What it is, what to hear first, and what sits next to it.
Black metal is a form of extreme metal featuring harsh shrieking vocals, fast guitars with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, and raw or lo-fi production. Lyrics include topics such as: satanism, evil, viking culture, paganism. Some forms of black metal put an emphasis on the nuances of ambience or atmosphere, while others focus more on melody or technicality. The roots of black metal originate from bands such as: Venom, Bathory, Hellhammer, Celtic Frost and Mercyful Fate. .