Soulside Journey (Dig) [Original recording reissued]

Darkthrone | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 22, 2003)
• Original Release Date: 1991
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued
• Label: Peaceville UK
• ASIN: B00009QRBM
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #90,208 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

2003 reissue of the Scandinavian dark metal act's 1990 album features 11 tracks plus an exclusive multimedia enhanced interview with the band (Chapter 1), packaged in a digipak. Peaceville.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars LIke No Other...., May 22, 2002

By 

S. Flask (the Pequod) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soulside Journey (Audio CD)

I bought this album last year, thinking it was the new Darkthrone release. It was repackaged, dated 2001. I was quite suprised to find out it was a decade old, and Darkthrone's first album. But before i knew it was an old record, after the first spin i told people, "the new darkthrone is awesome".

so i eventually figured out that this wasn't Plaguewielder. But what i did learn is that this album is truly like no other release, darkthrone or otherwise.

The band was still in their death metal beginnings, but it doesn't sound like a normal death metal record. it's very organic sounding, and the mixture of riffs and drumming works extremely well. it's not terribly technical, but it doesn't matter. when you hear it, you'll realize that this falls into some chasm between death and black metal that nobody else has ever played in.

it's a very different sounding and feeling record, and anybody who is a fan of death or black metal at all really should own this. the songs are fantastic, the playing has a wonderful natural feel, and the overall style is truly original.

very highly recommended.

p.s. the cover artwork is some of my favorite ever. also, this sounds like no other darkthrone album, so even if you don't dig their black metal, you should look into this.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Eons ago..., August 27, 2003

By 

Patrick Stott (Rolleston, Canterbury, New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soulside Journey (Audio CD)

So, this is Darkthrone's Death Metal album, huh? Well, it confused... me the first time I heard it as a spotty young Death Metal fan that knew nothing of the Black Metal Inner Circle. I was expecting Death Metal a la Entombed, Dismember or Unleashed. Did I find it? Nope.

The guitar sound is familiar enough, perhaps because the guitars were co-produced by someone named Uffe? But everything else just didn't sit right in terms of Death Metal. Sure, it was brutal, but the riffing seemed strange. It was fast at times, very fast, but also very simplistic. This was evident right from opener "Cromlech". The vocals were odd too. At a time when Death Metal vocalists were generally involved in vocal limbo dancing ("how low can you go?"), vocalists Zeb Skjellum and Hank Amarillo (where were the pseudo-mythical names then?) sang with a raspier tone than was normal for the time.

Compared to later Darkthrone releases, the production is sparkling, although don't expect Def Leppard style clarity. Darkthrone's famous stripped down raw sound still hadn't developed. There is actually some separation between the instruments. And wonder of wonders, it sounds like the rest of the band actually brought the bass player along to the studio this time round. The drumming is not quite as fast as later releases, but is far heavier. Solos are used sparingly, but to great effect. Also surprising now is that none of the band members were trying to look like badgers or hedgehogs- no corpse paint or spikes anywhere.

While elitist Black Metal fans may dismiss this album as Death Metal in hindsight, many Death Metal fans will have problems getting their head around a lot of this. It is a strange album, not fully fitting either genre. On the Death Metal side, there is the guitar tone, the heaviness and bottom end, and the "normal" names and look of the band. For Black Metal fans, the lyrics are purest bleakness, the riffs are blackened, and the vocals are almost there. Death Metal or Black Metal? I still don't know. It's up to the listener to decide.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great death metal, August 26, 2001

By 

Gregory Miller (West Chester OH, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soulside Journey (Audio CD)

A totally awesome start for the most evil of black metal bands. This was Darkthrone's debut album, while they were still playing death metal. Better than many modern death metal releases, the riffing and drumming are both tight and together. Nocturno Culto's vocals are much different than on future releases. It may not be black, but its as hateful as one would expect from darkthrone.