Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk

Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk Artist: Emperor
Label: Century Media
Category: Music



Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1


UPC: 727701784823
EAN: 0727701784823
ASIN: B000005HN9


Release Date: 1997-07-08

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Listmania:

  1. If it's not from norway it's not worth listening to
  2. The best metal I've ever heard (in order of greatness)
  3. !! BLACK METAL HORDES TO CRUSH YOUR SKULL!!
  4. Must have Norwegian CD's
  5. Which Bands I Touch On Black Metal
  6. My Top Ten Black Metal Albums.
  7. Metal bands you might want to get into...
  8. Black Metal Essentials-Both Obscure And Popular (No Order)
  9. Beautiful Symphonic Metal
  10. Emperor- Norway's Best Black Metal Band

Tracks:

  1. Alsvartr (The Oath)
  2. Ye Entrancemperium
  3. Thus Spake The Nightspirit
  4. Ensorcelled By Khaos
  5. The Loss And Curse Of Reverence
  6. The Acclimation Of Bonds
  7. With Strength I Burn
  8. The Wanderer

Similar Items:

  1. Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire & Demise
  2. IX Equilibrium
  3. Burzum/Aske
  4. Sons of Northern Darkness
  5. Blood Fire Death

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars An essential album for any black metal collection.......2006-07-25

Whether or not this is "true" black metal doesn't really matter because either way, this is an amazing cd from start to finish. The vocals, synth, drums, guitars, and bass all blend together fantastically to create a classic album in black metal history that makes it easy to understand why many bands have been inspired by the mighty Emperor. Although the songs don't quite contain the raw feeling of Emperor's earlier work, this is a more refined Emperor. The bonus tracks on the Candlelight re-release are a nice addition as well. Anyway, this is one cd that no metal fan should be without as it will always be remembered as a genre defining classic.

5 out of 5 stars To The Welkin Indeed..........2006-06-12

Magnum Opus, many would propose...

Emperor have truly bestowed upon us. Edvard Grieg, if he were still alive, would have been proud to know that Emperor chose to play in his memorial hall. Quite the memory...

Of course fans will describe this as one with Black Metal history, and that isn't saying it was made in a cave *cough-DarkPrince-cough* excuse me. The way I took in Emperor was from last to first. -Prometheus: ...- garnered the initial attention, then through -IX Equilibrium-, and then on to here. I knew that even the legion of demons on the cover were here for a reason too, most likely sent by their pathetic master Satan (a friggen bipedal 7-foot tall ram) to uncover pieces of this beauty within key churches (lower/top left) and soaring keeps (all over top). Absolutely spectacular...

Now production really isn't done the best it could have been, but that doesn't mean it isn't bearable and isn't done in the best manner. Despite what many say about this, the production is actually very suitable for this type of music. The presence of evil, gloom, despair, and darkness altogether comes together extremely well. Ihsahn brings chilling screams all over, along with his melodic singing attune with his incredibly catchy guitar work. Trym definitely brings out brooding spirits, catapulting his drum work to a work of his own. Samoth, as intricate as he always has been, puts forth quite the effort whilst Ihsahn performs his part. Alver, the unknown bassist, sadly cannot be heard anywhere except on the first track. This however does not let up in any way, as -Anthems...- is able to reach astounding proportions without him.

I feel, for some reason, that this album tells what is happening on the cover...

"Alsvatr (The Oath)" proves to be one of the greatest intro's representing the album it sets the stage for. The acoustics are truly peaceful, as owls hoot above the willows and a surge of evil creeps amongst the forest beside the lower church. Ihsahn is apparently the leader of the demon legion here, and his voice takes that of many as the demons soon appear in the darkness. A scream can be heard at about 2:09, which tells you that they are coming. More and more screams pass Ihsahn's mellow voice without a glimpse as they are taken to their doom, whilst Ihsahn continues past his own. As he steps out of the forest, minions still lying in wait, he yells...

"O' Nightspirit!
I am at one with thee.
I am the eternal power.
I am the Emperor!"

And thus begins his assault. However, it is here where the track takes an unpredictable turn. From the night silence of creeping evil the atmosphere transforms into an arena filled blaring trumpets, pounding drums, and honored knights who are ready to perform their feats in battle.

"Ye Entrancemperium" proves them utterly wrong, as the track (pretty much a continuation of Alsvartr) begins as any offense would; charging with full speed and a melody to takeover any opponent. The keyboards are clearly heard amidst Trym's unmatched drumming speed throughout the track. Ihsahn lets the signature Emperor sound loose as he and Samoth prove Black Metal can outperform all else. The track becomes too good to be true from 3:30 and on as it really starts to become a masterpiece. This track details the fall of hope as the knights are overwhelmed by Satan's demonic horde. It seems logical that Ihsahn would not include himself in the actual takeover (as he is the leader of this particular force), but he finds that this doesn't benefit him whatsoever. It ends with the finding of the first piece of -Anthems...- and the capture of the lower church, as other knights look from above.

