Customer Reviews

De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas

5 star:		(87)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

OK, so it looks like people are severely divided over this album.

Some see it as a pile of mediocre [...] that has been outshone by many others before and since. These people usually come from a traditional Metal background and base their assessment -- as traditional Metal usually does -- on the technical merits of the album. ("Euronymous wasn't the best guitarist in the world", "Attila's vocals suck", etc., etc.) Or they may be into bands with more of a keyboard-oriented sound like Dimmu Borgir or Emperor.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum others who are more specifically into the guitar-based side of the Black Metal genre revere this album as a kind of unholy grail of Black Metal. These people usually look at the album more as a whole, and are able to appreciate it for its overall atmosphere rather than nit-picking apart its merits of musical virtuousity.

As for me, I belong to the ones who consider it one of the best Metal albums of all time. I grew up hating traditional mainstream Metal (except for Sabbath), so it came as kind of a shock to me when I heard this thing called "Black Metal" and discovered I loved it. No boring-as-hell squealy 20-minute Jimmy Page guitar solos here. The aesthetic here was much closer to the Punk that I grew up loving, but with a much, much heavier, harder Metal edge, and a heart of blackest darkness.

It is this darkness that I feel best defines this album, and it comes out in the overall sound of the band. If Darkthrone's sound can be described as a kind of drone, I would call Mayhem's sound more of a throb, kind of like the throb of a powerful engine. This guitar throb forms the basis of the music, with the solos naturally flowing in and out.

And what really sets this band apart from the pack for me is Hellhammer's brilliant drumming, so inventive and unlike the boring style popular with many bands these days that is so fast and repetetive that it sounds almost machine-generated (--Dark Funeral anyone?). He truly deserves the title of best drummer in all of Black Metal. Add to this Varg's bass which nimbly climbs in and out around the guitar and drums (check out "Freezing Moon" for a good example of this).

And over top of all of this is Attila Csihar's vocals. Now, I realize they're not for everyone and even I didn't appreciate them at first. But after listening a few times I found that on the initial track "Funeral Fog" his voice reminded me of a hissing, slimy little Peter Lorre/Gollum type of character. After that he breaks into more of a scream on the other songs, and with his Hungarian accent Attila's voice almost sounds like a freaked-out Bela Lugosi risen from the grave to haunt us with an evil message from beyond. -- Perfect for Black Metal!

This is one of the very few albums I own that I can listen to over and over and never get sick of. The songs just have this tremendous energy and power to them that create a flow through the entire album. That, for me, is the sign of a truly great album.

So this album is not for everyone. If you're a Metal traditionalist or if you like keyboards in your Black Metal, you probably won't be too impressed. But if you're into heavy, atmospheric, guitar-driven Black Metal and have the imagination necessary to cope with Attila's unconventional vocal style, you just might be able to understand why so many of us rate this album so highly.

Praise Jesus!!! This is the most inspiring music ever, best Christian rock album EVER! If you are Christian, buy this and enjoy!

A confession: I'm an old guy (I'm 35) who's been into the underground metal scene since the early '80's, and to me "black metal" was Bathory, Celtic Frost, Hellhammer...that kinda thing. It's only in the last couple of years that I've really gotten into the northern European bands (although I've ALWAYS worshipped Bathory), and while I've generally been blown away by almost everything I've experienced so far (Emperor, early Burzum, Enslaved, Immortal, etc.), frankly, I just cannot bring myself to take Mayhem seriously.

Try as I might, I simply can't help but believe that this band's revered status is based solely on their notorious reputation and history, which to me often reads like a really bad movie script. Because when viewed objectively, 'De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas' offers nothing particularly special. While the music is brutally sick, fast, and heavy, it's nothing you haven't heard done much better by other bands to follow in their wake, and the absolutely silly vocals are so bad as to be borderline unlistenable...like a talentless drunk at the bar on karaoke night. Don't get me wrong, this isn't really a bad album per se, I just don't think it's a very good representation of what modern black metal has to offer.

I'm sure many black metal aficionados would argue that this disc demands inclusion in your collection for it's historical value alone...I would simply counter that by saying that I buy albums based on their merits and not their reputation. If you're a relative neophyte to this genre, I really would not recommend you starting off here.

Some of you innocents might not know it, but there are some feelings most humans cannot even relate to and can never describe accurately as they are too obscure and unwelcoming to define. That is exactly why this album gets so much shallow feedback. If you like the woods and the night, fine, but this is music for people who TRULY HATE EVERY THING that interacts with life in a non-combative way. People hear the notoriety of this rigidly hateful music and somehow expect something definable, most people don't understand because they are too warm or too human to ever feel the way this album IS. There is no excuse for listening to this while being in a good mood as this captures all the fun loving attitudes of a snuff film. I must comment on the perfect job Attila has done on these vocals, stand out tracks include: "Cursed to Eternity", "Life Eternal", and most definately "Buried by time & Dust" but once again a stranger to demonology or death rattle wouldn't know what a triumph this is. This might be the sickest music possible, it's more like a frequency for the misanthrope to vibrate along to. Obscure, Compelling, Not for humans. I like Bathory and Immortal too but come on, get over it. The fact that the album's writer's are both dead and the legacy left behind is one of remorseless bloodshed is no coincidence. Accidents don't just happen, something purposeful makes them happen and the human brain can only torture itself asking why. Allow this album to possess you and you'll feel why these dark things happen. De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas is an experience beyond critisism.

