Metal Storm logo
Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas review




Bandcamp music player
Reviewer:
9.7

875 users:
8.66
Band: Mayhem
Album: De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
Release date: May 1994


01. Funeral Fog
02. Freezing Moon
03. Cursed In Eternity
04. Pagan Fears
05. Life Eternal
06. From The Dark Past
07. Buried By Time And Dust
08. De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas

Whenever one thinks of the term "black metal," they almost instantly think of Mayhem and their magnum opus, De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas. Why is that?

Why is this album referred to as the ultimate black metal record and what makes it so iconic, timeless and enduring? Some might argue that the main reason is the unbelievable stories that surround the making of this piece of art. I mean, how often does it happen that the bassist brutally murders the lead guitarist, and the two of them still end up on the same record? This story almost overshadows the fact that the original vocalist, "Dead," has already shot himself by the time of the release of this record, and is replaced by Attila Csihar on vocals. I'd say that the final lineup is pretty damn solid. It is like a supergroup of black metal musicians of that time.

Øystein Aarseth, better known as Euronymous, provides some of the most cold-hearted and sinister riffs on this record, and his murderer Varg Vikernes does not do a bad job on the bass guitar either. The combination of the two evil masterminds is accompanied by the phenomenal drumming of Jan Axel Blomberg, a.k.a. Hellhammer, who is known to be one of the greatest professionals in the black metal scene. Attila Csihar's performance on De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas has been a subject of debate among the fans since the time of its release. Maybe
it is because of the fact that die-hard Mayhem fanatics cannot bear the thought of their beloved Per Ohlin being absent, but it cannot be left unnoticed that Attila does an excellent job. He clearly does his best, and I'd say his torture-like vocals fit the music just perfectly. Besides, Per "Dead" Ohlin is still alive on the record due to the fact that majority of the lyrics is done by him, and the lyrics are excellent. But then again, what less could we expect from Dead?

De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas is, basically, forty-six minutes of pure, raw, aggressive black metal that is somehow able to create an unbelievably surreal atmosphere. It captures all the stories and legends surrounding the Norwegian black metal scene and engraves them all on this masterpiece of an album though the amazing musicianship done by these creative geniuses. The legacy of Mayhem will live on forever, and this album is the main reason it will.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 10
Songwriting: 9
Originality: 10
Production: 7

Written by Jagermeister | 09.06.2015




Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.

Staff review by
Herzebeth
Rating:
8.9
This is one of the most respected albums in Black Metal History, Why is that? Beats me actually, but I can assure you this album is uncommon and very original for the genre it stands for, the music is aggressive and very raw, the execution towards this album is not complex or actually talented, but it's multi-faceted and layered, I think this album deserves all the credit it has, now lets take a closer view...

Read more ››
published 29.07.2005 | Comments (46)


Comments

Comments: 6   Visited by: 131 users
10.06.2015 - 12:22
Rating: 9
BlackMetalDay

I love the vocals in this album, especially in Funeral Fog.
Loading...
10.06.2015 - 14:06
Rating: 8
Sang Dalang Abu

Yeah Nice Reviews.
But this album is just a 'root' nothing 'ultimate'.
Loading...
17.06.2015 - 04:16
Lord_Regnier

Overrated display of mediocrity. There are hundreds of Black Metal albums ten time better than that.

P.S. I know I won't make any friend by saying that but my opinion on this album has always been the same and will never change. I think it's a perfect example of an album that became famous for the wrong reasons.
----
"Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
Loading...
16.11.2015 - 08:38
Timelord

Written by Lord_Regnier on 17.06.2015 at 04:16

Overrated display of mediocrity. There are hundreds of Black Metal albums ten time better than that.

P.S. I know I won't make any friend by saying that but my opinion on this album has always been the same and will never change. I think it's a perfect example of an album that became famous for the wrong reasons.


Nothing is Overrated or underrated. The majority has made their choice. It so happens that it wasn't to your liking so its overrated. That kind pretentiousness is childish.
Loading...
16.11.2015 - 12:18
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
Listening to this for the first time in a fair while, first thing in the morning. It's still damned excellent and holds up perfectly today, even if I do prefer Ordo ad Chao.
Loading...
17.01.2019 - 13:25
Bad English
Tage Westerlund
Hehehe I wish would make a film when they murder each other.
----
Life is to short for LOVE, there is many great things to do online !!!

Stormtroopers of Death - ''Speak English or Die''
apos;'
[image]
I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
Loading...

Hits total: 4210 | This month: 16