Reviewing EVERY Emperor Album!

By popular demand, we're tackling the small but might discography of LEGENDARY black metal crew Emperor.
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[@wolflust9718]

Ihsahn is to black metal what Chuck Schuldiner was to death metal in that they were pushing the boundaries of what black/death metal was, where their respective genres were at the time and helped shape what they could be. Musical geniuses and innovators in their own right.

[@tsf-terrorizer4599]

Well said I couldn't agree more

[@g-man4744]

The thing with these people is that metal isn't their only interest and they don't want to restrict themselves musically, that is highly commendable, whatever one thinks of the results (I couldn't care less for any Ihsahn solo stuff for example). Absolute respect to them!

[@astralmass]

Damn Skippy!

[@derroteerichausderzone4825]

Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk is my favourite Emperor Record, fuckin amazing. In the Nightside Eclipse also brilliant and one of the most important and best Black Metal Albums of all Time.

[@destinybennett666]

Emperor is one of all time favorite bands ever my favorite album by them changes daily.

[@blackwaterrust476]

Emperor and Enslaved are easily my 2 Favorite bands to come out of the 2nd Wave Norwegian black metal scene. I Love all 4 albums. In The Nightside Eclipse 10/10 Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk 11/10 IX Equilibrium 8/10 Prometheus 9/10

[@pyro609]

I think I must be one of the few people who loves IX Equilibrium, although Anthems is Emperor's magnum opus IMO

[@johncostigan8747]

Not the only one 🤘😉

[@g-man4744]

I'm with you too!

[@michaelmacvittie6977]

Emperor did something that a lot of metal bands seem afraid to do: they got ambitious. ITNE alone could have been their magnum opus, and yet it's an "argument" in their discography. It's truly incredible what they were able to accomplish, and somewhat infuriating that they don't hold the spot that Mayhem does in pop culture.

[@g-man4744]

Mayhem deserves the spot to be fair...Emperor was not that groundbreaking when you think about it, they arrived a little bit after everyone else. A band like Masters Hammer already had a full symphonic black metal album out before even the 1st emperor demo was out - check out "Jelmnicki occultista" from '92 - now that's a criminally underrated band if you ask me...and avant-garde weird stuff like Necromantia in Greece was also way before their time, listen to their 1990 promo tape, that was before there was even a black metal scene at all in Norway, Samael deserves a mention as well... anyway, a few bands should be as popular as Emperor IMO, but too bad for them, they are not Norwegians...

[@JoshieMadhatt]

In The Nightside Eclipse is my fave but Anthems is a VERY VERRRYYYY close second

[@astralmass]

Oh Mang, I just got so stoked to listen to Emperor, again. Equilibrium was the first one I ever bought/owned, so I have a MASSIVE soft spot for it, even though I had several tracks from BW & BK CDs, which I recorded to cassette. I still remember having an argument with a stoned friend in my Grandmother's basement, where he absolutely refused to believe that somebody could drum that fast. He greened out and puked during Warriors Of Modern Death. Go Trymm!

[@williamfernetducharme]

50th episode of reviewing metal bands. It's a milestone! You have to celebrate that!

[@UrbanAnimism]

Anthems is pure musical perfection. It's technical, progressive and very intense, while retaining melody and beauty. So much stuff happens on every song, but every single track is super memorable and even catchy. 10/10 - the world might suck but at least we have works of art like this one.

[@_CPP_]

I've been looking forward to this one! The first two Emperor albums are among my favorite albums of all fucking time. Masterpieces, both of 'em. The last two are good as well.

[@toddmorse8972]

Thank you for this

[@mindful2864]

Emperor is my favorite black metal band and In the Nightside Eclipse is my favorite black metal album. Ihsahn is a musical genius and songwriter and he proves this with both Emperor and his solo career. Here would be my ranking of each album: Wrath of the Tyrant: 3.5/5 Emperor EP: 3.75/5 In the Nightside Eclipse: 5/5 Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk: 4.5/5 IX Equilibrium: 3.75/5 Prometheus-The Discipline of Fire & Demise: 3/5

[@DamnableReverend]

Glad you covered the early material as it is pretty essential. Intersting how certain aspects of production quality and such are really relative to a listener's ears. To me, the preceding EP sounds a lot better than Eclipse does. I don't even think the EP is necessarily just "rawer" -- but it has less reverb, the drums sound more distinct, the bass is more audible. I didn't get into black metal til 97 or so but I got that split with Enslaved right here. No problem with Wrath of the Tyrant here either. SOunds pretty good for a tape made by seventeen-year-olds to me, especially now when you can get it on CD with the EP (they probably did use the cleanest version they could find). I do love progressive music generally, but it's always a case by case basis for me, and with Emperor, I like 'em fierce and seminal second wave BM. Good video!

