I love all the predictable hate for new Darkthrone albums... As if your thoughts on the state of Black Metal are more important than Fenris'! You can't make Black Metal 20 years into a successful career, it wouldn't be genuine (and let's face it, genuine is about the only compliment you can give to early Darkthrone, I mean it's pretty ghastly stuff

At any rate, after a few repeats I am thoroughly enjoying this one; much improved vocals, and Valkyrie is a straight up epic track! Possibly their best yet!

I did not hear the rest of the album but 'Leave No Cross Unturned' is fucking awesome! It reminds me Mercyful Fate mixed with Type O Negative (first album and maybe Carnivore). The track can be heard entirely on Pitchfork -> http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/17642-darkthrone-the-underground-resistance/

Written by Metal_Buff on 27.02.2013 at 02:42

I love all the predictable hate for new Darkthrone albums... As if your thoughts on the state of Black Metal are more important than Fenris'! You can't make Black Metal 20 years into a successful career, it wouldn't be genuine (and let's face it, genuine is about the only compliment you can give to early Darkthrone, I mean it's pretty ghastly stuff

At any rate, after a few repeats I am thoroughly enjoying this one; much improved vocals, and Valkyrie is a straight up epic track! Possibly their best yet!

Nice diatribe, but there's no black metal here anyway. It's competent, if very unoriginal, speed metal being driven by the fame of the band's past Having a successful career doesn't mean you have to be consistently good throughout it. Darkthrone probably have a 50% good quality ratio at best. To me this album has a nice sound but is let down by some flat and uninteresting song writing.

I've always thought that Darkthrone were great at producing this style of raw, thrashy Black Metal and on their latest album they do it very well indeed. Each and every song seems to have its own memorable qualities and the vocals, although a little strange when sung 'cleanly', add to the consistency of the sound in general. In particular 'Valkyrie', 'The ones you left behind' and apt closer 'Leave no cross unturned' each present a bit of variety on Darkthrone's part. The riffs on every song charge along with simplistic yet furious style and the harsher vocals do add to the raw, slightly primitive sound that the instrumentation produces. Fuck the haters, this album rules.

Written by musicalkaratekid on 27.02.2013 at 14:07
I've always thought that Darkthrone were great at producing this style of raw, thrashy Black Metal

But is this.... really BM? No, it's not. I like modern Darkthrone but I find it hard to call it BM. Just some cool punk/heavy metal with some black/thrash influences here and there.
If this were to go to Metalstorm Awards, I'd like to see this in heavy metal category, nowhere near black.

Written by X-Ray Rod on 27.02.2013 at 15:01

Written by musicalkaratekid on 27.02.2013 at 14:07
I've always thought that Darkthrone were great at producing this style of raw, thrashy Black Metal

But is this.... really BM? No, it's not. I like modern Darkthrone but I find it hard to call it BM. Just some cool punk/heavy metal with some black/thrash influences here and there.
If this were to go to Metalstorm Awards, I'd like to see this in heavy metal category, nowhere near black.

I say Black Metal in the way that bands like Mercyful Fate and Bathory were categorized as 'Black Metal', and not the kind that Darkthrone played on 'A blaze...'. This is quite obviously influenced by Heavy Metal and Speed Metal but I can also identify with the really early Black Metal sound in the 80's. But yeah, I agree with you that this album would fit in the Heavy Metal category in the awards.

Written by musicalkaratekid on 27.02.2013 at 16:33
I say Black Metal in the way that bands like Mercyful Fate and Bathory were categorized as 'Black Metal', and not the kind that Darkthrone played on 'A blaze...'. This is quite obviously influenced by Heavy Metal and Speed Metal but I can also identify with the really early Black Metal sound in the 80's.

I see what you mean by that, I agree in that sense.

Yeah I didn't mean to say this is supposed to be Black Metal, more that if Darkthrone doesn't want to do Black Metal, than any self-respecting fan should understand that it's with good reason. I can't stop playing it, that's all that matters to me!

Meh, not good, but not bad.

6.5

Just checked in after long time this band...all I can say Darkthrone truly gone after Sardonic Wrath....this new so called Darkthrone is nothing more than a drunken homage to band's idols with a few flashes of their early brilliance (so this rating is for those moments)...and when some other band is copying some established band you all spit on them! looks like Darkthrone can shit on paper and you'll all buy it...damn, are you deaf?

