Many early black metal releases are seen as "kvlt", and for a very good reason: they are among the best the extreme metal scene, and the heavy metal scene in general, has produced.
There are, however, also a few "bad apples" that have wormed their way to fame, parading around an undeserved reputation of quality, when all they have to offer is in reality mere chronological coincidence: they happen to have been, by chance, released approximately around the same time as Burzum's "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss" and Mayhem's "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas".
Other than the mere time factor, they share nothing in common with Mayhem or Burzum. Worse, some of these bands openly play metalcore. Metalcore, like late hardcore, gives up on making good hardcore - or even good music at all - and throws in lots of random influences to distract from the droning tedium. This is exactly what happens with these overhyped and overpraised albums.
These garbage metal releases are falsely called "kvlt" when they are, in fact, closer to Pink Floyd than to Infester. There is nothing "underground" or "elite" about listening to mallcore.
The 5 Impostors of Black Metal
Here are the five biggest let downs in black metal history, albums fraudulently called "kvlt black metal", when they are in fact late stage metalcore (at best).
5. Warkvlt - "Bestial War Metal"
Music like "Bestial War Metal" has no real relevance beyond filling the need for some kind of new war metal that is slightly more competent and maybe a little less chaotic than the rest. If you could not get enough of the second Sissourlet album, the Helgrind debut or middle era Grand Belial's Key, you will like this album. If you prefer listening to actual black metal, rather than its "parent pauvre" imitation war metal, avoid this one.
Replace with: Helgrind's "Dawn of Bestial Lust" for actual bestial black metal, done right.
4. Gorgoroth - "Antichrist"
All the melodies on "Antichrist" come from their previous record but this time round, they repeat the parts a ridiculous number of times to artificially lengthen the songs. The band then add random sound effects to seem "deep" or "avant garde" but end up sounding like a chromosome deficient Bathory-clone. There are no more than three non-mallcore riffs throughout the whole record and they are just catchy Rock riffs without much meaning.
Replace with: Vermin's "Memories of Blood and Darkness" for some truly occult black metal music.
3. Dissection - "Storm of the Light's Bane"
You've heard 2,000 variations of this style, and I've heard 2,000 variations of this style. This is a style that is both absolutely overdone and difficult to do execute successfully. Ultimately, "melodic black metal" like this only works at all when the melodic voicing serves to enhance harmonic themes, as in Neraines' "Yggdrasil", or the more accessible Burzum debut album (and the sophomore). "Storm of the Light's Bane" is just closet goth rock and pseudo-mallcore for nerdy dweebs who hate actual black metal.
Replace with: Marduk's "Panzer Division Marduk" for some actual Swedish BM, not the "hard" rock equivalent of Mötley Crüe. Or at the very least Demonecromancy's "Fallen From the Brightest Throne".
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2. Dimmu Borgir - "Enthrone Darkness Triumphant"
The Dimmu Borgir formula in a nutshell: really, really basic riffs built around catchy pop rhythms bouncing constantly at a near-steady rate of speed with little riff shaping or harmony. The bulk of this release "Enthrone Darkness Triumphant" is hardly "Triumphant" at all, as it is both easily listened to and easily forgotten because it has no relevance to actual black metal music. Dimmu Borgir were once a serious band (with "For All Tid") but have long since abandoned all pretense of playing real black metal, or even good music.
Replace with: Morbid's "Necrotic Fairytales" for proper use of synths in black metal.
1. Emperor - "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk"
Last but in certain ways certainly least, we have this hilariously infantile and pointless "black metal" mallgoth rock opera.
There are people who want to be "part of the black metal culture" but don't really like black metal music. So they listen to black shoegaze, like Alcest or Deafheaven. Or, more likely, their predecessors in poserdom... Emperor, with their sophomore "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk". Stylistically, it's phoned in, mostly mid-paced black metal, sometimes with hipstercore black shoegaze voicing, and with occasional hard rock leads taken straight from Ted Nugent or Alice Cooper.
Replace with: Phantom's "Typhon Triumphant". Accept no substitute. And certainly no "substitute black metal" like this nonsense.
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