Reviews (page 5 of 8)
Did not hate it the way I was expecting to
eu particularmente prefiro mais o welcome to hell mas esse num é tão ruim não
Assim disse Gino: parece metálica só que pro demônio Faço as palavras do Gino as minhas.
é bem mais besta do que eu lembrava. mas é rapidim e super influente, bacana demais btw acho essa capa mto foda. foi feito em corretivo liquido ta ligado
Medicore metal
Based on the album name alone, I knew this was going to be a MASSIVE struggle. And boy was I right. I don’t care if this is influential, it’s horrible.
Satan looks kind of cuddly on the cover doesn't he? Like you just want to scratch his chin and give him a little treat...awww...go play in the yard like a good little demon! Funny to hear the early 80s reverb on this - tends to kill the evil mood they're going for and combined with the lyrics it makes it sound appropriately back of the middle-school cafeteria comic book hilarious. This is not my bag in any way but it's *slightly* more melodic than the genre/s this spawned and I can obviously hear the influence on (much worse/more offensively-loud) speed metal to come. 3/10 2 stars.
36/1001 As someone who spent my first couple of years as a guitar player locked in my room trying to learn widdly-widdly solos, mistakenly thinking the end goal was to become some kind of Steve Vai guitar hero, I have listened to a lot of metal albums. This is not one of them - and I wasn't missing anything. It's puerile, repetitive, and musically really rather dull.
Cool
Too black for me. Dnf.
This album is of course foundational for heavy metal music. It’s good, at times. Comical at others. But the horribly raw production is tough to bear. Even remastered, it still sounds pretty tough to listen to.
Lay down your soul to the gods rock and roll/Metal tenfold through the deadly black hole/Riding Hell's stallions bareback and free/Taking our chances with raw energy/Come ride the night with us, rock hard and fight/United my legions we stand/Freak hard and wild for us, give up your souls/Live for the quest Satan's band It's gonna be one star for me Clive.
Rating: 5.5/10 Decent but definitely dated.
Not familar with the brand, but enjoyed this
C'est ok si on écoute l'album comme du punk, voire du trash. Mais dans le registre du heavy metal, on est tellement loin des meilleurs ...
This brings memories back: 8th grade, listening to countess bathory with my buddies... Well surprisingly, listening nowadays this album is still a good experience...everything is already there in a 1982 album that defines the foundations of all the trash metal US scene.
Surprisingly listenable. How scared I was when the first lrycis were sung! and then I realised I liked the "Black Metal" ending with the growling voice. I don't think I'll do it again, but good effort! 20 titles!
Definitely not my taste but I think that the music is not bad in its style
Metal that os
So yeah, it had a huge influence on metal, yeah, it was shocking, and yeah, it hasn’t aged all that well. Some solid thrash and hardcore punk dynamics, for sure, but not that many, and the over-the-top cliché satanism—probably a reaction to the conservative climate of the ’80s—can (and should) now make us smile. “Sacrifice, oh so nice!” Take it with about fifteen layers of irony—unlike our Norwegian friends— and, at the end, it is quite funny.
Like your metal in the classic, riff-driven, power-drumming, Satan-invoking style? Look no further
Cringe
Cute
Okay don’t get me wrong. I like rock but not like this.
Black Metal was fast and fun. Talented group who seemingly didn’t take themselves too seriously and that works really well here. Reminded me a lot of Motörhead but I really like Motörhead so I liked this too. 4 stars
More albums should be interrupted midway through with a group of drunks chanting “get your tits out for the lads”. Fully honest, was not a fan of the start of this at all - more of the same problems I have with a lot of metal in that it feels like it lacks rhythm to me. That said, this picked up pretty well in the middle and there’s some good stuff in here! Big fan of teachers pet & countess bathory.
I think Black Metal is perhaps a terrible name for this album, especially in a modern context. I do suppose that is my ignorance of the genre though too as I didn't realise there were different waves of Black Metal, still it's hard to link this and Mercyful Fate together. I went into this expecting something different than what I got and it led to me disliking it heavily. Coming back to it a few days later though, I get it. This is to say I took them initially to be darker and more sincere. It took me until the song Teacher's Pet to really get them. It's crucially not a remotely serious song, and the studio yelling at the end is what sold me on this album. This isn't Metallica, this is a bunch of pub blokes trying to recreate Black Sabbath as thrash. It's a parody of satanic metal in the same vein as La Villa Strangiato is parody of Prog while still being shining examples of what they parody. I think most of my issues with this stem from a difference in preference. It's not really up there in metal records for me. This thing was released after Motorhead has already released 5 albums including Overkill and Ace of Spades. It does share a lot of the same English metal energy as them but about 20% less serious. If this were the 80s maybe I'd come back to this but nowadays this album reminds me too much of music that I much prefer to this. I do kinda like the production on this thing though even if it isn't my preference. It sounds like the whole thing was recorded in a long corridor with very boomy echoey vocals and very heavy bass. I do still think the start of the album is weak, especially To Hell and Back which is so underbaked. Highlight: Teachers Pet
I didn't manage to get into this album. Wasn't really my thing.
There’s a difference between music and loud sounds. This just convinces me more about how much hard metal is not my type of music genre.
I don’t like metal and this is no exception
Good metal. Can see where the influenced a lot of the metal in the 80s
Even though I love metal, sometimes it's just *too* metal isn't it
A slog - that I did not finish. Sounds like a demo tape. Surprisingly for metal the vocals are very clear and so unfortunately can hear all the nonsense that they are singing / shouting aback.
Black Metal Yeah, lol, no. ⬛ Playlist submission: Countess Bathory
It sounds like a parody at times. Not sure if it was meant to be. That would make it better. Self-awareness is certainly not an issue - when they sing 'brain haemorrhage is the cure' you have to applaud them for their perceptiveness. Henry Rollins said they were like Spinal Tap and he has a point. 'Teachers Pet' is the best song Spinal Tap never wrote. It's not abject. It's not Pantera levels of being execrable. It's just a bad attempt at Motörhead is all.
a black metal album, that's aptly named... black metal. as expected, this album is chock-full of edgy speedy headbanging metal music that your grandmother would probably call "devil-worshipping songs". devil and hellish imagery plagues throughout the album, pretty much everything you would expect. demons and monsters and fire and pentagrams and the grim reaper and getting into vile degenerate shit... don't expect anything TOO interesting in terms of lyrics. mixing and guitars are pretty nice, but they're quite echoey. i've heard these guys are pioneers with the genre, but at a lot of times these tracks almost feel like parodies of the genre.