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 14:04

damn, are you deaf?

I'd ask you the same question, but to each his own.

Written by musicalkaratekid on 02.03.2013 at 14:10

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 14:04

damn, are you deaf?

I'd ask you the same question, but to each his own.

I agree, we all have different tastes, but c'mon this is absolutely unoriginal and tribute like...especially since those bands they try so hard to copy (Venom, Merciful Fate, Sodom etc) sounds million times better than this average crap...like I said, this is not Darkthrone but some poor parody of 80's metal scene...

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 16:47

I agree, we all have different tastes, but c'mon this is absolutely unoriginal and tribute like...

Well, it's not like they tried to fool us, they openly recognize their newer albums are just paying tribute to their "idols". Don't try too hard if you know you won't like that...

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 16:47

Written by musicalkaratekid on 02.03.2013 at 14:10

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 14:04

damn, are you deaf?

I'd ask you the same question, but to each his own.

I agree, we all have different tastes, but c'mon this is absolutely unoriginal and tribute like...especially since those bands they try so hard to copy (Venom, Merciful Fate, Sodom etc) sounds million times better than this average crap...like I said, this is not Darkthrone but some poor parody of 80's metal scene...

Well I'm afraid I beg to differ. I've tracked Darkthrone's entire discography since 'A Blaze in the northern sky' and, although it isn't as original as I'd like it to be, I really am not disappointed by this album at all. This is certainly Darkthrone, but it's a different one from what we've come to expect from albums such as 'The cult is alive' and 'hate them'. Plus I can't see why you think Darkthrone are "copying" Venom, Mercyful Fate or Sodom-Darkthrone don't sound anything like these bands, and especially not on "The underground Resistance".

I can see why this album gets ratings as low as yours though. Fortunately for me I love the style

Been trying to treat this like I did Circle, i.e. giving it repeated listens in various scenarios in the hope that the songs grow on me (like they did with Circle) and while it worked for some sections all in all in just served to highlight how thoroughly bland the song writing is. The ballsy, grimy sound is great but the dynamics are flatter than a super model's breasts on Jupiter.

Farkthrone (I can't be arsed to correct that phone-typo) seem to be caught in two black and white opposing camps at the moment. We have the new era fanboys accusing any dissenters of this to be stuck in the past / misunderstanding what the band is truly about (because they're oh so rebellious in doing what they want) against fans of ye old Transilvanian Blaze in the Northern Moon who say they're just ripping off old cult heavy punk speed metal and what they're doing now is of no value. The truth of the matter is though is that duo have released quality albums in both eras, but they've also released a lot of shite too. Saying one camp is better than the other is not an argument that works for a band as inconsistent as this. I think this record belongs in the dump with Goat Lord et al.

First time listening to this band. I had to because I've read great things about this album all over the internet. If I ever need a diversion or something different or feel like listening to a cross between Motorhead and King Diamond I will play this first. I may have to spin it a few more times to see if I "get it".

Written by Guest on 03.03.2013 at 14:13

The truth of the matter is though is that duo have released quality albums in both eras, but they've also released a lot of shite too. Saying one camp is better than the other is not an argument that works for a band as inconsistent as this.

I'll be honest, I will tell right away that I belong to the camp of those who like the Peaceville trilogy but believe modern Darkthrone is utterly worthless crap. If I want to listen to Motorhead, I'll listen to Motorhead. Same for Mercyful Fate, King Diamond, Celtic Frost, Hellhammer, etc. Also, I think Darkthrone release way too many albums. Perhaps if they released less stuff, then they could come with something worthwhile.
Mind you, I'm not angry at them. I'll just stick to the Darkthrone I like, which means their BM stuff.
Like a few ones mentioned already, their new stuff is not BM.

Written by Lord_Regnier on 03.03.2013 at 19:16

I'll be honest, I will tell right away that I belong to the camp of those who like the Peaceville trilogy but believe modern Darkthrone is utterly worthless crap. If I want to listen to Motorhead, I'll listen to Motorhead. Same for Mercyful Fate, King Diamond, Celtic Frost, Hellhammer, etc. Also, I think Darkthrone release way too many albums. Perhaps if they released less stuff, then they could come with something worthwhile.
Mind you, I'm not angry at them. I'll just stick to the Darkthrone I like, which means their BM stuff.
Like a few ones mentioned already, their new stuff is not BM.

