siLLy puPPy A landmark in the development of fusing the black metal and death metal genres, DISSECTION’s second release STORM OF THE LIGHT’S BANE is almost ubiquitously regarded as one of the best metal albums of all time but this band certainly didn’t come without generating any controversy to say the least. The album continued what it started on its debut “The Somberlain” which itself was cutting edge as DISSECTION’s location in Strömstad found itself closer to Oslo’s second wave black metal than to the melo-death frenzy rocking Gothenburg to the south in the early to mid-1990s. The band effortlessly melded the two styles together like forging a battle sword for battle. While the debut was competent enough in its own right, STORM OF THE LIGHT’S BANE tied up all the loose ends and polished the gem of a stylistic gem into a shiny sheen where the listener couldn’t distinguish where the black metal ends and the melo-death begins.

Thwarted by the lackadaisical attitude of guitarist John Zwetsloot who failed to appear for rehearsals and finally even didn’t bother to show up to gigs, DISSECTION recruited former Satanized guitarist Johan Norman who was not only able but willing to take the band to the next level. The band spent the next two years honing their unique fusion style of metal until the glistening masterpiece STORM OF THE LIGHT’S BANE emerged in November of 1995 to welcoming fans and critics alike. What the debut had started, this sophomore effort forged into a pearl of perfectly infused black metal furor with the elegant sophistication of folk melody inspired melodic death metal. The disparate elements of softer parts, heavy extreme metal excesses and cold, bleak atmospheres had coalesced into the perfect sum of the parts and a legend in the overall metal universe for time immemorial. The album is nothing less than epic in not only its visionary stylistic developments but also in terms of tight memorable songwriting.

Primarily written by lead vocalist and guitarist Jon Nödtveidt, STORM OF THE LIGHT’S BANE delivers eight tracks of metal magnificence beginning with the military march heft of the opening “All The Fathomless Depths” before erupting into one of the most competent displays of blackened melo-death too the entire era. Building on beautifully designed twin guitar harmonies and folk musical scales, STORM OF THE LIGHT’S BANE balanced tender clean guitar arpeggios with thundering power chords, tremolo black metal picking and lightning fast death metal riffing styles that adopted the best aspects of both the second wave black metal scene and merged them with the more technically infused sounds of the Swedish death metal approach. The twin guitar attacks relied less on traditional 80s metal this time around and evolved into a unique cohesion of dueling riffing that occasionally broke out into lead guitar attacks that emphasized the melodic construct in a more virtuosic approach.

Nödtveidt’s demon from hell vocal style had hit full capacity while the compositions were taken to the fusion’s logical conclusion. The drumming style of Ole Öhman featured some of the boldest technical moves in all of the early 90s metal scene with endless variations in drum fills and full-on blastbeat ferocity. The strong melodic developments keep the album from stagnating and each individual track glimmers in its own magnificence thus keeping the album’s 43 minute run completely exhilarating with no filler material bogging down the momentum. To sum it up, the album just rips from beginning to end and then after the pinnacle of the ghoulish deliverance, gently delivers you back into a placid state of mind with the classically inspired piano piece closer “No Dreams Breed in Breathless Sleep” thus signifying the end of an album that breezes by much too soon. The album is and cold and forbidding as the scythed grim reaper on horseback suggests from the cover art.

This would be the end of DISSECTION well at least for another 12 years since after this second offering was released, frontman Jon Nödtveidt was sentenced to prison for the murder of Josef ben Meddour and although DISSECTION would arise from the ashes with a totally new backing band, the momentum had more than been lost and Nödtveidt would soon commit suicide thus ending the once great band forever. What amazes me about some of the early Scandinavian black metal bands is how brilliant and gifted they were musically speaking yet were some of the most troubled souls with unthinkable psychological damage. These guys were as unstable as dynamite at a gun shooting range and yet still found it in them for a brief moment in time to craft some of the most gorgeous musical expressions ever recorded. It’s hard to believe i didn’t even like DISSECTION at first because i just couldn’t accept the two merging metal forces together. It just didn’t sound right but now i listen to this one and am utterly blown away by its sheer perfection. A good example to not let initial experiences taint your possible delayed enthrallment. This one is definitely worthy of all the hype. Now i’m smitten too.

siLLy puPPy As one of the earliest extreme metal bands to emerge from Sweden, DISSECTION had a unique vantage point from its point of origin in the city of Strömstad being closer to Oslo, Norway than Gothenburg to the south. This explains why DISSECTION is credited as a pioneer in fusion of the second wave black metal sounds of Norway with the melodic death metal style that was taking the Gothenburg scene by storm. Unfortunately the band is not only legendary for its musical ingenuity but was one of those crazy Satanic cult band of trouble makers which eventually led original vocalist Jon Nödtveldt to kill an Algerian national living in Sweden for which he would be sent to prison and thus breaking up the band after only two albums.