It’s absolutely insane to me that bands like this helped stoke the satanic panic witch hunt in the 1980s. These lyrics are so over the top it’s basically camp. Is this an album I want to listen to everyday? No, but I appreciate it for its significance on the genre, and for the fact that it freaked out a bunch of people who didn’t get the bit. Hail Satan.
Edgy, but boring.
A group of edgelords made an awful album
No
This era of metal isn't my favorite but it undeniably has its appeal. This feels more like Thrash than what I think of as Black Metal (I haven't heard much but my mind goes to Transylvanian Hunger by Darkthrone as the prime example), and that's not necessarily a bad thing at all. The vocals aren't terrible but they don't really stand out to me as being super special. I know this is a genre thing, but I'm not big on the super brittle guitar tone that Black Metal is known for. I tend to favor at least some midrange chunkiness in metal distortion. Not really my thing, but a solid record for sure. 7/10
Reminds me of the black metal band they listen to in "Dark."
I found my newest Christmas tradition! This album is impressive for 1982. By that metric it is four stars. If it was released a year or so ago then three stars. I love how rock music evolved from Little Richard to this album in a relatively short amount of time. A-wop-bop-a-loo-mop-a-lop-bam-Baphomet.
Eh. At its best, reminiscent of Motörhead or AC/DC. But not as good. I repeat. Eh.
Speed metal is not my thing. This was pretty good though. I won’t revisit, but I can’t deny that those chaps know what they’re doing.
1 metal - 1.5 2. hell - 1.5 3. buried - 1 4. dead - 1.5 5. pet - 1.5 6. leave - 1.5 7. zacrifice - 2 8. fire - 1.5 9. countezz - 1 10. burn - 1.5 11. zatan - 1 12. out - 1.5 13. black - 1.5 14. night - 1 15. crouud - 1.5 16. blood - 1 17. hard - 1.5 18. acid - 1 19. burzting - 1 20. houndz - 1.5
Black Metal was the nickname of Lens 5th wife. He met her in a strip club! 1.5
This really was something, I'd imagine it was quite wild for early 80s hard rock. But ultimately pretty dire.
If only I were 12 years old. Or maybe one of their songs played over a Jackass segment and I did hear it when I was 12. Seems very likely! It’s influential but it’s also incredibly corny.
Nah non fa per me
80s heavy metal. Speed metal, trash metal. Most certainly fast. Very influential. Does what it says on the tin. Production isn’t great.
No thank you. It's metal with bad vocals. I have liked some metal in the past, but the stuff I liked had some redeeming qualities, like melodies, interesting percussion, occasional strings, etc. This album has none of that.
I've determined there is a question I can ask that determines whether or not I'm likely to like a Metal band: Would they play D&D with me or make fun of me for playing D&D?
Tenacious D vibes. Fun in an over the top kind of way, even if most metal isn't really my thing.
njae inte så himla bra
For a satanic metal album, this really was quite dull. Not terrible to listen to, but I didn’t feel anything but disappointment.
God that was an effort to listen to. Granted, Metal is not my thing, and I’m sure it’s very good at what it’s trying to do. But I’d happily never listen to any of that ever again.
The scream at the start of Heaven's on Fire deserves 1 star. Whilst in many ways the album wasn't great, I still enjoyed it more than a lot on this list.
Very Satanic, but I did enjoy most of it. Also liked that the last track is a preview for their next album
Really great satire of heavy metal. The devil worshipping and death shtick was funny. Wait, this isn’t satire? Oh dear, oh dear.
black metal- 5 to hell and back- 4 buried alive- 6. kinda ate with this. happened to me raise the dead- 5 teachers pet- 5 leave me in hell- 4 sacrifice- 5 heavens on fire- 4 countess bathory- 4 dont burn the witch- 4 how do you make something this mid
Not for me.
Glad I’m not the only one to immediately think of Tenacious D - weird growing up with and knowing deeply the parody of something, then only experiencing the real deal at age 29. Totally skews the experience - feel similarly about Flight of the Conchords and a lot of folk music
Satanic thrash and heavy metal, with muffled noisy production (which can be a detriment or bonus, depending on the person). The Satan stuff is really the focus, and while there are some cool riffs and shredddy solos, the music just didn’t really stand out to me. It comes in strong and hot, but the novelty wears off somewhat quickly. The speedy, thrash songs hit harder than the plodding ones. More influential than it is good.
I was on board through the first few songs, but then it just became background noise while working. Not sure if that's because I don't have a keen ear for thrash metal, or if these songs all legitimately sound fairly similar, or if I was just devoting too much mental energy to my work to appreciate the differences from song to song. At any rate, this was not bad, and I appreciate their service to the genre of metal. 3.1
I am a big fan.
Can absolutely hear the inspiration for heavy metal legends but the actual production makes this a hard to listen to album and I'm surprised it's not been remastered so you can, y'know, actually hear the definition in the guitars, vocals, stuff like that.
60/100. Black Metal by Venom is an iconic and influential metal album, but for me, it doesn’t do much. It feels surprisingly tame, and the instrumentation doesn’t hit hard enough to fully pull me in. While I respect its legacy, it doesn’t quite have the intensity I look for in metal. Overall, a decent but underwhelming listen.
Spinal Tap without the humor...
The album certainly lives up to its title. Seemed like a good intro album to anyone interested in black metal. Aggressive sound, demonic lyrics that were surprisingly understandable and still had an edge to the vocals, in a not overwhelming time span. (The reissue with a 2nd CD of 12" versions, got a little long and boring, but I don't think that's the version considered to be great).