This is only 1/4 of the art -Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk- defines itself as. I would highly recommend this to any fan of Black Metal or anyone who loves Metal and is looking for a good listen. Genuine in its own league, Ihsahn took his crew another step into a direction that created a greater world of his own.

4 out of 5 stars The most appropriate album artwork ever........2006-05-19

Seriously: the artwork on the cover of this album's case tells a true story. The image of infernal legions, marching amidst tall black peaks under a darkened, oppressive sky, depicts the selfsame atmosphere of epic darkness and malevolence you'll feel when Emperor's opus begins to play. Looking at most of the negative reviews for this album, a large part of them seem to be made up of hardcore black metallers claiming that "Anthems..." isn't true black metal. Well, I have news for you: IT'S NOT IMPORTANT!! In fact, Emperor's willingness to branch out beyond the cliche blasphemy and crappy production values of typical black metal is, in fact, the reason why they established themselves as one of the greatest metal bands of recent years.

The standard level of musicianship and songwriting - which are, of course, the most important points on an album - on "Anthems..." are phenomenal. This instumental assault will overwhelm your senses like a tidal wave, at a speed that goes beyond the realms of merely "fast" and begins to border on "cruel and unusual." The guitars belt out riff after symphonic riff, succeeding not only to be aggressive, but at the same time darkly atmospheric. The drum work merits special mention, while Trym rises above the hackneyed blast beats found on 273,975,821 (give or take) death metal albums around the globe, and develops a style which is satisfyingly open and makes full use of the drum kit, while still sounding like the most feral, wild, rabid madman Norway has ever known.

And of course, amidst all of this aggression, Emperor don't compromise on atmosphere. The exact opposite in fact; I consider this to be the darkest album I own, and I have CDs by both Opeth and My Dying Bride. This is largely down to the clever use of synths. While not being overly dependant on them (*cough*InTheNightsideEclipse*cough*), they are used just to the extent that an air of grandeur and epic darkness is established.

Kudos also to Ihsahn's vocal performance. Akin to most black metal, most of his vocals constitute howls so tortured and bleak that it's hard to believe that they emanate from a human larynx. However, on occasion you'll also hear his almost-as-impressive clean singing. The only other black metal acts I know of who have ever done this are Ulver and Borknagar, and I must say, it works wonders. Ihsahns voice soars anthemically over tracks like the epic "With Strength I Burn" (Best. Emperor. Song. EVER.)

The only area of this album which lets it down is the production. Unlike their peers in immortal, who turned the fact that black metal usually sounds like it was recorded in a cave somewhere into an advantage, Emperor royally messed up on "Anthems..." Ihsahn's fantastic vocals sit too low in the mix, the guitars lack that all imortant crunch an - not surprisingly - you can't hear the bass.

However, even taking the production into account, this is a near-masterpiece. Only because of the production, and because I have really high standards for a five star album, is this getting four stars. For anyone getting into black metal, pick this up directly after Immortal's masterwork, "Battles In the North".

2 out of 5 stars Emperor - 'Anthems To The Welkin At Duck' (Century Media).......2006-05-11

Review no.115.Emperor is described by some,as one of THE best ever black metal bands to come along.They come to us from Oslo,Norway.However in my most humble opinion,I didn't think they had much to offer.Didn't really care for any of the tunes especially.Perhaps this CD is too 'evil' for me.But,don't get me wrong,if you happen to enjoy this genre yourself,listen to the sound clips provided and decide for yourself.Just when you think you've seen it all:SCANDINAVIAN DEATH M-E-T-A-L!!What'll they think of next?

5 out of 5 stars The definitive album of modern black metal..........2006-04-09

Like death metal, it took me a very long time to warm up to black metal, actually even longer than death metal because of the non-musical issues surrounding much of the genre (i.e. crimes committed by many of the bandmembers of the genre such as church-burning, homicide; Neo-Nazism espoused by some of the bands of the scene; and the ridiculous images of many of the bands such as the corspe paint and hilarious barbarian garb). Emperor have been guilty of at least 2 out of the 3, i.e. crimes committed by band members and having worn corpse paint and barbarian garb in their early days. However, if you can get beyond the black metal scene and just take the music for what it is, "Anthems..." is a musical tour de force, elevating Emperor to the masters of the genre. The best way to describe this album is imagine listening a majestic call to arms for an enormous army as it assembles on a murky plain. This album molds a mixture of blast-beat death metal drums, buzzsaw guitars, and sweeping, Wagnerian or Mussourgskyian melodies. Ihsahn's command of unholy shrieks and above-average clean vocals adds to the sonic brew. This album is truly unique, and is a 5 star classic.

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