Description
The era of intense rivalries among metal scenes may seem distant, yet it played a pivotal role in shaping the music. Bands from different regions held grudges and animosities – Norwegians despised Swedish death metal, Profanatica in the US loathed Norwegian black metal, and Impaled Nazarene in Finland shared the sentiment towards Norwegian black metal. The era was marked by feuds, but it also birthed some of the most remarkable music.
What’s remarkable about early ’90s black metal is its ambition, considering its roots in countering mainstream death and thrash metal. It was both a return to underground ethos and a contradiction within itself. The constant bickering between bands and scenes led to the creation of enduring works.
In this climate, Finnish black metal infused with grindcore emerged as a significant subgenre. By embracing primitivism and adhering to grind philosophy, these bands opened new creative horizons. Impaled Nazarene, a prominent voice in this movement, roared with their debut ‘Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz…’ in 1993, a disjointed carnival of melodrama and farce. However, their polished follow-up, ‘Ugra Karma,’ channeled that wild energy into a more focused and relentless beast. This transformation was characterized by intense blasts, d-beats, and a pronounced but basic melodic structure. Mika Luttinen’s diverse vocal techniques, from barks to growls to banshee wails, guided this intense journey.
Intensity, while central to their music, also required balance. ‘Ugra Karma’ found this equilibrium by crafting narratives beneath the surface. Beyond the flamboyance, it was an Apollonian order, dictating the ebbs and flows of energy. The sharp guitar tone unleashed quick, two-chord riffs, interspersed with longer, fleshed-out pieces. These tracks conveyed an underlying logic and progression, offering a sense of purpose despite the constant onslaught of noise.
‘Ugra Karma’ has been imitated but seldom understood. It’s more than mixing black metal and grindcore with provocative lyrics; it’s a pillar of European extreme metal, standing the test of time.