++: Black Metal, Buried Alive, Raise the Dead, Don't Burn the Witch, At War with Satan (Introduction) +: Heaven's on Fire, Countess Bathory +-: To Hell and Back, Leave Me in Hell, Sacrifice -: Teacher's Pet 5,8/10
Fairly generic metal. not interesting
in fairness, the "get your tits out for the lads" bit is fucken hilarious
Meh
The black metal songs are bad, and the melodious songs are too few.
i tried to enjoy this but i couldnt. i thought it was boring and redundant, i didnt like the production or the mixing, there were some cool guitar riffs here and there but the performances werent anything too great either. idk just an underwhelming album, is all. not completely terrible though, just pretty bad. but maybe its just me.
I'm into it! 4/5
As a piece of history, I can't give this album less than 4 stars. No, I probably won't listen to it, again, and it doesn't sound much like what I like about "modern" Black Metal, but this was the beginning. The vision and confidence and audacity to take this step in 1982 is pretty amazing, and while someone would have done it, if it wasn't them, they should still be commended for it.
I wish the people who made this album discovered therapy before they made this mistake. Unfortunately, they are now just goths who live in their mom's basement and worship Satan. If you can't tell, I think this album is trash!
Despite the lo-fi production and the uninspired vocals—mainly just screaming—this album seems to have inspired the whole black/extreme metal genre. This may be an indication of low quality in that genre in general, but I won't go into that any further.
just when you think metal can't get any worse
This is great said no one ever.
Black Metal with lots of noisy growling, the guitar is showy, fast and intricate at times.
Old school metal, it was okay
Cheesy lyrics nothing great but paved the way for some future bands
Yeah I heard these guys play back in '87. Except they were my teenage neighbors playing in a garage wearing cheap leather jackets and chains and playing everything off key and off beat. And they had a pentangle painted on the floor.
Brutally perfect!
Some abhorrently aged lyrics, especially on Teacher's Pet, but a lot of speed metal goodness as well. Wasn't sure how I'd feel about this one but ended up liking it quite a bit.
Only listened to one song but not my kind of thing at all. Probably okay live but not at midday on a Monday. 2/10
Really not in my realm of music, but lyrically this piece was moving.
Interesting how this was considered an early influence on heavy metal, and you can hear that in the music since it sounds more tame but rhythmically similar to today’s metal.
I'm torn on rating this one. Definitely not my genre and I got very little enjoyment listening to it. But on the other hand, for what it was, it was solid, and despite it not being at all what I wanted to hear at the time, I had no issues playing it all the way through. So... 3.
Interminable and forgettable. One of the worst albums on this, or any other, list.
pfffft
horrible, hate it though only listened to first song ( and im DONE )
Seems like an album intentionally made to prod satanic panic, made worse with the fact that the genre that emerged from this album ‘black metal’ has become heavily associated with neo nazi beliefs. I haven’t looked into it much but I don’t think thats venom’s fault really, you have something with evil associations and there was bound to be someone to take advantage of that. This album deserves to be on the list I think it marks a very interesting point in time, I didn’t find it great nor terrible 3/5
kind of stupid but I liked it
3/10…Black Metall…mit schlechter Soundqualität und mäßigen Songs
Respect your elders!!! Venom laid the groundwork for every genre of extreme metal, and that cannot be overstated. Yes, the thrash is obvious in the everything about this record, especially the rhythm section, but the lyrics, vocal style, and soloing are all only a few degrees off from early death metal, while the guitar tone, production, and visuals all plant a seed for black metal. If you’re a fan of any of those genres, you’ll respect the hell out of Black Metal. But what’s shocking is how well it holds up. Now, from a technical perspective, Venom are a bit loose. The drumming, singing, and soloing could all use a wrench turn or two. I honestly think that if the performances here were a tiny bit tighter, it would be a lot more of a beloved classic, and not just a record every metal fan acknowledges without actively enjoying. And that’s sad, because I’d say 75% of this is still pretty good! I think the opener, “Buried Alive,” and “Countess Bathory” all stand out. Also, this is a really great backloaded record, and one of the few albums where I’d argue Side B is stronger than Side A. That said, besides the sloppy playing, I do think there’s a basicness to songs like “To Hell and Back” and especially “Teacher’s Pet” that brings it all down a smidge. “Teacher’s Pet” is especially weird; I can’t help but hear “Hot for Teacher,” just…worse. There are better metal records. There are better early era metal records. There are a million better extreme metal records: better death records, better thrash records, even better black metal records. But that doesn’t mean Black Metal is a bad record, just early to its innovations. And that historical impact has to count for something. Honestly, this record deserves more respect. If you like any extreme metal, you should give this a try. I’m not saying it’s the Paranoid of extreme metal, but it’s still very, very good and equally as important. For once, I’m grateful that this list made me listen to a record, and I think it made the right choice.
good metal record
Första lyssningen tänkte jag, "blä". Inte kaos-blä, dock. Lyssnade mer och det växte lite. Fortfarande kluven dock. Det här skulle nog kunna falla ut olika beroende på dag/humör. Men den får en 3:a pga intensiteten.
Habilt hantverk men inget jag kommer sätta på i framtiden.
Not my fav
Je comprends le délire. Intéressant qu’ils aient créé le genre Black Métal même si après coup ils sont pas vraiment dedans
Eyeroll. I like metal, but this sounds like it was recorded in their mom's basement. Also the whole "I'm a badass satanist" is cringey.
This sort of reminds me of disco in that, are they serious? When they sing about hell and satan and songs like "Raise the Dead" is it meant to be a bit tongue in cheek? Or does it just seem that way because it's so dated sounding. The last track is the perfect example of this. It's a spoken word track about satan: "At War with Satan." It all sounds very dramatic and when I take a look at a picture of the band I get the sense they probably are serious. Cause they kind of look like ren fair people who would get real into the acting part of it. There is some metal I like and will listen to, but this isn't it. Maybe this is too proto-metal and not quite refined enough in style and substance.
