Blasphemy / Beherit / Samael - Live Split (bootleg '92)

Blasphemy / Beherit / Samael - Live Split bootleg tape 1992
Blasphemy (live in Vancouver '89):
1) Intro
2) Weltering in Blood
3) Demoniac
4) War Command
5) Blasphemous Attack
6) Fallen Angel of Doom
7) Goddess of Perversity
8) Nocturnal Slayer
9) Darkness Prevails
10) Desecration
11) Ritual
Beherit (live in Finland '91):
12) Intro
13) The Oath of Black Blood
14) War Command (Blasphemy cover)
15) Intro II
16) Hail Sathanas
17) Satanas (Sarcófago cover)
18) Witchcraft
19) Paradise, of Thy Demonic Host
20) Beast of Damnation
21) Demoniac (Blasphemy cover)
Samael (live in Switzerland '90):
22) Messenger of the Light
23) The Dark
24) Into the Pentagram
25) Knowledge of the Ancient Kingdom
26) Morbid Metal
27) Worship Him

Zippyshare / Mediafire

Looks like I didn't have as much time as I thought to post stuff before the festival - I'm leaving for Helsinki Thursday morning - so this'll be last before I return. Might as well make it another big one, here is a three-way split live bootleg tape released back in 1992. I believe most will recognize the performers here? Blasphemy was obviously the headliner for the first Black Flames of Blasphemy back in '09, there's the connection. Their part was recorded in Vancouver '89 and features most of the songs they did on the demo and debut album. Sounds messy but listenable enough, you can tell what's going on relatively easy. "Goddess of Perversity" is incomplete, there's a dropout unfortunately. The recording sounds a little different from there on, perhaps whoever recorded this moved a bit causing the missing bit?

Beherit have sadly not performed live during their apparently short-lived(?) reunion since the release of Engram in 2009. Their part here was recorded in Finland in '91 at unspecified location, most of their live performances took place that year. Sound is pretty abrasive, much noisier than Blasphemy's part and quite challenging to enjoy. Vocals degenerate especially badly, "Hail Sathanas" sounds just ridiculous. I wonder how people who ordered this tape back in the day for Beherit felt? Samael play nowadays forgettable semi-industrial metal and if their performance the other year at Jalometalli was an indicator, I'm happy they haven't been taking up slots at other events I've attended. However, their black metal era was excellent and this set is no exception. "Messenger of the Light" starts somewhere well into the song, missing more than half. That's more or less the only gripe I have about their part, recording sounds decent enough (especially compared to Beherit) and performance is fine. I should really go to bed so I'm not going to write anything else, grab this if you're a fan of the bands AND fond of bootleg tapes with "special" sound.

Coffin - Ritual Rehearsals tape 1991

Coffin - Ritual Rehearsals rehearsal tape 10th February 1991
1) Nocturnal Obsequies
2) Dark Carnival
3) Bells of Doom (Therion cover)

Mediafire / Rusfolder

After a quick trip to the dungeon we return to worship death and obscurity by this Coffin here and it is again a somewhat mysterious item. Ripped from a dub I got from brother Grev (thank you) it was marked on his list as a sideproject of master Sova (Barathrum) but I disagree, it would seem more likely to be the Swiss death metal band's recording. Having not actually heard them it's a little hard to be certain but I'm pretty sure this isn't Sova. Anyone with further info please get in touch, as always! No covers, would appreciate them too if they exist. Slapped the Swiss band's logo there for now.

What is this like? Two original tracks and an old Therion cover from "Paroxysmal Holocaust" demo with a bit murky, heavy rehearsal sound. Not the cleanest for sure but you can tell instruments apart and hear riffs and whatnot. Sounds old schoolish and kinda Swedish? Swiss Coffin is supposed to be death/doom but these two tracks here move along on a reasonably brisk pace even though slower, heavier parts are found. It would really help my comparisons if I had actually heard the damn band I presume this is. There are interesting interludes between the songs and in general everything is pretty cool, I just wish I had more info on this damned thing! Recommended for people into old fashioned and murky death metal, crazed necromancers and collectors of rehearsal recordings.