Mayhem's "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas" is the most creepy, errie, and confusing album that I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. For all those that have heard the stories of Murder, Suicide, and Church Burnings surrounding the band, yes its true. If you look past all the BS you will hear and extremly wonderful piece of art. The songs lyrics are almost poetic, and the music, as complicated as it may be (there are no refrains or breaks, the songs just continue to spit out chunks of lava)is a pleaure to listen to. Even though I am not the biggest Black Metal fan, Mayhem are the gods, as far as I am concerned, even better then Darkthrone, who I thought was top notch, and then to listen to this album, man!!! I cant suggest this album enough to fans of black metal, but if you are new to black metal, this is a great place to start.

How anybody who claims to like black metal could give this album one star is beyond me. Mayhem is black metal. There would be no black metal as we know it without this album. Trust me. This absolutely stunning. Even with all the hype that surrounds this album, my expectations were completely blown away when I heard it. This is better than you could ever imagine. But know this, if you don't like black metal, DON'T BUY THIS ALBUM! This is pure crushing black metal, and if that turns you off you won't like it. But if you do, or you think you do, you'd best buy this album. You WILL be blown away.

"In the middle of Transylvania all natural life has for a long time ago gone..."


De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, the first full studio album by Black Metal artist Mayhem. Released in 1994, it was accompanied by the most controversial story ever surrounding an album. Though this may not be everyones cup of tea, you really cannot deny the sheer beauty of this release.
This is THE definitive BM album.
Nevermind Emperor, Burzum, Darkthrone... all of their efforts pale in comparison to this bleak classic. Don't get me wrong, they're all amazing, but never has an album this aesthetically beautifully been ever recorded. The 8 songs here all provide the dark, haunting, pummeling assault that is black metal. Euronymous' rhythm guitar and Hellhammer's inhuman drumming (no joke, I still can't believe a guy can bash a drumkit like this) drive the songs with Grishnack's basslines providing the backbone (you can hear them no matter what many people I
know say).
To tie it all up are Attilla's vocals, guttural and sick. Even some fans tend to hate them but I think that overall, they are perfectly suited to the music. They are almost indecipherable anyway, unless you know the lyrics. I look at them as part of the music, and combined together it's a magnificently twisted
formula for the most absorbing music ever.
Mayhem would never really ever again deliver the goods as they've done here, mainly due to the loss of their main man, Euronymous, but in a way that just goes to show how important a record this is, a once in a lifetime creation. Nevermind their more experimental work, DMDS cannot be rivaled, ever.

This is infact a very biased review for I am just smitten with this album, have been ever since I got into Metal and got this cd; about 4 years ago I think. If you're a BM fan, you should have this album already. If you're a fan of good solid cold, extreme metal music, you really should get this.
I find myself obsessing over this album time and time again and it delivers without fail. Always.
Talk about long lasting appeal!

This is by far the best gospel band I have evar heard! They are not afraid to show their true faith! They sing songs about how much love our lord gives us and how we can get through troubled times by trusting our lord and loving each other. I'm so happy to see that they even don two crosses on their band name just to show even more their love for Christ!

Songs about love, God, and our faith show that Christianity is not dead in music. And with His power it shall only grow larger.

Some other wonderful Christian gospel bands worth listening to are: Emperor, Mercyful Fate, Marduk, Mortiis, Rotting Christ, and Satanica (who show how evil and bad our Dark Lord is). Merry listening fellow god lovers!

This is the best black metal album, period. Superb, brutal and dark.
Hellhammer is the best drummer in the world, The guitar of Euronymous is perfect in "life eternal", the bass of Grishnack is very cold and have an incredible rythm, Attila's voice is great in special in "funeral fog" .
This CD is just amazing, a must have for any black metal fan !!!

This is not modern black metal. Forget the shocking history of Mayhem, focus on the music. This is regarded as a classic (Top 5) amongst people who really know what black metal is. "True" black metal bands are not known to have Britney Spears production "quality". The sound on this CD is a big part of the experience I get when listening to this album. It has a certain atmosphere, an atmosphere you can't create in todays recording studios. The vocals on this album are different but they suit the music and the atmosphere very well.

No one has done the same thing better than Mayhem. Atleast not this album. Don't compare it to Emperor's "In the Nightside Eclipse" or "Wrath of the Tyrant". Emperor and Mayhem are two very different bands.

What exactly IS the original early 90's BM sound? Listen to the albums and make a decision.