Old School Power Beast
Gear: Abyss DIANA MR Artwork: ⸸ 𖤐 ⁶⁶⁶ Production: 🧏♂️📏💩 Music: 🖤⌛🥱 Rating: 🐐(🐐)/5
sounds evil
Pretty standard metal, which I usually find pretty dull. A couple of the songs have something extra, such as Teacher's Pet, but generally they stick to the fast-guitar-shouty-vocals shtick. 2.5/5
Tasting notes: I'm getting some early Metallica, definitely some Motorhead. Hints of Dimebag. Definite metallic aftertaste. Venoms influence is obviously far reaching. Three stars.
As cheesy and on-the-nose as this gets, it's fun as fuck and very novel to me.
Op zich niet heel slecht denk ik, maar ik vind het ook niet heel bijzonder. Het is geen ongeinspireerde bagger en het is ook niet heel melodieus. Geen idee. **
The only way I could tell it wasn't a single, incredibly monotonous song was by the occasional youtube ad (and the 'video paused, are you still watching' message about 2/3 of the way through). It doesn't say much for this album that I actually started looking forward to the ads as highlights. I've enjoyed a lot of other metal albums on this list, so it's not a musical preference thing - this was just a shit album. I intentionally didn't listen to the last couple of tracks so I could give it 1 star - a kind of musical opposite to a chef's kiss, a chef's punch? a clef's punch?
Always wished I could get into this type of music but it just sounds like noise.
Black metal could sound cliche today, but if you put it in context (1982) it is a solid and quite influential piece. I think it is safe to say that there’s no Metallica without Venom - and what it entails. Great and fun album.
meh
Awful
I was well disappointed by Black Metal, given it should be right up my street and especially given what else was going on on the world of hard rock and metal around this time. The vocals are shit and most of the songs just really forgettable; the only one I liked was Burstin' Out, had strong Motorhead vibes, but that was on the bonus re-release stuff, so doesn't really give it much credit. 2.
Another bloated and not particularly good album. It's pretty one note, the vocals are so dull, and the instrumental bits aren't much better. Somehow they've managed to make a metal album without much energy - metal albums to benefit from slowing down in places but this one never really gets going. 2/5.
This genre doesn't appeal to me much. I would say it's historically significant, except earlier output from this genre (70s and early 80s) were more harmonically and rhythmically complex, had more discernible singing/lyrics, and overall represented a more "golden" era of metal. (Think Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy.) Another inclusion on this list that I don't really understand. Sure, there's a ton of energy and it's actually pretty fun to thrash your mullet to at first – but in the latter half, the unrelenting fury starts to sound a little artificial and repetitive. 2/5 Key tracks: Black Metal, To Hell and Back, Countess Bathory
I know this album is influential (and Don't Burn the Witch is a real banger), but I'd rather be listening to Motorhead.
Proto speed metal. Its not very good, but you can see the blueprint for Kill'em All very c;learly. Bonus star for being groundbreaking.
Teacher's Pet is pretty terrible. The rest not quite so bad. I don't like the vocals, but the instrumentals are not too bad. A low two.
this felt like a metallica parody
Fuckin’ Venom! While this record may not sound anything like modern black metal, or even the original wave of Norwegian black metal, it’s still insanely influential. It’s more of a speed/thrash metal record, but it’s got a lot of aspects that really defined the later iterations of black metal. There isn’t a single bad song on this album. In fact, there’s not a single song on this record that doesn’t fucking rip. Deep guttural vocals, tremolo picking, heavy drums, and some of the best satanic imagery of the 1980’s. I can’t say anything bad about this one. Easy 5*. Hail Venom.
Metal is generally the kind of thing you expect to elicit strong reactions in one direction or another, but I found this album surprisingly meh. It mostly strikes me as really corny -- it sounds like a caricature of whatever this kind of metal is. I also find the whole hail satan schtick to be really goofy and kinda lame. I really just don't get it or see the appeal. If the whole satanic angle doesn't do it for you, there's not a whole lot else to get excited about in this album. The production/sound quality is very low, the rhythms are very simple and very repetitive, the guitar is alternately very power chord and very deeleleleleleldleleleledleeleleleleledlelelee. The guy's voice is unpleasant to me. I don't hate it, but there's also nothing I particularly like about it. 4/10
Just ok, I guess. I didn't find it ground breaking. Though it might have been in '78. Just kinda fast, and kinda in sync. Mostly just sounded like a garage band. Not a fan of the singer's voice or melodies (or lack thereof). Just not my thing.
No soy demasiado fan de Venom, pero este disco marcó un antes y un después
I enjoyed this album of tunes by the bastard offspring of Judas Priest and Black Sabbath a lot more than the opening riff would have me believe. Not something I will return to again and again but I can get what people see in this sort of music.
Shitty metal album. I could not get through it
Tuffa och arga grabbar!
Was a bit of a slog to get through. Influential it is, but great it is not. 2/5
No thanks
heard it, couldn't tell you anything about it
People, let's just stop pretending this is good. It sounds more like a bad version of motorhead than like the genre that was named after them. The lyrics are immature and silly. They don't play very well, the singer is pretty bad. I'm sure it was quite something when it was new, but nothing justifies listening to this album anymore.
While the album is very influential on metal today, it has not stood the test of time. It is very noisy and with most "satanic" music, it's edgy for the sake of being edgy. A ploy to get older conservative parents outraged and inspire the youth to seek them out to find out what has the parents so riled.
No thanks
nah
Not for Chad.
This grew on me based on the quality for the time and for the significance I am assuming. Still, the cliches were all there. There are so many metal songs about being metal.
Not for me
I felt the production was very muddy and sludgy. Thinking of Metallica's first few albums, the sound on those were a lot cleaner. The opening part of a few songs... I couldn't tell what was going on. I didn't have the volume down low, but I still thought it was very muffled. A lot of the songs sounded like riffs Metallica used on their first album. I'm pretty sure that Venom was first, I don't think Metallica was COPYING them per se. It just... sounds better. And "Teacher's Pet"... wtf was that about? I appreciate it for what it is, but the sound quality of the songs, along with some of the goofiness... ...all in all I would rather listen to "Master of Puppets" or "Ride The Lightning." Top tracks: "Sacrifice," "Countess of Bathory"
After Nick Drake and Brian Eno, this is definitely different and far less easy listening. I didn't hate it. It's decent as far as thrash or heavy metal goes. I've never been into the satanic side of it; don't care for that imagery or content. For metal, I just care if it rocks. And for the most part, this rocks. Yeah, it's a little too angry and the vocals are a bit too snarly and limited, but there's some nice guitar riffs, good pulsing bass, and solid drumwork. I'm not going in search of more, but it could be far worse. And apparently these guys blazed a trail for black or thrash metal. So, take the good with the bad. I think this album lands in an average spot for all that.