[@g-man4744]

100% agree with the statement that the EP sounds better than In the night side eclipse, I have never liked the production on that one.

[@derroteerichausderzone4825]

Speaking of Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk, in same Year (1997) Enthrone darkness triumphant was released. On the Symphonic Production Level you hear so hard the difference between good old Grighallen and Abyss Studio.

[@RubiconMarie]

Fun video ! Emperor's 2001 album Prometheus(...) is dope

[@molotovbatradio]

One of my favourite bands 🔥🔥🔥

[@dallaslindseymusic]

How about reviewing every Pig Destroyer album next? Love these reviews!!!!

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

I'm game 👀

[@adammurnane2400]

I was just looking to see if he did all the pig destroyer. And please if you do prowler in the yard is not there 1st album. Explosion in word 6 is.

[@Thrashisback]

Love the video! Did you not know that Gypsy is a Mercyful Fate cover and Opus a Satana is just an orchestral version of Inno a Satana, or was the omission purposeful?

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

Totally forgot to mention Inno A Satana, and totally forgot that Gypsy was a Mercyful Fate cover lmao

[@blastbeatpie3239]

Anthems still blows my mind to this day. One of the all time greats for me. Watching them play the album in full at Bloodstock in the UK was honestly fucking amazing

[@coreycrossman3447]

I need to continue to try Prometheus its just not working for me right now, other three albums are 5/5 and I haven't heard the eps

[@wheelsofmercury]

I’ll repeat my opinion on Nightside and Anthems that I shared on the Discord server: “Nightside and Anthems are both equal in quality; it just depends whether you want the atmosphere to match the feeling of a stormy thunder-snowy mountaintop or a deranged cult chasing you deep in the dark woods.” Anthems was the first ever Emperor album I loved, and then when I could separate the artist from the art regarding the drummer that they had on the albums before and after that album, I grew to love Nightside Eclipse, too. I will have to check out the demo and debut EP, because I am more into raw black metal, and I feel like I would get a lot more out of those releases… and the final album as well!

[@josephmajor7761]

Just finished the RE4 DLC 🤤 so good. Immediately NG+ed it.

[@mixedmattaphors]

If my favorite action movie were Crank 2, then it could not be more action-packed, because that movie is 100% action. It's like DOOM.

[@meanmrbean8641]

Anthems is so damn iconic and influential, I discovered it by reading about it in some stuffy music encyclopaedia from the early 2000s. It seems even out-of-touch music school academics dig Emperor!

[@dreamakuma]

NICE

[@mercyfulnate]

Hair is looking slick my dude

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

😎

[@mixedmattaphors]

I literally just finished the RE2 remake, and am on my way to finishing the (pretty damn good, sorry) RE 3 remake. Bring it on!

[@AUTOPSY666]

Demo album?

[@codybeinert1109]

Emperor is one of the only old-school black metal bands that I personally care about. I've only heard the last two albums about once or twice in full, but here are my ratings for each: Nightside: 4/5 Anthems: 4.5/5 Equilibrium: 3/5 (may need to hear this one more times, it might grow on me) Prometheus: 3.5/5 Great vid as always btw :)

[@Ali-qy6fe]

I think im in the minority but Prometheus is my favorite emperor album and probably one of my overall fav records ever.

[@muertovag4145]

Didn't expect the best Emperor album to be one of the ones Faust isn't in.

[@ammanus356]

Would you consider doing a Decapitated one of these?

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

maybe some day

[@xtransxcorex]

I've actually never listened to Emperor. might need to check this stuff out, eventually, maybe

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

Yes you do, eventually, definitely, right now, if possible, no pressure

[@Thrashisback]

Start with Anthems to Welkin at Dusk if you don't have an ear for the more lo-fi production. In The Nighside Eclipse is a masterpiece but that production is rough if you're new to black metal.

