THE GREAT NACHTMYSTIUM DEBATE

Lately, it seems like the album that everyone has some sort of opinion on is Nachtmystium’s Addicts: Black Meddle Pt. 2. So I’m gonna go right on ahead and tell y’all what I think about it. WHADDAYASAAAAY???  ::crowd roars::  …..right, anyway…

Addicts is definitely receiving an outpouring of both love and hate. Moreso than any other album that’s come out this year. I’ve noticed that certain *kinds* of people just so happen to be on the “nay” side. Those folks include hipster/elitist metal types, SLAAAAAAAAAAYERRR!!!! meatheads , and KVLT KIDZ. Basically, pretty much any person that I don’t usually agree with when it comes to music, anyway. (I mean that as no offense. I’m just sayin’.) And who likes it? Well….me! And thankfully, most of the people I roll with do too. Seriously. My friends and I are broin’ out it to this jam.

I wouldn’t consider myself a huge black metal fan. I think 90% of it sounds pretty much the same, not to mention all the croaking. But many take this stuff really seriously, and that’s cool…so I usually just step back and let people do they thaaang. Then an album like Addicts comes along, which doesn’t sound a whole lot like any other black metal album I’ve ever heard, because it’s basically the most non-“metal” black metal album there is. Over the past few weeks or so I’ve been lovingly referring to this record as “Joy Division black metal.” Nachtmystium frontman Blake Judd took some influences outside of the metal sphere (in the “hipster” indie world) and created something that’s definitely a bit more forward thinking than most grim folk make. It’s a black metal album with a post-punk sensibility. So it’s not the sort of thing that’s gonna make you wanna punch someone in the face or scream bloody murder, but it *will* make you wanna dance. The first time I listened to Addicts, I realized around track 5 that I was dancing. That’s when I decided to give it a gold star.  

So, I can understand why Addicts is not necessarily accepted by the Hellhammer crew. But as someone who considers herself a very “unmetal” metal fan, I’m behind this 100%. The track “No Funeral” is above, and I’d definitely say it’s the dance jam of the summer.

What do you think?

-Elise