Of all the albums I've played in my car with my kids, this is NOT one I thought both would enjoy! I guess Satan brings families together. It definitely rocks hard. The lyrics are pretty cheesy, but it sounds like they meant them tongue in cheek (although Teacher's Pet is just BAD). I'd call it a 3.5 but I'll round it up simply because it was a fun listen. Listening to the 1001 I'm discovering I like metal more than I thought. Liked the second side a bit more than the first side. It was an unusual choice that the last track is a preview of the next album, but it made me want to hear the rest so I guess it was a good marketing strategy.
Shockingly not terrible
I love metal. But the further back in time I go, the less I like it. There's a certain rhythm that metal gained that just isn't there in the early years. This is punishing in a great way. It's a little cheesy and the tracks sound the same. But it's influence is clear.
Played hide and seek with teachers mouth Her lips were warm and wet
Hail satan
Jeg troede, jeg ville have det som Daniels mor, men blev positivt overrasket.
Teacher wet
Just a bunch of silly guys doing silly stuff, even if they would have liked you to believe otherwise. I didn't have much fun with it at all, but clearly they did, so that counts for something.
Wow - that was painful.
Black Metal was surprisingly better than I expected. While I hate shock value for the sake of shock value, Venom at least had interesting music to go along with it. I don't think this album is the best thing ever, but it definitely earned its spot on the list. Best Songs: Black Metal, To Hell and Back Worst Songs: Buried Alive, Teacher's Pet
Not bad for metal!!! Production sucked tho lol
saw the song teacher's pet, looked somewhat promising 30 seconds in: "teacher's pet, teacher's pet, teacher's wet" oh hell nah
Some significant meh moments, started off kinda typical for its genre but ended nicely.
A band I've heard of but never really listened to. I can definitely hear how they're an inflection point between the NWOBHM from the late 70s and early 80s and the thrash and black metal that came later. That said, I think some of the bands that carried the torch after this were just better. The production sounds like it's recorded in a tin can and the vocals are just so so. Still... it's metal! Can't wait to see how badly this is savaged in the Global reviews. This crowd hates metal.
Espera aí, num tem necessidade de colocar uma versão estendida do disco, não tem como seguir com mais de 30 minutos com as tentativas de ser pesado, que fica enfadonho.
Well, I sure thought THAT was horrible! I guess if you’re into devil worship, you might like this, but otherwise… Anyway, is it possible to give an album zero stars? I would’ve been able to tolerate this, if not for the so-called singing and lyrics, but I suppose that’s a lot of the appeal for its audience. I did make myself listen to at least one minute or so of each of the songs. Needless to say, this is just not for me.
Venom's "Black Metal" is a classic. It's raw, aggressive, and super influential, even though it doesn't sound like what we think of as black metal today. Think chaotic riffs and Cronos's insane vocals. It's a bit rough around the edges, but that's part of the charm. A must-listen for any metalhead.
It's the UK's version of Metallica. Take from that what you will. Favorite Track: "Raise The Dead"
As stale and generic as a name like Black Metal can be, definitely trying too hard
Yikes. No
The new wave of British heavy metal was teeming with unstoppable momentum and Venom seemed poised to stand out amongst the crowd. Black Metal sounds every bit as apt in title, sound and feel; it may appear amateurish but there is something rambunctious and glorious about the overall result. It may be sprawling at times but that's how it's meant to be. Favorites: Black Metal, Buried Alive, Raise the Dead, Teacher Pet, Leave Me in Hell, Sacrifice, Countess Bathory, Don't Burn the Witch, Die Hard (12").
I hear the influence, but I don't hear anything I like. Favorites were Don't Burn the Witch and Buried Alive.
You can definitely tell the influence this one had on subgenres like Thrash. Unfortunately I don’t think I would return to this one much. Everything also just sounds kinda muddy. Highlights were Black Metal, Leave Me In Hell, and Sacrifice.
Not bad. No Motorhead or the like.
We may be thankful to Venom for introduction, and basically creation, of new genre that so many of us love and appreciate, but it's honestly almost unlistenable 42 years later. Points for inspiration, but also a lot of points deducted for a pretty weak album.
without doubt a seminal album in the history of heavy metal, but I think it suffers from a lack of melody and is too relentlessly doomladen
Sounds a little dated, quality of the recording is not great. Musically it's good, lyrically it's a little cheesy.
It’s right up my alley.
No. It just hurts.
I thought this was awful. It reminded me of a technically proficient high school band of misfits whose singer owned the mics and PA so he got to be the vocalist.
Black Metal 3 To Hell and Back 3.2 Buried Alive n/a Raise the Dead 4 Teacher's Pet 3.5 Leave Me in Hell 3.1 Sacrifice 3.6 Heaven's on Fire 3.4 Countess Bathory 3.3 Don't Burn the Witch 3.4 Score: 3.388888889
Vrienden, ik weet niet wat ik heb misdaan maar het algoritme wil me breken. Ik luister vandaag Tim Boklul (schel), Lighting Bolt (schel) en nu dit. Ook dit album bevat onderdelen die ik echt wel kan waarderen, maar de uitwerking is weer abominabel. Het klinkt als een soort bootleg opname van een (relatief strak, dat moet ik toegeven) liveoptreden in een uit de kluiten gewassen boerenschuur. En dan vanaf net buiten de grote schuifdeuren opgenomen. De zanger klinkt als iemand die niet kan grunten, die iemand die grunt nadoet. Op zich heb ik wel respect voor dit soort grondleggers, maar qua cijfer kan ik hier niet mee gaan stunten. 2 sterren, en dat is omdat ik net van Lightning Bolt af kom. En omdat de gitaren aardig hun best doen.
