Ex-Immortal bassist Iscariah has started a new project called Dead to this World and you can listen to their 3-song demo on Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/deadtothisworld
Iscariah plans to put together a lineup for live shows soon and will be recording their debut album this summer.

Today marks the start of a new feature here at IAT where I'll be posting old tunes for download on Fridays. I'm trying to keep to a more consistent mp3 posting schedule and this will give me an opportunity to feature some of the stuff from my collection that I feel deserves more attention. New stuff on Mondays and Wednesdays, classics on Friday. Got it?

Today's selection comes from Immortal of Norway, a band probably known better for their ridiculous photos than for their music. Which is a shame, because they were a great band. Many people consider the album "Battles of the north" to be their greatest contribution to the black-metal genre, but I think that's bullshit. Sure, it's cult and grim and all that, but it also has a terrible recording, zero dynamics and is incredibly boring. I need more than ridiculously fast buzzing guitars and absolute nihilism, okay? It's only after that album that Immortal truly started to improve, firmly establishing themselves as one of the BM greats. Each new album found the band becoming more progressive and more melodic, but never ever sacrificing their eminent darkness or their brutality. Sure, it's not all hyperspeed blast-beats anymore, but I happen to think that tempo changes are a good thing. The culmination of their career was 2002's "Sons of nothern darkness" from which this song is the lead track. Listen to that drumming! Those riffs! So amazing. It's a shame the band isn't around anymore, but at least they went out at the top of their game.

There will be a special Bathory tribute at the upcoming Hole in the Sky Festival in Norway this coming August. As mentioned before, Bathory mastermind Thomas "Quorthon" Forsberg recently passed away due to heart failure. Artists set to take part: Abbath (ex-Immortal), Apollyon (Aura Noir), Faust (ex-Emperor), Gaahl (Gorgoroth), Grutle (Enslaved, Ivar (Enslaved), Nocturno Culto (Darkthrone), Samoth (Zyklon, ex-Emperor) and Satyr (Satyricon). A portion of the proceeds from the event will go to Black Mark Records, the label owned by Quorthon's father, Börje Forsberg.

Drummer Horgh (ex-Immortal) has left Grimfist due to his position in Hypocrisy. Because of the lineup change, the band will not play the With Full Force Festival in early July as planned and has 'decided to start the search for a new skinsman.' Interested parties are encouraged to contact the band at contact@grimfist.com.

Pitchfork takes a look at new discoveries made this year by their writers, including Immortal - "Battles in the North", Maja Ratkje - "Voice" and Turid - "I Retur": http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/

Grimfist, the band of ex-Immortal drummer Horgh, is currently working on material for a new album due out late 2004/early 2005 on Candlelight. "The follow-up to last year's "Ghouls of Grandeur" will become a beast unlike none other," they say, "We will slay with this release, mark our words!"

Ex-Immortal and current Grimfist drummer Horgh has joined long-running Swedish death metal act Hypocrisy. It seems that former drummer Lars Szöke could not cope with the band's long and hectic upcoming tour schedule, so he was forced to step down from the position. Of course this also means that Grimfist's scheduled appearance at the upcoming Inferno Fest in Norway has been cancelled. A replacement act is due to be announced shortly.

Candlelight Records has secured US licensing rights for all releases from Dutch label Karmageddon Media. Beginning in 2004 the label will release new albums from Morifade, Hearse, Within Y, Dismember and more, as well as special enhanced reissues of albums from Aeturnus, Nocturnus and the Dimmu Borgir/Old Man Child split. For those that don't know, Candlelight is the label home of black-metal legends Emperor and has recently put out records by bands such as Zyklon (feat. ex-Emperor guitarist Samoth), Grimfist (feat. ex-Immortal drummer Horgh) and many more.

Grimfist (feat. ex-Immortal drummer Horgh) has been added to the lineup of the 'Blackest of the Black' show put on by headliner Danzig at The Forum in London on November 22. Other acts on the bill include Marduk (SWE), Zyklon (NOR), Orange Goblin (UK) and Meldrum (SWE).

"Deathlike Silence: Norsk black metal 1993-2003" - a Norweigan essay on the past 10 years of black metal, as alerted to me by the Solefald site. Since they're much more eloquent writers than me, here's what they had to say on the paper:

On September the 5th the Norwegian review Samtiden (www.samtiden.no) published an essay by Cornelius entitled "Deathlike Silence. Norwegian Black Metal 1993-2003". The essay, unfortunately available in Norwegian only, contains memories from those first crazy years (Euronymous' "Helvete" shop), rare excerpts from the personal letters of Euronymous, and also comments on how the Norwegian media have been dealing with the genre over the last ten years. The essay has probably only little new to say to experienced Metallers; what is new is that a cultural review directed at a broader, educated public actually takes black metal seriously, both as an artform and as an ideological phenomenon. Mostly grimmer black metal bands such as Darkthrone, Satyricon, Emperor, Immortal and Mayhem are featured, as the origin and history of Norwegian black metal is the centerpoint of the essay. There is of course a lot to be written about the second generation of bands (from 1995 and onwards, roughly), acts such as Arcturus, Ulver, DHG, Borknagar, Khold, Myrkskog, and hopefully also yours truly... The title "Deathlike Silence" has rather melancholic implications, as August the 10th was the 10th anniversary of Euronymous' murder. Without the life and work of that twisted, idiosyncratic mind, Norwegian black metal would be just that, a deathlike silence. But since then, as we all known, black metal has evolved so drastically that in some cases it cannot simply be called "black" anymore, maybe "avantgarde" or "post-black" or "neo-black" or you name it (just not "Radical Designer Rock'n'Roll" [as Solefald labels themselves -ed.]).

