sat backstage relaxed with Levi, Tim and Håvard and chatted for about 45 minutes. we also got stuff signed, pics and just overall the nicest treatment you could think of. i love those guys, ok! i love them so much :D

after this i stayed with the other VIP guest and we chatted until the first band went onstage. they were called stereo juggernaut and were.. loud! some really catchy songs, though and a good start. the next band was seraph sin and the guy knew how to scream his anger out, wow!! i'd say both bands could be called industrial, but i'm not a real expert here.

so finally Mortiis was up! the setlist was so great! i'm gonna post here pics of the setlist from dublin and london.

 so in london we had 6 from the great deceiver, 3 from the grudge, two from smell the rain, one from perfectly defect. in dublin it was 7 from the great deceiver, 3 from the grudge, one from smell the rain and two from perfectly defect.

i was dancing, headbanging and singing along massively, got a stiff neck the next day, haha! what a great show! the crowd was active and cheering a lot, that was awesome, too.

after mortiis were finished we had one more band to go. this was Pig and they had some really good songs. i would have enjoyed this more, but actually i was absolutely dead. because of just a few hours of sleep due to the early flight, i decided to call it quits. bought a mortiis hoodie and shirt, got my VIP package stuff (my first 12inch vinyl, haha!) as well as flyers for street team work and headed happily to the hostel.

the next morning i got up after a quite good nights sleep and participated in a street art and graffiti free walking tour, which was awesome, too. some yummy curry and off i went to the airport. so i spent about 34 hours in london, and what kind of hours those were!! so glad i did this :)

La ikke livet ta din sjel,

sjelen tilhører døden.

Finn ingen glede i livet,

for der er ingen.

vi har intet sikkert,

bare døden.

Livet holder oss borte,

fra det eneste vi har.

Døden er vår egen,

la oss finne vår død.

Selvmord...

Selvmord...

-Daedin

Virus / Hail Spirit Noir / Turia

This event called Arcane Angels Festival actually happened end of October last year, but for some reason I did not talk about it then. I decided to do that now then.

This event featured three dutch black metal bands as warm up, then Greece's Hail Spirit Noir and as headliner Norway's Virus. I arrived in time for the third black metal band called Turia. They feature a female vocalist and she was actually really superb. Their style was quite depressed black metal and I remember that I enjoyed it, although this is not easy to play live and have people get interested. The style is anyway so very underground..

Next up was Hail Spirit Noir. They play some strange mix that I found was called psychedelic rock/ black metal, although I wouldn't really call them black metal. To me it was more like ritualistic or dark magic dark metal or something. Not easy to put into a category! They were really good live and the crowd got really warmed up with them.

The last act of the night was Virus. Now they are avantgarde rock and they are thus not easy at all. I must admit that they were difficult and then also not metal at all, something that set them apart very much from all other four bands. But they should be mentioned anyway, and if only because of Carl-Michael Eide. He has played in such huge black metal names as Satyricon, Ulver, Dødheimsgard and Dimmu Borgir. For this alone he is a legend and worth checking out.

He sits on stage due to an injury that left him partly paralysed. He is a very good frontman though and it was a joy to see this band play. I left a bit before the end of the show, though, since this style tired me a bit and I wanted to get away from the probably sold out place in time.

All in all a very interesting evening with a very diverse lineup and great moments. It was awesome to see that so many people attended the show and how metal fans get together for such an interesting and quite different from pure black metal event.

Οι Μάγοι, Για δώρο φέρνουν τον θάνατο επί γης. Οι Μάγοι, Τα παιδιά, θα τα σκοτώσουνε-Daedin

Typhonian black metal - Heretic Cult Redeemer / Nox Formulae /Acrimonious

finally some more black metal shows! this is greek black metal underground, does not get more underground than this, i guess! as explanation first: The Typhonian Order, previously known as the Typhonian Ordo Templi Orientis (TOTO), is a self-initiatory magical order based in the United Kingdom that focuses on magickal and typhonian concepts.

the evening started with Heretic Cult Redeemer. the picture is somehow misleading, they were not dressed like this, sporting corpsepaint instead and although ritualistic, it was more the classic kind of style. really good to rock out to, nice vibe going on, a good start into the night.



next up was Nox Formulae. they were really interesting. six men enter the stage, drummer, rhythm and lead guitar and bass and two singers! heard of another black metal band with two singers? interesting! they also wore ski masks to hide their identities and on their Facebook page they reveal nothing about themselves. i liked them the most. they had some crazy changes in their music, lots of good passages to headbang and a very obscure air surrounding them. nice.



the last band was Acrimonious. They wore corpsepaint (red black, the guitarist only white, interesting!) and were half as many members as the previous band. they were good and i also liked their occult stage presence, but they were really fast. there were enough good riffs that i enjoyed massively headbanging to, but some songs were blasting fast and i don't enjoy that as much.



this was a great evening, a true celebration of the greek black metal underground. it was a good idea to come and witness this and to support the scene.