Crap sounding like crap
This just isn’t for me.
i just can't take satan oriented death metal seriously. reeks of "i'm 14 and this is edgy"
Lay down your soul to the god rock n roll
3.75
Lo disfrute
Sound quality is pretty atrocious, but the vitality and songwriting is definitely there. I had heard of this album but never got around to listening to it. Glad I finally rectified that. A fun tongue-in-cheek album in a world that often takes everything far too seriously.
nothing to do with the Tom Hardy films, or Eminem song from them, but not as much fun as they are either. Probably not actually black metal (by modern standards) but a solid NWOBHM effort, even if that it the worst genre name of all time.
I dont love Metal but this was a nice listen, I didnt hate it by any means I just wasn't super into it.
An interesting experience in the black metal space as aptly named.
This sucked - it was not good. Sometimes when I get the squirts it sounds better than this.
Keskikaartin mestariteos
2.5
I honestly don’t know how seriously I am meant to be taking this. I mean, I looked at the picture of Cronos on his Wikipedia page and he cannot be entirely serious surely? This is very masculine isn’t it, I picture the crowd all standing head banging and doing the rock horns with their pints of snakebite and black. Not for me. Apparently it was very influential though, so I’ll give them that
General impression: generic but well-executed thrash/speed metal Detailed review: It just gives off a very typical metalhead vibe. Unshaven, ragged and faded black t-shirt, long hair, a little beefy a little flabby, gravel-voiced, shouting about the darkness and Satan and rebelliousness. Nothing surprising or artsy. Deeper thoughts (context): The Number of the Beast came out this same year. Sorry to this band, but this just doesn’t compare. I guess Iron Maiden has a more polished sound, and these guys are more gritty, which some people probably prefer.
black metal fight! dont burn the witches! roooaaaarrrr. etc. i enjoyed the quick guitar and frantic drumming. this album still works forty years later.
Honestly this isn't as bad as I was dreading it to be. I can't say I'd recommend listening to it when you have a headache, but other than that it's fine.
Not my cup of tea but I could stomach it.
No. Trash.
Eew metal
Buried aluve
Metal is a genre overlooked on this project--it's no britpop, apparently. But I found myself less than impressed with Venom, though it is a great band name. Black Metal sounds like a bunch of tryhards, and I do understand they sound like that because they were pioneers. The lyrics were predictable. The song titles were right on brand at least. All in all, not a bad listen, just maybe cringe-worthy at times.
I have beat this topic like a dead horse, but here we are again: just because an album has historical and influential significance on music does NOT mean I should hear it before I die! This is not a music history project, this is (supposed to be) a best of the best list. This album no doubt played a part in pioneering some metal subgenres and the very outward heavy mentioning of Satanism, and is important in that regard. But so many bands did this all so much better and deserve a spot as a "must listen" over this. Parts of this album felt cringe and corny, despite trying very hard to be taken seriously.
Not my genre
Surprisingly good. A better recording would have helped but this is solid 3.8
It's funny to compare this to current black metal and how much heavier it has become. This album seems tame in comparison
p498. 1982. 3 stars. Motorhead wannabees with an interest in demons, satanism and horror. Once you realise this is a Spinal Tap parody it's quite amusing. Prefer the Justin Bieber cover of "Don't Burn The Witch" though.
Highlights: To Hell and Back Buried Alive Heaven's on Fire At War With Satan This is some real OG metal shit right here. A little bit Sabbath, a little bit Iron Maiden, a lot edgy. I like this early era of metal where you can see the direction it is leading, but it's not all the way yet. The guitars are heavy, but not completely washed out; the vocals are aggressive, but legible. Calling this extreme now seems almost quaint, but at the time this really was shocking to the mainstream. Even now I can imagine a talking head on the news reading these lyrics out with deadly seriousness to try and scare grandpa about the rebellious youths. But taken in whole, Venom is clearly being performative, Black Metal reads more like melodrama theater than Satanist instruction manual. If you can allow yourself the freedom to not take it too seriously, this album is a lot of fun and I regret not listening until now.
A great speed / thrash metal record - maybe a little weak on the production side (although it’s awesome its self recorded) and maybe it could have done away with the Teacher’s pet song - which throws off the macabre theme of the album.
I love trash metal. Never heard of Venom. Not bad at all. Little bit dated but that happens.
Meh.
This was unintentionally hilarious.
I mean, it certainly was black metal.
Cartoonish themes, slick and heavy playing, one.song’s sexual politics haven’t dated well, but enjoyable overall.
Some of this was ok. What I struggled with were the lyrics and the vocal delivery.
Classic metal from a classic British band. I got in to metal in the mid 90's so this was always a bit old school for me but listening to it now it has that early thrash vibe. Stand out tracks: - Black metal - Buried alive - Raise the dead - Leave me in hell - Heavan's on fire - Countess Bathory
Oh…I was kinda hoping for the like…actual criminal Scandinavian black metal scene. Not…what I can only describe as your cousin’s band HE’S really proud of, but he’s like 35, and still lives at home because he just needs his big break. And I guess he got it. But like. He didn’t deserve it. I can hear the influence on a lot of things but who cares it sucks. It does suck in the special “this is so bad it’s hilarious” kind of way which is always nice. As a treat look at the band picture of Venom on Spotify, it’s 3 dudes who look like three different versions of the same metal head who’s into different genres of metal. What a joy.
Ja ok, es hat ein ganzes Metal-Genre beeinflusst. Wenn nicht sogar gestartet. Meinetwegen. Trotzdem nur organisierter Lärm.
Nice. Pretty enjoyable. Not a fan of the voice that sounds really quiet and grawling.
Some good parts in here. Poor audio quality and there's way better metal out there now but good for its time.
It was ok, but a bit repetitive. I could see why people might like it, but it wasn't for me.
I'm sure this is here because its super influential and where black metal comes from, but as an album its simultaneously cool and a bit boring. Sound quality is poor, songwriting all kinda blends together, hard to understand and hear the lyrics, the whole album kinda sounds like if you stood outside a black metal concert to some extent and overhead "this is sort of what black metal sounds like"...