While the band started out as a standard thrash metal band under the moniker of Siren’s Yell in 1988, the members of Jon Nödtveidt, Ole Öhman, Peter Palmdahl, and Mattias "Mäbe" Johansson quickly latched onto the new extreme metal styles quacking evolving in Scandinavia and released a few demos before releasing its debut THE SOMBERLAIN which emerged in 1993. This album coincided with the suicide of Mayhem’s lead vocalist Dead and was dedicated to his to his passing. While the drama was heavy with this band, so too was the talent and the band’s original two releases are now considered classics in the entire metal universe. While THE SOMBERLAIN was the lesser of the two releases with the slightly superior “Storm Of The Light’s Bane” following two years later, the effortless fusion of not only death and black metal but melodic styles from 80s heavy metal catapulted this band into the top ranks of the ugly metal underground.

While blackened death metal has become quite common well into the 21st century, DISSECTION delivered it effortlessly unlike any other thus immediately setting itself apart from the bleak musical simplicity of the early stages of the second wave of black metal while offering a darker Satanic thematic approach absent from the early Gothenburg melo-death. The band distinguished itself from most black metal of the day by crafting memorable melodic approaches that were delivered through the twin guitar attack in a similar style to Iron Maiden or Judas Priest however the atmosphere and raspy growls were straight out of the Darkthrone playbook yet all delivered with the sophisticated bombast of Swedish melo-death bigwigs like Dark Tranquility, Edge of Sanity and At The Gates. All of these elements kept DISSECTION well in its own musical world during its existence although traces of fellow Swedes Bathory permeate the release as well.

THE SOMBERLAIN is a masterwork of melo-death which features melancholic classical guitar intros that explode into molten metal ferocity that offered a black metal aesthetic that assaulted the senses with technical percussion, dueling melodic lead guitar and a propensity for thick chugging riffs that walked the line perfectly between the detached irreverence of black metal and the more actively engaged wizardry of the more technical adept death metal style. The album offered nearly 46 minutes of playing time with 12 distinct tracks that each stood on their own and offered Luciferian philosophical themes that connect DISSECTION more to the occult magic subject matter of the Norwegian black metal scene, the thematic presence that would prevail throughout the band’s short initial run and one that would ultimately find them at odds with the law. The band seemed to be running a parallel path with Mayhem as it was involved in Satanic rituals that involved animal sacrifices and conjuring up demons.

While considered a classic of both black metal and death metal, THE SOMBERLAIN was marred from total perfection by the noncommittal insouciance of guitarist John Zwetsloot who increasingly failed to show up for rehearsals and eventually even didn’t even make it to gigs. The band would fire him and replace him with Satanized guitarist Johan Norman before recording the more focused second album. Despite all the dramatic events and lack of total band cohesions, DISSECTION’s first album turned out pretty damn good with a nice cohesive flow that melded classic 80s sounds with the extremities that were dominating the early 90s. While i too have always preferred the following “Storm of the Light’s Bane,” i have to admit that THE SOMBERLAIN has grown on me over the years as it certainly yields an intricate display of clever compositional fortitude rightfully ranking high on most revered albums of the era.

SilentScream213 The legendary Storm of the Light’s Bane is considered perhaps the greatest Meloblack album ever put to record, and for good reason. Every track is chock full of dark and icy riffs, thanks in part to its heavy Melodeath influence. You see that beautiful cover art with the reaper on horseback amongst a nocturnal tundra mountain scape? Yeah, this album just sounds like that. The beauty of cold, night, and death are all emanating from the electrifying songwriting here.

