Black Metal, Rock’n’Roll, and the Art of Not Taking Yourself Too Seriously
268 days till W:O:A 2023.
(Not that I’m counting. Ahem.)
Abbath — a name I had literally never heard before — turns out to be one of black metal’s frostbitten gods.
Ole Eikemo—aka Abbath Doom Occulta, aka just Abbath—was a founding member of legendary Norwegian black metal band Immortal. He also dabbled in several other metal projects, because black metal musicians apparently never sleep.
One of those side quests was a band called I, formed in 2006. Their only album Between Two Worlds somehow fell into my lap a couple of weeks ago—and I instantly clicked with its epic sound. (Think Bathory, but on a slightly sunnier day.)
Days of North Wind immediately made it onto my playlist.
The King of Corpsepaint (And Memes)
With his signature corpsepaint and a not-too-serious approach to black metal aesthetics, Abbath basically became the living mascot of the genre — and, by extension, the star of countless internet memes.
(Exhibit A: See below. If you’re not laughing at Abbath taking "a bath," you have no soul.)
Solo Career: Still Frostbitten, Still Funny
Abbath left Immortal in 2015 and struck out as a solo artist.
He’s since dropped three studio albums, the latest being Dread Reaver (2022).
I did the homework: I listened to Dread Reaver and the most popular songs from the earlier albums.
Here’s the thing: Abbath isn’t exactly making "pure" black metal anymore.
It’s black metal with a heavy side of rock 'n' roll swagger and heavy metal bounce.
The Motörhead worship is blatant—and beautiful.
Between Mia Wallace’s rolling bass lines and Abbath’s gloriously wrecked vocals, some songs (looking at you, Scarred Core) feel like Motörhead dipped in corpsepaint and set loose in the fjords.
Dread Reaver: High Speed, Minimal Chill
Dread Reaver delivers nine tracks, including a cover of Metallica’s Trapped Under Ice.
(Because if anyone could make Trapped Under Ice sound even more frostbitten, it’s Abbath.)
Most of the songs rage at high speed, with the drums thundering so relentlessly that you sometimes forget guitars exist. (Shout-out to Ukri Suvilehto for the cardio.)
Septentrion and The Book of Breath flirt a bit harder with Abbath’s black metal roots—blast beats and all—but don’t expect a sudden dive into pure darkness.
Verdict: Great in Small, Chaotic Doses
Dread Reaver is, dare I say, dangerously easy to listen to.
Catchy riffs, stompy grooves, choruses that stick around like drunken party guests.
My only gripe? Same one I have with most Motörhead albums:
Single songs = Great.
Full album = Please stop screaming at me, my brain is melting.
I’ll be cherry-picking the gems and letting them smash their way into my playlists, where they can terrorise more versatile neighbours.