# Soundscapes of despair to joy, darkness to light



## Lovi (May 8, 2014)

This wide spectrum of different atmospheres created by sound is something I have found fascinating and very useful. Not only do I simply love how it all sounds, to the point that I can no longer find really anything to match it elsewhere, they are very useful in setting me to the mood I want to be in.

What I'm talking about here is black metal. No, it's not intended to be synonymous with satanism or anything of the like. In the early 90s there was a massive media hype around it that made it synonymous with just that, but that was never the point. Sure, some of the starters of the whole mess did have anti-christian beliefs but I've never been interested in that, just like majority of the other listeners of the said genre. One of the most influential person of that time was the man of Burzum, probably my favourite project even today. And even though the man behind the project (band is not really fitting because there is only one member, so no live gigs) is pretty well known for his anti-christian beliefs and actions, I've never cared about that, simply the majestic music he has created. That very project has been the inspiration to pretty much all the subgenres that have followed since, the anti-christian ideology thankfully dropping more and more along the way.
Burzum contains every element of harsh, atmospheric, ambient, sad, dark and light sound, all in one. Since then, those elements have developed into BM (black metal), atmospheric BM, ambient BM, depressive BM, folk BM, and so forth. Ohh, and the man behind Burzum, Varg Vikernes, was practically obsessed with LOTR so it was the biggest influence to the whole thing, and there are still alot of bands/projects that have 20x more clear connection to LOTR. Other than that, overall there is a quite strong anti-commercialistic approach.

Here are some examples, though linking just a few doesn't do justice to the vast variety there is. But it's a start to those who got interested. And what I'm linking is the stuff I myself also really like.

Burzum, the seed that then sprouted into everything that follows, more or less.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wry9G6rcdQw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cmv4unRga40

Pleasant winter/spring soundscapes (Lustre is more easily approachable by those who otherwise dislike the sound of black metal, I for one just love it)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swHIrcuN1Yo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dmWdm7cD-E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7bJJEV2IwM

More atmospheric/ambient pieces that are more easily approachable. Wouldn't want to scare you away.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTy0K2_RF9c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuMrBQTsN3g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCcYWfyPg4E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxf8KfM2TQo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RW3c18AJBZs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWf-yiVGFnE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-U7DBebdm8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T3OOR2SmGo
I could go on and on, there are so many equally awesome pieces out there.

Cold winter soundscapes, the name of the project translates to "Landscape of Winter". Very low production to achieve a certain atmosphere, as well as the anti-commercialism. The inhuman shrieks as vocals are probably my favourite thing there is, it's hard to explain. Most hate them, though.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY6ZznzDoRE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M90qjXykwP4 No jump scares here unlike in the previous one. Eisprinzessin starting from 25:22 is probably my favourite of this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tviUuZTEJRo I own this specific cassette (yes, the guy, Wintherr, releases new releases only in cassette format, with only a few hundred copies being made overall. Mine is one of 300. I'm pretty proud about it).

Cold, but not wintery cold. Cold as in pure darkness of deep space. All the albums can be listened to in sequence and it would form a coherent song, that is their intention. To be continued. Darkspace has sprouted its own subgenre called space black metal, pretty fitting because their material is very different from the other subgenres.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEWTEiRl6H8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Letefx4uSFk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yp5bWy-a5Jo

Lastly, some directly Tolkien inspired pieces of awesomeness. Summoning is the most well known of Tolkien inspired BM but I don't really like it so I haven't linked it here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yeJO5Tcamc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG_qDapMsPE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlGWt44RWq4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eURU3xNAmtE
Again, there is so much more...

I think this is enough to give a taste of what it's like out there, if anyone is interested to find more similar songs, feel free to ask, for I do know quite a bit about these. I can also link more later if there is any interest. For me this world is such an awesome source of inspiration and it's a shame it is often shrouded by some very off-putting misconceptions. Hopefully some of you found this helpful.


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## Scribble (May 8, 2014)

I checked out the Lustre tunes, nicely melancholic. I enjoy sampling styles from all over the world, so thanks for sharing.

My metal tastes are a bit dated, I still listen to Black Sabbath now and then (with Ozzy only, not a Dio fan) 

There is a "What do you listen to?" thread where the community posts songs. It's like a wildly eclectic radio station 

http://mythicscribes.com/forums/chit-chat/1524-what-do-you-listen.html


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## Steerpike (May 8, 2014)

I didn't click every link to see if this was there, but if not:


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## Lovi (May 8, 2014)

I'm not really a fan of Agalloch as it often sounds a bit too folkish for my taste. Something about how the melodies sound just put me off, and this is the same reason I don't like other genres as they almost always have that same kind of feel to them.

Glad that you found Lustre to be fitting. It is a one man project from Sweden and the man behind it, Nachzeit, has several older projects with more or less similar sounds that are now abandoned cause of Lustre. And I only linked a couple songs by Lustre, there are many more in youtube that are equally good but I just couldn't link them all.
The Burning (one of the older projects)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4Jqpe9b8OY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntPpYXJiDmc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amTcGx8ImJY
A few examples, these are a bit harder to find on youtube but they're there. Glad to be of help, try out the others I linked earlier as well, as they offer some very unique soundscapes, if you like.


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## Steerpike (May 8, 2014)

Ah...I like Agalloch.

How about:


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## Lovi (May 8, 2014)

Before getting into black metal I listened to stuff like Cradle of Filth, and consider Dimmu Borgir to be closely the same category. So I don't listen to either anymore, they just lack the impact and atmosphere I'm looking for. This one I linked in the original post, let's see if I can get the video thingy to work. This would have some proper impact I'm looking for. I get chills every time it breaks to life. You can probably tell when it happens.


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## Svrtnsse (May 8, 2014)

I listened to this last one and it reminded me of an angrier version of Nadja:




They're a bit slower and a bit more electronic, so maybe it's not really the same thing (I'm mainly into electronic dance music so I'm not too at home with variations of metal). These guys seem to do a lot of covers as well, which I tend to enjoy.


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## buyjupiter (May 8, 2014)

Lovi said:


> Before getting into black metal I listened to stuff like Cradle of Filth, and consider Dimmu Borgir to be closely the same category.



I swear, both those bands are like the gateway to metal in the States. *waves hand* Because they're kinda how both my brother and I at separate times got into metal. I veered off into Black Sabbath/Iron Maiden, before winding up listening to more experimental metal/industrial blends and then settling into things like Katatonia and Agalloch.


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