I honestly expected to hate this, but didn’t. I liked the dark Norse themes of the songs.
The fact that I got to the end of it, albeit only as background noise at work, merits a 2 in my rating system. Wouldn't want to listen to it again though.
Weirdly boring for a metal album
I don't know, man. It was just silly. I didn't mind listening to it while doing something else, but to the extent that it was 'satanic', it seemed more performative than anything else. I just felt like they were trying too hard to be edgy. And I know that's the point, but also I don't care. I wouldn't give anything on here a second listen.
Awesome heavy metal. Every song had my foot tapping. The lead singer's vocals fit wonderfully with the style. The lyrics are a bit cheesy, but a proper album of the genre.
Goth kids in the '80s probably ate this shit up. All the hell, satan, demon talk got old reeeally fast. Every song sounded so similar and repetitive. There were a couple cool guitar solos, but that's it Also the production quality is absolute trash. Maybe that's just the style of the music. I'm sure Venom was genre-defining in the 80s, but this album does not hold up today imo.
Teuflisch!
4/5. Surprisingly, despite the terrible production, this has aged well, music wise. Sure, some (most) of the lyrics can be a little cringe (Teacher's Pet). The direct songs about Satan and revolution are the best of course, and the heaviness throughout the album really shines, especially on the second side. There are several staples here for the metal genre that have inspired so many. I don't want to say this is perfect, because it is not, but this was a fun listen and I did enjoy it overall. The unapologetic attitude talking about things that are not real but knows it will make people mad is pretty funny how over the top they go. Mad respect there. Best Song: Black Metal, Countess Bathory, Heaven's On Fire
2.5 an influential album but by todays standards for metal it’s not great
The thing is... I really don't ... Metal is not my go to genre. It doesn't matter good, bad, or indifferent; I just don't enjoy it very much. Venom is very metal, but not "like" head banger metal or growl, more like taking a classic hard rock band and pushing it into the whole stereotypical satan worshipping death metal arena. The lyrics are so over the top I laughed out loud, although the content was like horror movie plot-line, whiich is usually intended to be disturbing, not funny. And they just kept going. Every once and a while I would sense a certain less fun element in the lyrics that makes you hope nobody is taking this too seriously. And ultimately they are what they are: a pretty solid metal, kind of distrubing but probably not completely serious, not un-entertaining "black"(as in dark and morbid) metal (!) band.
Id love to know people who like this album… mainly so i can put them on a list and stay as far away from them as possible.
Is this really black metal? Rather listen to Iron Maiden
Was digging it at 1st. Teachers Pet was absolutely awful. Then it just started feeling more & more like a bad parody of a metal album.
It does sound really terrible. so hard to listen to. They couldn’t fix this mix?
Sounds like shit
This was okay. I don’t really care for the drama or his voice
Nah
The vocals are trying way too hard. It does not feel authentic. Would be better served with a Deep Purple vocal style. The rest is nice metal sound.
Its metal, and pretty good metal
The words are quiet and the instrumentals are loud. I tried listening to it really loud. I didn't really feel it and it didn't work for me.
These guys would love dnd.
I really wish the band would take the time to either re-record this, impossible now I'm sure, or to remaster it properly. The biggest detriment to it (and there are quite a few) is the recording quality. There is way too much reverb and echo. I'm not sure if that's intentional or if it's just the way whatever studio they did this was set up. The songs are pretty standard thrash metal from the 80's but it seems that Venom kind of invented or at least mainstreamed the genre. It really does sound like a shitty Megadeth record; like if these were the "parents garage" sessions, with lyrical maturity to match. I liked the title track, "Heaven's on Fire" and "Don't Burn the Witch". "Teacher's pet" is pretty absurd; like if Hot for Teacher by Van Halen was, well, this. The album did start to grow on my once I got over the sound quality. It's not stellar or anything but it's a solid "I'm mad and everything sucks!" album. I didn't bother with any of the bonus tracks, wasn't feeling it enough to bother with another albums length of it. The style has evolved and been made muuuuuch better. An extra point for originality at the time.
Where's the pipe organs? Where are the Norwegians? This wasn't what I thought it was going to be, but then I looked at the year. All in all this isn't bad, but is a product of it's time. It has some driving riffs and nice story telling lyrics, but all around is pretty forgettable. Not for me.
Very very good hard rock/metal. A little heavy on the hell/devil stuff. No single banger, but a very good album
Never heard of this band before, but I can see why this was included, as it's seems this band were one of the trail blazers where UK heavy metal was concerned. There are a couple of decent songs, and a few laughably terrible ones, but apart from the sheer heaviness and volume, I don't think Venom really pushed the envelope that much, considering other bands that were their contemporaries. Most of these songs really just sound like jokes, intended to get a rise out of the conservative parents of the 80s. I guess it's not really meant to be taken that seriously!
Still not my thing
There's a lot of heavy metal out there that I like, but the only thing that distinguishes this one is the so-over-the-top-it-has-to-be-parody-right Satanic lyrics. It's almost funny in its ridiculousness, but the fact that it spawned a whole subgenre of music that is responsible for some legitimately awful stuff is enough to keep from just dismissing it out of hand.
It is too long and almost sounds like a ridiculous stereotype of a metal album. There were some funny moments on it though
The fact that it was recorded through a tin can actually helps the album.
Fast, grimy and idiotic. As it should be.
Ok we get it, you can play those same couple of power chords really really fast, but what else ya got? I much prefer the Black Sabbath variety of metal where the music is a lot more varied and there is a lot more melody to it rather than bashing their skulls in on the same couple of musical concepts for an hour plus.
unfortunately a lot of this was just noise in my opinion
Got half way through... Good guitar Shut music
Actually not as good as I thought it would be. I presumed it would be more black metal focused given its listed as the album which launched the genre, but it honestly just sounded like a heavyier version of Motohead, Diamond Head etc. Still alright, but not blown away. I'm guessing actual black metal isn't represented on this list which is a shame. I think everyone should hear Drudkh before they die.