I agree - it's definitely interesting to note the way the media has picked up the black metal phenomenon and how it's been covered throughout the years. I remember when I first heard those bands way back in the early nineties and how scary and inhuman they sounded. Strange how times have changed - Satyricon and Cradle of Filth are on majors now, for starters. Those of you like me who don't read Norweigan and are interested in learning more about the scene should definitley pick up the book "Lords of Chaos: The Bloody Rise of the Satanic Metal Underground" by Michael Moynihan and Didrik Soderlind. It's not perfect, but it does provide for a good primer.

Ex-Immortal drummer Horgh's new band Grimfist has posted a number of sample mp3s online here. The tracks all come from the forthcoming album "Ghouls of Grandeur", due out September 23 on Candlelight Records. Despite the terrible band name, they claim the music "masterfully blends the best of death, black metal and traditional thrash for a crushing wall of immense sound that will leave metal fans gasping and begging for more."

Go here for a bunch of pictures from the recent videoshoot for "First Day Of My Life" from The Rasmus.

Ex-Immortal guitarist Abbath to join Dimmu Borgir? I guess the rumor has been floating around, but Dimmu guitarist Silenoz dismisses it saying, "No, that is totally wrong." He continues (from an interview with Swedish Metal):

"It is on the other hand true that he has participated as a guest vocalist in two songs on the album. But it is absolutely not anything more than that. He put down his vocals in the middle of April and that was a long time before their split up. That is by the way a high surprise for us and it is incredibly sad that they've chosen to quit. I don't understand why they're doing it but I'm sure that they have their reasons, and I fully respect that of course."

Upcoming Dimmu Borgir US tour dates w/Children of Bodom, Hypocrisy and Nevermore:

11/07 - Showplace Theater, Buffalo, NY
11/08 - Harpo's, Detroit, MI
11/09 - House Of Blue's, Chicago, IL
11/11 - Government, Toronto, ONT
11/12 - The Medley, Montreal, QUE
11/13 - Toad's Place, New Haven, CT
11/14 - Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ
11/15 - Trocadero, Philadelphia, PA
11/16 - Club Laga, Pittsburgh, PA
11/18 - Masquerade, Atlanta, GA
11/19 - Masquerade, Tampa, FL
11/21 - Engine Room, Houston, TX
11/22 - Deep Ellum Live, Dallas, TX
11/23 - Backroom, Austin, TX
11/25 - Bash On Ash, Tempe, AZ
11/26 - House Of Blues, Los Angeles, CA
11/28 - Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA
11/29 - Roseland Theater, Portland, OR
11/30 - Showbox, Seattle, WA
12/01 - Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC
12/03 - Bricks, Salt Lake City, UT
12/04 - Ogden Theater, Denver, CO
12/05 - Bottleneck, Lawrence, KS
12/06 - Pop's, St. Louis, MO
12/07 - The Quest, Minneapolis, MN
12/09 - The Rave, Milwaukee, WI
12/10 - Agora Theater, Cleveland, OH
12/11 - 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
12/13 - The Palladium, Worcester, MA
12/14 - Saratoga Winners, Albany, NY

Via Blabbermouth, comes this story concerning the Colorado-based Aircat Aerial Art dance group performing a piece entitled "Trycaliptica" which utilizes the music of Finnish heavy metal cello quartet Apocalyptica.

"'Trycaliptica' is a tale of transformation. It could be the tale of how aerial dancing was created by dancers trying to break the boundaries of the horizontal space, reaching for new, vertical challenges. Freed from the ground, the dancers explore the body's defiance of gravity."

They will perform the piece this coming Friday and Saturday at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder, CO as part of the Frequent Flyers Productions' Aerial Dance Festival. More info: www.frequentflyers.org

Okay, so the label was misinformed and it really is true that Immortal is breaking up. The label's message, straight from the Nuclear Blast website:

Well, sad news.. Although stated differently earlier as it seemed as if the band only wanted to take a long break, here’s the 100% official news, directly from the band and management:
"After 13 years and 7 albums we have decided to stop working with Immortal due to personal reasons. A great thanks to all our fans worldwide who helped us making Immortal superb through all this time.
Abbath, Demonaz, Horgh"

Those of you in the UK are probably already well aware, but singer/songwriter Magnet aka Even Johansen has been racking up quite a portfolio of gushing reviews. Check out this profile from MIC Norway.

It seems that reports of Immortal's demise were premature. Their label is now saying that the split is not totally true and that "Immortal will simply take a long break, as the musicians need to rest a while after 12 months of excessive touring." As for the member's current plans, they say "both Abbath and Horgh will concentrate on their own projects. To start with, the debut album of Grimfist will probably be released in September on Candlelight Records, with Horgh on drums (along with ex-Immortal bassist Iscariah). So folks, don't worry, you know what 'Immortal' means."

Immortal, one of black metal's most long-running and respected groups, has apparently called it quits. In a statement posted to the Scream Magazine forum the band stated "After 13 years and 7 albums we have decided to stop working with Immortal due to personal reasons. A great thanks to all our fans worldwide who helped us making Immortal superb through all this time." No word on the member's future plans, but I'll be sure to post details when I get them.