Bathory - Under The Sign Of The Black Mark (1987)

 Under The Sign Of The Black Mark is where Bathory fully morphed from raw, punk-inflected speed metal into something mythic and unholy. Quorthon conjures a grim atmosphere through primitive production, icy tremolo riffs, and rasped vocals that became the blueprint for the second-wave of black metal. Honestly, I feel like this album also hints at the development of pagan/nature black metal that came much later with bands like Drudkh and Agalloch… definitely treading new paths. Fantastic album to boot.

2014 Swedish repress on Black Mark. 

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