Celtic Frost - 1984 fukkin RAW Rehearsals (bootleg)

Celtic Frost - 1984 fukkin RAW Rehearsals bootleg 2012(?)
1) Messiah
2) Visions of Mortality
3) Procreation of the Wicked
4) Morbid Tales
5) Dethroned Emperor
6) Return to the Eve

Depositfiles / Rusfolder

If this band needs an introduction I'm quite sure you're reading the wrong blog. Actually you shouldn't even be on the internet. Or this planet. Now that's been taken care of, back to the item: here's another tape ripped by the contributor mentioned on the previous post, thank you good sir, and a quite rare wandering off the usual 90's (ok sometimes 00's too) fare of the blog. But Celtic Frost are awesome enough to cause exceptions to happen... and if this bootleg tape actually was released last year or so, the average comes within the usual range of the Coven. Rejoice! To be honest I'd wander more often to the 80's except that I don't have really anything that wouldn't have been bootlegged or uploaded elsewhere a hundred times already. But that's enough about that. Includes a scan of the cover, which has preciously little information but enough for a bootleg I suppose.

The title describes the content quite accurately enough, though it's not that raw, certainly rough compared to album sound but not so raw as to merit all caps. If you've heard (of course you have!) Hellhammer demos and enjoy them (how could you not?!?) you'll be just fine with the sound here. Automatic recommendation and no need to write anything else, start downloading.

Poles Apart - Unreleased Ambient Tracks 1998-2001

Poles Apart - Unreleased Ambient Tracks 1998 - 2001
1) Alter Ego
2) Deathlike Silence
3) Nightblooming
4) Underwater
5) Gone in Tranquillity

Mediafire

A non-metal item today, here is the last stuff sent by Sascha, the unreleased tracks from his project Poles Apart, recorded between 1998 and 2001. Unlike the demo, which was instrumental symphonic/progressive black metal influenced by the likes of early Arcturus, Dimmu, Bal-Sagoth and "Nightside"-era Emperor, these tracks are dark ambient. It is just a collection of tracks, not a demo, promo or any other release like that and no, there certainly isn't a real cover for this, I just put that pic up there together for fun. I found the photo used by googling "skogen" and it's taken by someone called Josef Stuefer, hope he doesn't mind me editing and using it.

Ok, as I mentioned these are ambient tracks and recorded over a period of few years, though the sound is so similar they could pass as a single EP, MLP or something. Sascha himself referred to this material as dark ambient and it is atmospheric if not that sinister. More moody than menacing, gloomy rather than grim, otherworldly instead of oppressive - well, you get the picture. I'm not very good with the terminology for electronic music so I won't make more of a fool of myself by attempting a deeper analysis. Let's just say it's more Aphex Twin than MZ.412. "Nighblooming" is personally a highlight. Recommended if you enjoy ambient music, collect obscure releases or are just plain curious.

Poles Apart - Benevolence demo 1997

Poles Apart - Benevolence demo 1997
1) Intro: Obscure Fog
2) Poles Apart
3) Benevolence
4) Bloodred Skies
5) Outro: Travelling With The Stars

Depositfiles

Today I'm posting another item sent to me by Sascha, the 1997 demo and also only official release of his Poles Apart project. On this instrumental demo he performs melodic dark metal with some avant-gardish touches, very much like early Arcturus or mid-phase Emperor or the like. In the years following the demo the project evolved towards ambient and there are a bunch of unreleased tracks recorded which he sent me as well. But we'll get to them another time. This rip of the demo is not his, he got this from some German fellow who unfortunately went for the lowly bit rate of 128 kbps. He had also ripped the whole demo as one track but I decided to go ahead and split it into separate tracks, still at 128. I hope I got them split right. Another unfortunate thing is the lack of a cover scan as Sascha wasn't sent one nor did he find a cover so we'll make do with the M.A.image (which is obviously recycled from eBay where someone probably asked a ridiculous amount of money for this).

Even though the bitrate of the rip is pretty low, the rip sounds good - it was actually so loud I had to tone it down a little bit. The demo itself has a good and clear sound as well, being instrumental and mostly performed on keyboards and related instruments it might sound a little artificial here and there but I find my ear adjusting fast. As mentioned earlier, this is somewhat black metal based material except for the title track which borrows more from various dark rock sort of bands (and post debut album Katatonia) and brings foremost to my mind Arcturus circa MCD/debut and similar Norwegian atmospherics. And actually mid-period Nomicon a little. Very little. Anyways, it's an interesting listen and seems to grow on me so I assume you should give it a try too.

