The Secrets of the Black Arts by Dark Funeral (CD, Feb-1997, Metal Blade)

Album Features
UPC:	039841412123
Artist:	Dark Funeral
Format:	CD
Release Year:	1997
Record Label:	Metal Blade
Genre:	Black Metal, Heavy Metal

Track Listing
1. Dark Age Has Arrived, The
2. Secrets of the Black Arts, The
3. My Dark Desires
4. Dawn No More Rises, The
5. When Angels Forever Die
6. Fire Eternal, The
7. Satan's Mayhem Shadows Over
8. Transylvania
9. Bloodfrozen
10. Satanic Blood (Von Cover)
11. Dark Are the Path to Eternity (A Summoning Nocturnal)

Details
Distributor:	RED Distribution
Recording Type:	Studio
Recording Mode:	Stereo
SPAR Code:	n/a

Album Notes
Led by guitarist Lord Ahriman, Sweden's Dark Funeral made its full-length debut with 1996's The Secrets of the Black Arts, a rather predictable -- if extremely enthusiastic -- collection of typically vicious Scandinavian black metal. Unlike its more adventurous Norwegian neighbors Mayhem, Emperor, et al., Dark Funeral seems to know only one speed (full) and one volume (11), resulting in a continuous, unchanging aural bludgeoning that will simply bore all but those most committed to pissing off their parents. Simply put, these guys know nothing about tension and release. Where the aforementioned bands use eerie synths, evil choruses, and demonic strings that offset their thrashing just enough to give it even more shock value, Dark Funeral's all-out assault leaves nothing to the imagination, and much less to the senses. Still, if 41 minutes of sonic hell is your idea of a good time, look no further. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia