True Norwegian Black Metal [Hardcover]

Johan Kugelberg (Editor), Peter Beste (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 20, 2008

In the last two decades, a bizarre and violent musical subculture called "Black Metal" has emerged in Norway. Its roots stem from a heady blend of horror movies, heavy metal music, Satanism, Paganism, and adolescent angst. In the early-mid 1990s, members of this extremist underground committed murder, burned down medieval wooden churches, and desecrated graveyards. What started as juvenile frenzy came to symbolize the start of a war against Christianity, a return to the worship of the ancient Norse gods, and the complete rejection of mainstream society.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

American documentary photographer Peter Beste has spent the last eight years working in the milieu of this insulated and secretive community. Beste's access and insight has been absolutely without precedent, resulting in an amazing photographic journey.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: VICE Books; Third Edition edition (May 20, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576874354
• ISBN-13: 978-1576874356
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 0.9 x 14.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #51,731 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #5 in Books > History > Europe > Norway
  • #55 in Books > Arts & Photography > Photography > Photo Essays
  • #56 in Books > Arts & Photography > Photography > Portraits

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Big Book for Extreme Music, August 15, 2008

By 

Corpsie (Redlands, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: True Norwegian Black Metal (Hardcover)

First off, what a deal Amazon has on this. Pretty much half off what a person would pay in the store.

Anyway, like the other reviews here, this book is no slouch. It's meant for the coffee table and if you don't have a coffee table then it garners an extra seat on the couch. When people visit they have to sit next to the large front cover of Nattefrost holding up his inverted crucifix. It's definitely a conversation starter.

I've been a fan of this sub-genre of metal for a while now. I'm not going to lie and say that I've liked it or even knew about the "second wave" when it was happening. I was happily listening to my death, thrash, and classic metal albums at the time. But, when I finally did discover it, I found a new form of extreme music that paralleled my tastes at the time (around 1996).

Pros: Peter Beste's True Norwegian Black Metal captures some of the most memorable photos of the scene throughout the years. My favorites are in here and it's nice to have them on hand and just sit and look at the various photos in detail. There is additional information and old reviews/interviews with the Norwegian black metal alumni near the back as well as a tribute to ex-Mayhem vocalist "Dead". I was expecting to see Dead's body (Dawn of the Black Hearts) but alas, it was nowhere to be found. I'm neither disappointed or elated.

Cons: There is an index with page numbers and names of individuals and/or bands, but a lot of good the page numbers do when the pages have no numbers printed on them! That's probably my only gripe.

Objectively, looking on the scene then and now, my opinion remains slightly mixed on the scene's ideals, chest thumping, and rebellion. On one hand, some of the pictures such as Kvitrafn of Wardruna standing in Bergen is one of the most sociological telling pictures of the 20th century. The look on the woman's face passing on the left side is priceless next to Kvitrafn's grim countenance. The lone pictures of single individuals amidst forested backgrounds, vast plains, or in front of large mountain ranges hints at an even more darker, and to a certain extent, the lonely place where these musicians dwell in their minds and hearts. Cut off from the world and insignificant when compared with the majesty of nature, they emit a feeling of solitude which only the strong-willed are able to withstand.

In other parts of the book though, we see the less majestic to the point of the absurd and just plain sad. Nattefrost seems evil and armored for battle in most of his photos. But in one (almost candid?) shot we see him lying in his bathtub, shirtless, grasping a bottle of booze, yet still trying to ham it up for the camera even though his persona has been whittled down to little than a drunken buffoon. Unfortunately I have to say that as much as I love Immortal, Abbath hams it up for the camera even more. I'd much rather see Abbath in a more grim mode ala Pure Holocaust than say...At the Heart of Winter (which is an awesome album, but the band photos...meh).

That's about it. I love this book. Frontwards and back. I'm looking forward to sharing it with my metal buds who I know will appreciate it as much as I do.

Keep those horns raised high.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, disturbing--a must have, June 6, 2008

By 

J. Wright "Valentein" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: True Norwegian Black Metal (Hardcover)

I'm sure most black metal fans are familiar with Peter Beste's True Norwegian Black Metal. We've seen the selections that are online, and maybe you've been lucky enough to attend one of the shows. I haven't.

Just got the book today after preordering it. It's amazing. The book itself is quite large and impressive. The quality of the paper and binding is good in my opinion. There are many more photographs here than what you may have seen online, and as a whole they are really impressive from a aesthetic perspective. I like the choice of quotations to go along with the work. Also includes some older photos, letters and articles documenting the Mayhem story as well.

You owe it to yourself to buy this. It's definitely a nice thing to have in your collection for anyone interesting in Norwegian BM. $40 bucks well spent!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gr1m, kvlt, and fr0stbitten! (Did I mention tr00?), March 25, 2009

By 

Timmortal (Baltimore, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: True Norwegian Black Metal (Hardcover)

First of all this book is huge (4 pounds!). Second of all it's full of black metal! It's mostly photography (obviously) but there are also some articles and letters and such. There are a couple (unintentionally) hilarious photos in there, too. For example, there is a great image of this black metal guy trying to look all evil, but there's some old lady walking by giving a disgusted look. Besides making me chuckle, it really does sum up how the average Norwegian feels about the whole scene. But I digress. I suggest you dig up some Immortal (or CoF for you posers out there), pour thyself a chalice of virgin's blood, light some candles, and grimly frown whilst you read this book!