- Daedin

Son of Cronus, you who hold Aetna, the wind-swept weight on terrible hundred-headed Typhon

Mgła - The Dead Creed

New year and finally new concerts!! I was not planning to go to this one and decided it last minute. Very good decision, that one! There were four bands on the bill tonight and I was interested in three of them.

First of all The Dead Creed, whom I had seen before already. This was one of the main reasons why I went, actually. I bought his t-shirt now and got a sticker :) So happy, because I kind of regretted not having bought the shirt last time. The place was already filling up when he performed and there was enough enthusiasm. Very nice! The kind of music that can get you into an almost trancelike state..

Next up was Temple of Evil. Quite traditional occult black metal. The band sported corpsepaint and flowing robes. I did like some of the riffs and mood of the songs. But the intros were so different and should have set the ambience for this band, but their style was anyway too brutal for this kind of obscure atmosphere. Too bad, they show a lot of potential.

Next band was the main band for me, polish Mgła. They were superb. They play an awesome style mix, black metal for sure, but with so much self-destructive energy, darkness, self-hate, and still powerful, screaming their pain out into the world.. brilliant. They wear always their masks to hide the faces and this creates even a more impressive picture, of four faceless figures, in their torment, voicing their disappointment. I really fell in love with them and I need to listen to their back catalogue now.

After Mgła there would have been Akercocke, but I left before they came on. The place was sold out and we were all sardines, and then I had already gotten the band I wanted, Akercocke is melodic death metal and not really my cup of tea. So I left with great memories, lots of headbanging, two posters and a good start into the new black metal year!

And there is despair underneath each and every action,
each and every attempt to pierce the armour of numbness

- Daedin

Dark Funeral / Carach Angren

What a combination! What a promising lineup! When I saw this one advertised, I was ready to go crazy. I had been impatiently waiting for Carach Angren anyway, and since I saw Grá live, I knew that Heljarmadr is a great frontman.

But first up was Carach Angren. The place Kyttaro was super full and it was great to see that many fans actually came mostly for the Dutch band and not the following Swedes. Carach Angren did an awesome job. They played songs from all their albums and even one demo, they got a massive death of wall going and people went nuts. They played my favourite song "Spectral Infantry Battalion" too, and that had me headbanging massively, haha!

Up next was Dark Funeral. They recently got quite some press because of the new album and Justin Bieber twittering about liking the new album, which prompted Heljarmadr to invite the youngster to their next show.. as sacrifice!! HAHA! well, if that does not make Heljarmadr your hero, then I don't know what would!! :D I don't know their songs really, but they also had enough slower passages for me to headbang and enjoy it. I loved every minute of this. A great evening came thus to an end, a true celebration of black metal and its diversity. 

There will be more shows, soon. I might go to see Belphegor end of January and already got my ticket for Mayhem (YES YES, the true mayhem!! playing the entire de mysteriis dom sathanas! i will die!!) in April, as well as Ghost end of March (not really black metal.. not musically, but in image, haha!) and Apocalyptica, playing their whole first album. So yea.. more crazy stuff coming up.

Daedin
- This ... is the sound of death!
Death! a military haunting!
Death! Battle formations!
Death! still marching ahead!
Death! Battle formations! DEATH DEATH DEATH!

Archgoat

Finally back for more shows! :) It was about time! This time there was a real gem on the agenda. Finnish black metal legend Archgoat. There were also two other bands playing that night, but I did not see them and just arrived in time for Archgoat.

I read about this band recently in Pirunkehto, the recently published history of Finnish black metal. It was a great coincidence now that I would see them live, too.

Archgoat play a enough fast black metal style, but to my delight there are enough passages that drop the speed and give me room to headbang, which I did quite a lot that evening! They have a ritualistic, obscure mood about them and this is exactly what will get me excited.

The show was at MODU and I had seen that place rather empty last time, so it was also a true joy to see that this time the place was packed. This band really deserves the recognition. It was not easy, because the very next day Dark Funeral and Carach Angren were on the bill, about this one later.. But this made me even more content, to see that despite the big gig the next day, Archgoat filled the place. And our black hearts with blasphemous thoughts..