I had a feeling you'd feel that way and I do agree that there is no black metal, or even punk of any sort really, in this.

Got me a soft spot in my heart for this one. Reminds me of the my teen years browsing the metal section of an independent record store discovering underground bands. This would fit nicely on the rack next to Celtic Frost. Merciful Fate, Venom and even pre-Seven Keys Helloween. I don't care what you youngens think LOL!!!

After a few listens, this might be my least favorite "new-era" Darkthrone (and probably the full catalogue along with Plaguewielder).
Helluva enjoyable with a beer by thy side, but it lacks something compared to the other ones... maybe the dirtiness ? too much 80' and not enough crust/heavy/speed/black blend of previous albums ?
Only 6 songs make it short and easily memorable, but also a bit empty... specially considering some songs are unnecessarily long (last one could have been chopped in half and be even better).

I have only had it for one day, but i have heard it 3 times already. It makes me sad that the kvlt kids are gonna give this really low ratings just because it isn't a "peaceville 3" bm style; this album deserves much better than that. From the standpoint of somebody who admires the newer more matured Darkthrone, I can say that this stands out as a high point in their career (for me at least). The musical structure is very reminicant of 80's first wave bm/thrash, with strong elements of Mercyful Fate thrown on top of Fenriz's songs and the raspy punk of Nocturno's songs. I really love this album so far, but like I said, this is the first day i have owned it. Only time will tell it's true impact on me, till then i will blast this album like there is no tomorrow

I love how everyone seems to think there are elements of Mercyful Fate in it when in fact it is Agent Steel and Exciter. Fenriz even said so himself in a couple of interviews. The falsetto vocals and music there is much closer to that of Agent Steel and Exciter than Mercyful Fate/King Diamond. And it makes way more sense that they reference AS and Exciter and not MF/KD cause Fenriz wants to pay hommage to unheralded old school speed and not well-known bands such as MF/KD

Quote:

Written by Lustful Maid on 06.03.2013 at 17:43

...Fenriz even said so himself in a couple of interviews. The falsetto vocals and music there is much closer to that of Agent Steel and Exciter...

Is Fenriz out of his mind ?? It's obviously Punk and Black, there is nothing similar to "Pure Thrashy -Exciter". As for the vocals, Exciter is in Countertenor but not Falsetto. Fenriz definitely does not possess the capability to produce Countertenor (as it's an inborn talent), he can only do Falsetto but his skills sucks.

the beginning of Leave No Cross Unturned is pure Agent Steel/Exciter worship. There is no black metal whatsoever on this album and almost no punk either.

Yep to think this is black is almost as bad as thinking it's punk, of which there is nearly none.

I don't think there is black metal either, but I definitely hear what I would consider punk. Not that I'm a punk expert, but you can hardly hear anything else but a power chord from the guitars. Also the speed and the squarish drumming, it all summons punk in my mind.
Maybe it's not punk per se, but the more punk influenced branch of heavy/speed metal.

I'm going to have to agree with Marcel and Joe. This album contains 0 punk and 0 black metal. It also contains close to 0 good material

Written by Alex F on 07.03.2013 at 16:29
I'm going to have to agree with Marcel and Joe. This album contains 0 punk and 0 black metal. It also contains close to 0 good material

I agree with the first two since those are facts. I dig this though.

Written by X-Ray Rod on 07.03.2013 at 16:33

I agree with the first two since those are facts. I dig this though.

I'm just not a fan of the style
I've liked some of their more punk-ish stuff however

Written by Alex F on 07.03.2013 at 16:35
I'm just not a fan of the style
I've liked some of their more punk-ish stuff however

The Cult Is Alive is probably their most crust-friendly.

Written by X-Ray Rod on 07.03.2013 at 16:37

The Cult Is Alive is probably their most crust-friendly.

And possibly my favorite of modern Darkthrone. It's been a while since I've listened to their newer stuff, but I remember enjoying TCIA and Hate Them quite a bit... and back to this album.