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

Honestly the production of that album is great, especially compared to some other black metal albums out at that time from like Immortal or Darkthrone

[@xtransxcorex]

i love the terrible production of early Darkthrone and Immortal. raw black metal is my favorite in the genre

[@Thrashisback]

@@themetalmeltdownofficial Oh for sure, but its still a little muddy for the virgin ear imo, took me a few listens to "get it" when I was a teenager. Despite the improvement from say a band like Darkthrone or Immortal's early albums, the mixes are still dense with the orchestral elements added in there.

[@NicolasAristizabal-rb3ju]

Anthems and Eclipse are easily top 10 in the genre, with Anthems being arguably anywhere in the top 5

[@metalcoffie]

I wish I could get into "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk" but the vocals man.....if all the instruments are at a 7 or 8, the vocals are at like a 1.5 or a 2. They're SO buried in the mix, they may as well not even be there at all! Okay maybe not THAT bad, but it frustrates me EVERY time.

[@fallacyfallacy1634]

ulver please...

[@Shikigamifuneral758]

Yes

[@ammanus356]

Honestly shocked the Thorns X Emperor split wasn't included given it's their most influential work (yes more INFLUENTIAL than ITNE)

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

...it is? tbh I never hear anyone talk about it much.

[@ammanus356]

@@themetalmeltdownofficialPeople don't talk about it in the sense of it being popular, but literally every major BM band lists it as one of the most important records of the time. I forget the book name but theres a huge tome that is like the history of BM with interviews from all the BM bands and they all list it. Amazing video though btw, I wasn't knocking you for it :)

[@flynnhale1243]

Please review all the ministry albums including hopiumforthemasses do it in two 2 ll videos holy shit you really should

[@themetalmeltdownofficial]

I'm not sure I have the time. And even if I did, no way it'd be a 2-parter.

[@flynnhale1243]

@@themetalmeltdownofficial I didn't mean that but whatever ministry is the pioneers of industrial metal and rock and I don't know at least review the new ministry album is it better then moral higeine it's called hopiumforthemasses

[@DesolateSolitude]

On 21 August 1992, while visiting his family in Lillehammer, Bård Guldvik "Faust" Eithun stabbed Magne Andreassen, a gay man, to death after being sexually propositioned by him. According to "Faust", while walking home from a pub through the Olympic park, Andreassen drunkenly approached him and solicited him for sex. "Faust" agreed to go with him to the nearby woods and stabbed Magne Andreassen 37 times while also repeatedly stomping on the victim's head. Upon returning to Oslo the following day, he told Aarseth, Varg Vikernes, and a few other members of the black metal scene what he had done. "Faust", Aarseth and Vikernes later burned down Holmenkollen Chapel together. After Vikernes' murder of Aarseth in August 1993, "Faust" was arrested and confessed to killing Magne Andreassen on impulse. In early 1994, Emperor released their debut album, In the Nightside Eclipse. Later that year, "Faust" was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment and subsequently left Emperor. He testified against Vikernes in the latter's murder and arson trial that same year. Although media had linked the murder to black metal and speculated that he was motivated by Satanism, fascism, or homophobia, he has later denied being a satanist and having racist, fascist or homophobic views in several interviews.

[@seakermac5800]

It’s all good except for the clean vocals. Really don’t like abt 1/5 of emperors and decent amount of his solo stuff. All the stuff that slaps, fucking slaps though!

[@jesseleavy5841]

I'm pretty much right there with you on these. Those first two - the demo and the EP - are kinda fun to listen to for nostalgia's sake, but are pretty much garbage compared to their proper studio stuff.

[@g-man4744]

Yeah, and they pale in comparison to what was already out there at the time.

[@g-man4744]

Most overrated black metal act ever, however, agreed on Anthems being a plain essential masterpiece. My ranking and scores; 1. Anthems (5/5); 2. IX equilibrium (4/5); 3. Nightside eclipse (3.5/5, weak guitar sound, bad cheesy synths sounds that completely kill the epicness for me); 4. Prometheus (3/5); 5. Demo/EP (2/5)