"Lay down your soul to the god's rock 'n' roooooolll! unghhh.... unghhh...." *gasps* "Whooaooaoaauuuuaa BLACK METULLLL" This actually grew on me as it went on; the unintentional silliness broke into intentional silliness. Is this music I'd play around the house or while driving? Not really. Would I be pretty excited if I walked into a bar and Venom was playing? Hell yeah. addendum: this music reminded me of a passed-around supercut of *just* stage banter from a metal show; the singer ends every song by roaring "allright!" and talking about how hot it is. I was like "this music sounds like that banter." Well one internet search later it turns out that's Cronos from Venom. Here's a full extra star for that.
Old school raw metal. Good stuff!
Had never heard of Venom before this but was absolutely in love within the first few minutes! Fantastic album if you’re into thrash metal. Hearing it in its early stages was awesome!
For an older metal album it's not bad! I see the foundation of the music today, and the riffs are decent and fun
Ýmislegt áhugavert í þessu m.v. ártalið.
Hail punk Satan!
No thanks. 1/5
Call it a 2.5. Surprisingly clear lyrics. I'm middling on the assortment of noises in addition to instruments.
4/10
Historical value but this really doesn't stand up in 2024
My early metal memories in one perfect banger of an album 666 stars or 5 cause that option ain’t avail
An album I’ve not listened to since my first foray into metal in the 80’s. Wasn’t to my taste then but can see the influence it had on entire genre.
thank god not every song was like the first track this album is kinda corny but i appreciate its importance to the genre and it’s one that grew on me quite a bit as it went on but never particularly amazed me it is also a completely personal taste, but i really do not like the lead vocals on this album!!! 2/5 but it could be a 2.5/5 only for some of the very sick guitar work on this
I hope to never hear it again
This sounds much tamer than sm like Black Flag which is not so good for an album titled Black Metal. Also it doesn't sound too good.
Not my usual type of music and I didn't like all of the songs but I did like Buried Alive, Leave Me In Hell, and Nightmare.
Well that was an album.
Why? Why is this on this list?
Nothing special.
rrrrrrrrrrreeeeeaaaaaaaggggghhhh funny af and id be lying if I said I hated it
Like the guitar. Need earplugs
3.5/10
Raw production but some good moments. Very cliche themes about Satan. Not a bad listen though 6/10
Still trying to like black and thrash metal, still not.
Not really into this type of music at all, and I'd never heard of Venom. But I actually enjoyed it. And I can see how it influenced other bands.
Ich war auf das schlimmste gefasst. All die Kritiken haben mich eingeschüchtert. Und doch wurde ich positiv überrascht. Die Songs sind eingängiger als erwartet und weniger trashig als befürchtet. Mir hat es gefallen, aber es wird nicht mein Lieblingsalbum.
It's just noise, for the most part.
I thought this might be one that was more important than good, but I enjoyed this.
Metal good
ughhhh. why are all metal albums long. Feel like I go back n forth on metal and today I just was not in the mood at all. the start of the album woke the poor cat from her nap 👎
3.5/10 - See System of a Down review but a few less H's
Metal still bad
Bearable but I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to it. I’d definitely choose this over some of the black metal that came out later on but that’s just me
Somewhere... Dante Alighieri is rolling over in his grave.
I postponed this one for ages but it isn't as abrasive as I expected. Not that it's not abrasive, it definitely is but I can also see the appeal to this. I'm actually enjoying this quite a lot, I can still hear great hooks and melodies behind the screaming. Honestly a 3.5, would possibly revisit!
I weirdly kind of liked this one Loved the guitars, was really vibin to it. Sadly the guys voice is terrible and the lyrics made me laugh at times. A solid "alright" album 3 ⭐️
Honestly? I can appreciate what this has done for the metal genre, but as an album it’s not really that great.
The audio quality undermines the effort here, yet the music is on par or better than what we get out of modern metal.
This may sound quite hilarious by today's standards, but for when it came out this was way ahead of the curve. This spawned thrash metal, death metal and black metal. It's just an amazingly influential album.
Nothing terrible just didn't enjoy it really
Delivers what it promises. I feel like in the 80s it was frowned upon when a metal singer was actually good at singing so it feels like they actively sing like shit. Good songs, poor execution - the sign of the 80s metal
holy moly make it stop. uninspired, boring and a weak voice, maybe i want my jazz albums back after all. i feel like i went to hell and back while listening to this cralbum (cralbum = crap album).
That's pretty metal.
I think I like this? There was a stretch in the middle of the album where the tracks were starting to get pretty same-y, but it recovered by the final couple tracks to deliver a project with a lot of influence not only for black metal, but also thrash acts from the mid-to-late 80s. You can hear groups like Slayer a ton, and while I don't know if that's a true connection, it certainly helps a listener feel right at home in something that could've been seen as relatively new in the 80s. However, the music itself is just okay. I know that the production was a rush job, but everything feels muffled and makes it difficult to appreciate any intricate instrumentation hiding below the surface. The lyrics are also just plain goofy, which works in some areas, but for songs like Teacher's Pet, it can be plain gross. At least the singer isn't putting on that silly voice most black metal bands seem to have, otherwise this whole album would be a comedy. It's an album that deserves to be listened to because of what it helped bring into the music world, but it itself is just okay, and were I more familiar with the genres and influences I would be far more undogmatic about the whole thing. Eh... still find myself feeling that way, anyhow.
not enough devil worshipping
My ears are bleeding. Not a fan
It's fascinating to listen to, as it's obviously very very influential. It's also very difficult to listen to as a drummer, as he's clearly terrible. It's a fun pastiche of every metal lyric but also bad. Presumably bad in a way that lots of very important musicians found to be good.
I'm always in the mood for a good old metal album and Black Metal helped satiate my thirst for one. The guitar riffs are those heavy, crunchy sounds that i really like. I also think the kinda muffled sounding audio works really well for an album like this and just makes it that much more heavy. I also really like the cool introductions that Buried Alive, Teacher's Pet, and i guess At War With Satan (if that track even counts as being on this album) they really add a lot of character to the songs. This is a great album that any heavy metal fan can enjoy. Best Song: Sacrifice Worst Song: Black Metal