Under a Funeral Moon
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Sputnikmusic | [2] |
Under a Funeral Moon is the third studio album by Norwegian black metal band Darkthrone. It was recorded in June 1992 and released June 24, 1993 by Peaceville Records.[3] Under a Funeral Moon was the last album on which guitarist Zephyrous (Ivar Enger) performed; he left the band shortly after its release.
Background
Darkthrone's previous album, A Blaze in the Northern Sky, is regarded as their first black metal album, although some have noted death metal traits[4] and Fenriz stated that after the abrupt style change, if A Blaze in the Northern Sky "would be PURE black metal, it would only have 3 songs".[5] He claimed that they began writing Under a Funeral Moon in late 1991 with the goal of creating a "pure black metal album".[6]
Production
The album was recorded at Creative Studios in Kolbotn during June 1992. The studio production was toned down to achieve a sound that was more "cold" and "grim".[6] AllMusic journalist Eduardo Rivadavia described the album's sound: "The record's songs—already shorter and more focused than those of its epic-filled predecessor—were absolutely buried under disfiguring cobwebs of fuzzy amp distortion that effectively made them sound and feel like third-generation cassette copies".[1]
Release
Under a Funeral Moon was released by Peaceville on 24 June 1993. The cover artwork featured vocalist Nocturno Culto, who regards the writing and recording of the album as the foundation for Darkthrone's later work.[6]
Reissue
The album was remastered and reissued by Peaceville in 2003, repackaged in a cardboard digipak. It was also released by Back on Black in the form of a limited edition (2,000 copies) picture disc LP. The third chapter of a four-part video interview with Fenriz and Nocturno Culto (spanning the first four albums) was included as bonus material.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Natassja in Eternal Sleep" | 3:33 |
| 2. | "Summer of the Diabolical Holocaust" | 5:18 |
| 3. | "The Dance of Eternal Shadows" | 3:43 |
| 4. | "Unholy Black Metal" | 3:30 |
| 5. | "To Walk the Infernal Fields" | 7:50 |
| 6. | "Under a Funeral Moon" | 5:06 |
| 7. | "Inn i de dype skogers favn" ("Into the Embrace of the Deep Forests") | 5:25 |
| 8. | "Crossing the Triangle of Flames" | 6:12 |
| Total length: | 40:37 | |
Credits
References
- ^ a b Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Under a Funeral Moon – Darkthrone". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
- ^ "Darkthrone - Under a Funeral Moon (album review 4) - Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
- ^ "Darkthrone - Under a Funeral Moon - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". www.metal-archives.com. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
- ^ A Blaze in the Northern Sky (video interview). 2003.
- ^ Fenriz: DARKTHRONE BIOGRAPHY AND VIDEO CLIPS, 21 November 2009, accessed on 25 September 2012.
- ^ a b c "Darkthrone – The Interview – Chapter 3: Under a Funeral Moon (from Preparing for War Boxset) – YouTube". YouTube. 18 November 2009. Retrieved 23 September 2012.