It's good to see these pioneers, who might have been black and no longer thrash/death even before the Norwegians, to still go strong!

Daedin
- Spread the flame, crush christianity

Inquisition

and yet another black metal ritual going on in Athens!! of course there was no way I would not go to this one.

Arriving after work I managed to still glimpse Diablery. I did like their style very much, this kind of ritualistic occult black metal is what I love.

Next up was Nadiwrath but I was not too impressed. They are too thrash for me and I was never a huge fan of that.

Finally Inquisition was up. They are only a two piece with Dagon singing and playing guitar and Incubus taking on drum duties. You might think that this is not enough, but hell it is. They were fantastic and although there are enough people who think that a bass or even a melodic guitar is simply a must, Inquisition easily prove them wrong. The sound was awesome.

They also played my favourite Desolate Funeral Chant and I was mesmerised. They combine enough fast parts also with slow ones and this is exactly what I like. I need a bit of doom and funeral shit somewhere, so I can headbang in style, haha, and feel the music roll slowly through my bones. Inquisition know exactly how to do this and still keep a very fast pace.

Dagon's vocals are icy, haunting, very enchanting! A great evening then with lots of great vibes to take home. (last pic is my own from the show)

Winds chant songs of death, graves deep, open wide

- Daedin

Oranssi Pazuzu, The Dead Creed

So finally some more black metal shows! It's Oranssi Pazuzu's second time in Athens and I of course had to go see them again. Also because last time I left early and did not yet know them well. Now this time I knew their two latest albums quite well, also the show was in a much bigger venue, moving from An Club to Gagarin 205! wow! :D

So I arrived early and I'm so happy I did, because this was the reason why I saw The Dead Creed and this blew me away! Fantastic guy.

This guy uses only his voice and an acoustic guitar and creates the acoustic equivalent to Batushka. He uses only orthodox monasterial chants and his guitar to create a very atmospheric, but still heavy sound. This is black metal underground at its finest. Awesome stuff, I right away bought his songs at bandcamp :D

Next was mock the mankind and Finnish Hexvessel, but I will not lose any words to them. I did not like either and Hexvessel seemed out of place. Mock the mankind had no vocals and sadly bored me a lot.

But now on to Oranssi Pazuzu. This was stunning, absolutely mesmerising, hypnotic, deep, heavy, pressuring and alluring music. So so good, but also so assaulting to all senses, like a thunderstorm of sounds, crashing into you.. Fantastic. And boy, these guys are so Finnish.. I think they did not say a single word to the audience and still they had us in their power. What an experience!

Daedin
- Tämä on hymni kaiken päätteeksi,
verta veitseen ja käännä krusifiksi

Mortiis in Dublin

so as I told earlier, I saw Mortiis in 2004 in Jyväskylä. There have been periods when he was not really active and I might have had the chance to see him somewhere still, but I missed those chances and now 12 years have passed. In these 12 years a lot has changed, for me and for him of course, too.

I'm now a member of the street team and we talk occasionally on facebook. So in May Mortiis toured the UK, but I had just been two times to the UK April and May and I simply could not go yet another times. So I had to pass that opportunity and wait for the next. which presented itself now in October. Mortiis was going to come to three gigs in Pilsen, Erfurt and Dublin, so I chose Dublin :D It was perfect since I also combined that with a trip to Wales by boat.

I flew in the day of the concert, just checked into the hostel and ate something before heading to the place, Voodoo Lounge. And it was all just mind blowing. I finally met Håvard, he gave me more street team stuff and yes, selfies did happen :D

The show was fantastic. Mortiis played one song from Smell of Rain,  three from the Grudge, one from Perfectly Defect and the rest was from the Great Deceiver.

This man, a legend in extreme music, be it as black metal musician and lyricist in Emperor, be it as one of the originators of dark dungeon music, be it as a current industrial music enthusiast in a tiny underground movement, away from the eye of the mainstream press.. he is my hero. And besides that he just is a great person, very kind, polite, but also honest, outspoken, free-spirited.. yep, i love him :)

Daedin
Cause you are just really one step closer to the end,
we are really just one step closer to the end

New Corpsepaint sessions

well, I need to share some pics here, too! until now i´ve been alone in doing corpsepaint, but i found a sister in crime this time, my colleague! it was one session to be remembered.. :P

the last one is while wiping off the paint. quite something. too..

Daedin

find me, take me, to the void, to the crooked nest, to nekrohaven.