Crispy wrote:
Am I the only one who thinks that early Mayhem is grossly overrated? I 'll never understand why De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas is considered a classic - frankly, there's a reason why they're better known for thier nutty antics as opposed to thier music. I personally prefer thier later days (Grand Declaration and beyond) when they actually started getting creative and realizing thier songwriting potential.
I completely agree on a musical basis, but much of Mayhem's importance came from the fact that they were doing what they were when other people weren't. Just like Sabbath to a lot of modern Metalheads, Mayhem might be overrated or even boring, but their importance is lost on most black metal fans who likely are more accustomed to the far improved playing and songwriting of later contributors like Emperor. That said, I do really enjoy Deathcrush, probably more than De Mysteriis. Just something about the raw energy of the band, and taking into mind the time period it just puts a smile on my face. I do agree that they got much better, more interesting, and far improved their songwriting after Hellhammer brought the old line-up back minus Euronymous (Necrobutcher started the band with Euronymous and Maniac was of course the vocalist on Deathcrush, despite how many people will cry that Hellhammer is the "only original member" left, they were there before he was).
And as far as the first wave as mentioned in the review, I consider Bathory to really be the first. Venom, Hellhammer, and CF contributed but Bathory were the first that can actually be considered Black Metal. I think it overstates those three, especially venom, and undercuts the influence and importance of Bathory to consider them all in the first wave.