Skogen 'zine #1

Skogen Magazine, issue 1 (Late 1994/early 1995)
Interviews:
Necrophobic
Mortiis
Dark Funeral
Decortication
Obtained Enslavement
Unpure
Belial
Occult
Ancient (nor)
Isvind
Algol
Carpathian Full Moon
Abruptum
Behemoth (pol)
Ancient Rites
Itnos
Denial Of God
Enslaved
Molested
Mayhem (Hellhammer)
Satyricon
Hades (nor)
Cadaver
Vermin
Sigh
Absu/Equimanthorn
Thy Serpent
Articles:
Gehenna
Bethlehem
Darkthrone
Martyrium
Immortal
Graveland
Fester
Sadistic Intent
Grand Belial's Key
Black Funeral
Thou Shalt Suffer
Abysmal
Trelldom
In the Woods...
Gorgoroth
Darkstyle
Fleurety
Abigor
Vital Remains
Winter
Ungod
Beyond Dawn
+Swedish scene report (articles on The Black, Dissection, Tiamat etc...), Norwegian report (much shorter listing of some at the time new bands), a couple of reviews & Molested special

Reuploaded - 2022

Another 'zine today and yet another contribution, this time from none other than the Skogen editor Sascha himself! Thank you! He scanned the debut issue of Skogen and as you may see it was a pretty huge start with over 70 pages and a large amount of bands featured. Enormous jpg's the blindest old fart can squint through here and in general good quality scanning, must have been quite a task especially considering the way the 'zine was put together. Much appreciated and now the Skogen saga is complete.

Being the first issue of a young editor, the end result is impressive if naturally not up to the level of the later issues. On the average the bands have answered decently and the questions themselves are good for a first issue. The layout is clear and readable. Unfortunately the release time is not mentioned in the 'zine this time, but from what I gathered from the interviews this was mostly made in mid to late 1994 and completed and released in early 1995. I could always ask Sascha but that's no fun now is it? Overall look and quality of Skogen stayed rather consistent through its run, personally I find the bands involved most interesting in issue 2, followed by the debut and last issue. Without further ado I declare this recommended reading and mandatory for fans of Skogen #2 & #3!

Skogen 'zine #2

Skogen Magazine, issue 2 (December 1995)
Interviews:
Sorhin
Nåstrond
Gates of Ishtar
Malignant Eternal
Forgotten Woods
Nordlys
Damnation (swe)
Naglfar
Setherial
Vergelmer
Immortal
Mysticum
Strid
Thornium
Gehenna
Fleurety
The Ancients Rebirth
Ablaze My Sorrow
Demonic
In Aeternum
Amon Amarth
Ildjarn
Gorgoroth
Necromicon
Blasphemous
Articles:
Borknagar
Myrkskog
Veles
Evrakon
Athothep
Zephyrous
Enchanted
Hermh
Ever Dark
Moonblood
The Moaning
Astaroth (nor)
Lord Belial
Mastema
Ragnarok
Malice
Mortify / Ildkrig
Covenant / Troll
Skuggmörker / Ondska
+reviews

Reuploaded - 2022

Here is finally the second issue of the Skogen 'zine, again courtesy of Argus Monitor who also scanned issue #3 - very much appreciated! I intended to upload this sooner but the Megaupload debacle kind of messed things around here at Coven. But that's enough about that. The 'zine is pretty much of similar quality to issue 3 though I personally prefer this one, probably partially because I had not read it before and also since I find the bands here more interesting as well. This one has less Norwegians and more Swedes, with a few others thrown in. Very much recommended!

Skogen 'zine #3

Skogen Magazine, issue 3 (October 1996)
Interviews:
Borknagar
Samain
Ragnarok (nor)
Nattefall
Naglfar (nor)
Penitent
Dawn (swe)
Forgarður Helvítis
Sororicide
Sólstafir
Bal Sagoth
Satariel
Thy Primordial
Wallachia
Dismal Euphony
Thy Grief
Primordial
Behemoth
Graveland
Aeternus
Taake
Darkwoods My Betrothed
Nagelfar
Nifelheim
Mastema
Deinonychus
Dim Nagel
Enchanted
Articles:
Vornat
Blazing Eternity
Trolltjern
Mithotyn
Vargariket/Osiris Produksjoner
Svartsyn
Karnaya
Desaster
Carnun
Odium
Wayland
+Icelandic scene report, Dean Adams & his essays, poems & lyrics, reviews

Reuploaded - 2022

Here is, courtesy of Argus Monitor, the third and final issue of Skogen magazine from Switzerland - even though you might think it was from Norway when you look at the bands featured! Thank you Argus for scanning this, writing a foreword and sending me it. He did a good job, it is very readable even with the background graphics Sascha decided to use which make some pages pretty challenging. I guess I won't go on greater lengths here, but I recommend you download this, read Argus' foreword and the 'zine itself!