MAYHEM — Deathcrush (review)

MAYHEM — Deathcrush album cover EP · 1987 · Black Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
Warthur
The debut EP by Mayhem is an epoch-defining statement of intent for the Norwegian black metal scene, with many elements of the second-wave black metal sound already in place - but is it actually enjoyable to listen to after the fact? The production job is sloppy but the band use that to their advantage, creating a howling wall of sound from which furious blast beats and jagged riffs emerge, with Maniac's vocals sounding like a crazed howling almost lost in the midst of this storm of sound.

I could do without the opening Silvester Anfang, a tedious bit of martial drumming which serves no purpose beyond establishing that the band could have applied less lo-fi production to the demos had they wanted to, though the other quieter and more reflective moment on the album, (Weird) Manheim, serves quite effectively as an intro for Pure Fucking Armageddon. And the songs themselves represent some of the most extreme metal recorded to that date; perhaps some of the work of Bathory, Hellhammer or Sodom had come close in the past, but it must be said that it was Mayhem who took this particular strand of black metal to the next level.

Equally, though, when you get into this sort of sonic arms race you risk earlier efforts losing the shine as a result of being equalled or surpassed by later hands - or by yourself.
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