Black Metal tends to be a bit one note, and Meloblack is a much more purposeful aversion of that, but even among Meloblack, Dissection give us progressive, complicated, ever changing songwriting with weaves and turns up and down the mountains and through the evergreens. Even some acoustic passages give reprieve from that arctic assault. The vocals are fantastic, quite intelligible and death-touched shrieks. Drumming is lightning quick, but flows like a stream, full of smooth transitions and interesting fills, liberal use of double bass, a perfect mix of interesting and challenging. I need not go on about the guitars; awe-inspiring.

Dissection seem to love sandwiching their masterpiece compositions between useless intros and outros, so unfortunately bookending the album with the weakest and most boring tracks damages its listenability. Other than that, no flaws.

SilentScream213 Yes, this brand of sombre Melodic Black Metal is absolutely to my taste. It also helps that this has huge Melodeath influences, enough so that you could easily give this album the accolade of being at the forefront of both genres. Mixing two genres still in infancy and managing to ace that combination is quite an incredible feat!

That’s what makes The Somberlain unique, but certainly not what makes it good. Every song is packed with excellent riffs that dance the line between evil, sombre, and folky. The drums have an incredible amount of diversity for a Black Metal album (the Melodeath influence is very strong here rhythmically) and you can expect much more than constant blast beats. The rhythm section is always changing, usually quite energetic but slowing down surprisingly often to allow riffs and atmosphere to marinate in a calmer zone.

The vocals sit right between Death growls and Black Metal shrieks, having a nice weight to them but maintaining a raspy enunciation that works very well. Most of the lyrics/themes are standard BM fare, focusing on occult darkness, but they’re well written. I will say, the acoustic interludes really don’t add anything to the album, and would have been more effective if interwoven into the songs. Unfortunately, they hurt the momentum because they aren’t strong enough to stand on their own. Otherwise, a great dark triumph that still stands above a vast majority of the hundreds of attempts at this sound since.

UMUR "ReinkaΩs" is the 3rd full-length studio album by Swedish death/black metal act Dissection. The album was released through Black Horizon in April 2006. It´s been quite a few years since the release of "Storm of the Light's Bane (1995)", but that is due to the incarceration of bandleader/vocalist/guitarist Jon Nödtveidt after he was convicted as an accessory to murder in 1997. After his release from prison in 2004, Nödtveidt resurrected Dissection with a new lineup. In addition to Nödtveidt playing guitar and singing, the lineup consists of Set Teitan (guitars, backing Vocals), and Tomas Asklund (drums). The bass is handled by session musician Brice Leclercq. "ReinkaΩs" would be the last Dissection album as Nödtveidt committed suicide in August 2006 only a few months after the release of the album.

None of the above real life chaos can be heard or detected on "ReinkaΩs". Sure the lyrics are dark and occult themed and Dissection aren´t exactly happy campers, but the material on "ReinkaΩs" are tightly delivered and cleverly contructed. Compared to the two predecessors "ReinkaΩs" is only partially black metal oriented. To my ears the music in fact has more in common with melodic death metal, than it has with black metal. Early In Flames often comes to mind, although the use of melody is generally a bit more restrained on "ReinkaΩs", than what their fellow melodeath countrymen produced in their early years. There are also both thrash metal and traditional heavy metal traits featured on the album, and the sound on "ReinkaΩs" is overall an intriguing combination of various stylistic elements. The occasional ethnic Scandinavian folk melody also creeps in.

The quality of the 11 tracks on the 43:01 minutes long album is high throughout. This sounds quite different from the first two albums by Dissection, but the band have managed to create a new sound which is both powerful, sophisticated, and intriguing. "ReinkaΩs" is a pretty riff heavy release, and several of those riffs are killer. Their former ultra melodic black/death metal sound has been toned down a bit, and and while there are still melodic leads, and some quite brilliant melodic guitar solos featured on the album, the use of melody is a bit more restrained here and heavy riffs have taken over. Nödtveidt´s snarling raspy vocals have to great effect been placed high in the mix.

"ReinkaΩs" features a powerful, clear, and detailed sound production, which suits the music perfectly. So upon conclusion this is a high quality release in all departments and a great comeback for Dissection. I can understand those who feel that the sound on "ReinkaΩs" is too far removed from the sound on their two 90s albums and that they almost sound like a completely different act, but to my ears the high quality of the album is a major redeemer. If you set your expectations right, and don´t think too much about the band´s past releases, this is a great quality release and a 4 - 4.5 star (85%) rating is deserved.