I've been meaning to get into Midnight's music for a while, and I only ever played a few tracks here and there before recently. And listening to it, I had a strong 2006-2013 Darkthrone vibe. Yet, a lot of people seem to be displeased with Darkthrone's later output, while Midnight, especially with the demos, Satanic Royalty and No Mercy For Mayhem, seem to be very well received among the community. I was wondering why that was. I had a few educated guesses, namely that some of the black metal purists might have been displeased with Darkthrone moving away from 2nd wave black metal and toward something else, while Midnight was always evolving within that black/speed metal genre.

In the end, I feel that both share similar elements, and yes, that both often sound rather similar. Satanic Royalty had quite a few elements that, in my opinion, are very reminiscent of The Underground Resistance, Circle the Wagons and Dark Thrones and Black Flags. So I'd like to hear other people's opinions on this. Thanks in advance!

I think that era has been very well received in hindsight, but ten years ago I remember there being a good amount of negativity around new Darkthrone. But it could have been a case of a minority of people wanting to make it super clear they don't like it.

You don't hear clamoring for more Soulside Journey.

The only album from that era of Darkthrone I have trouble getting into is "The Underground Resistance". Other than that, I think that era of Darkthrone's pretty damn enjoyable. I don't see a lot of hate for their speed/black/punk hybrid stuff myself - the albums seem pretty well received for the most part.

Yes you do. That kind of dark, semi-doomy, semi-technical weirdo death metal is really one of a kind. Takes some getting used to but I absolutely love it. But being a death metal band on Peaceville, never seems to turn out the way Peaceville planned with signing lots of death metal bands, but almost always turns out great.

I think you have to take in consideration the fact that the time period during which Darkthrone released most of their black/speed/crust material older forms of heavy metal were not so much in vogue, even in the underground. Traditional forms of heavy metal like speed metal obviously had their diehard fans back then, but those subgenres really only started getting popular amongst a wider audience over the past decade or so with the advent of the NWOTHM movement.

Even a band like Midnight didn't really achieve a significant amount of attention until the first/second full length (I want to say No Mercy for Mayhem is really when people started paying attention). I would say that for the bulk of Midnight's early career, they (or rather he, since it's basically Athenar) weren't much more than a cult underground band, and naturally the people picking up their demos, EPs and splits were already into that sound. Whereas Darkthone already had a large fanbase who were not necessarily fans of the 80s stuff Fenriz and Nocturno Culto were vibing on when they wrote Dark Thrones and Black Flags, Circle the Wagons or The Underground Resistance. So there weren't necessarily a whole bunch of new fans attracted to what Darkthrone were doing at the time, and the older fans didn't really jump on the bandwagon.

Well, i feel like this is kind of a false equivalence. I've never thought of polling metal fans about a topic like this but I'm not going to assume the same people who dismiss Darkthrone's contemporary stuff are also fans of Midnight. For the record, I prefer the Darkthrone stuff, myself. Midnight is a really fun live band though, even if at times too prone to intoxication to actaully be good. I enjoyed the time they just played nothing but Motorhead songs.

I think that era has been very well received in hindsight, but ten years ago I remember there being a good amount of negativity around new Darkthrone. But it could have been a case of a minority of people wanting to make it super clear they don't like it.

I think this probably does account for something. I remember a fair share of negative criticism being addressed towards these Darkthrone records were people claiming that this was a dated sound and that they were not building up to anything new. Which I strongly disagree with, but it was common. It's also true that Midnight seems to have gained broader popularity only a few years back, and at least a few years after the release of their first LP. Thanks for your answer. Interesting insight!

I enjoy both projects personally but I think there are multiple factors when it comes to this perceived double standard:
1) Midnight established their sound from the get-go and doesn't seem to have changed very much in that time whereas Darkthrone has 3+ decades of baggage and stylistically different classics to live up to.
2) Midnight is also well known and arguably best experienced as a live band whereas Darkthrone adamantly refuses to play gigs.
3) There is also something to be said for the differences in tone; neither band takes itself super seriously but there is a distinction between Midnight's sleazy sex appeal and Darkthrone's "middle-aged goobers playing whatever kinds of metal they want" persona.

Yes you do.

I think Soulside Journey certainly has its fanbase, even if it's not the most vocal compared to those who praise A Blaze In The Northern Sky, Under A Funeral Moon or Transilvanian Hunger. There are also a fair amount of the newer crop of OSDM revival bands that take influence from it, like Obliteration. You'd think with how different that album was to everything else that was being released at the same time, that more people would've picked up on it but I guess Darkthrone's death metal period is overlooked mainly because of how short it is and how much of an impact they had on black metal after the switched to it.

Not really a fan of Midnight. They give a good show, they sound good, but I don't really listen to them. Good opener

Darkthrone is a band of a huge importance and status for the black metal genre. A Blaze In The Northern Sky have been chosen last month by the Norwegian National Library for their collection : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycqaXrNnNfU
They are synonym with "true black metal" and they still sell t-shirts with those three words on the back. Any band with that kind of status will receive their share of criticism of they step a foot outside of what they are known for.

I love their black metal period, but nowadays their latests albums get more spins for me. They are fun and filled with great, simple catchy metal riffs. I love Celtic Frost's Morbid Tales so so much. Darkthrone's sound is very close to that album.

Thanks for the video. I'll look into it after work!

It's very nice that an entity like the Norwegian National Library is giving recognition to the norwegian pioneers or the black metal scene. All three records of Darkthrone's black metal trilogy are highly deserving of such recognition. And I think you're right that people who are reacting negatively to the later outputs of Darkthrone might often be doing so because they are comparing them to the early black metal records, not specifically on songwriting or execution, but just because it's not of a genre of music they like.

So like we stated earlier in this thread, most people who criticize 2006-2013 Darkthrone aren't people who actually listen to Midnight's music.

The same people who complained about them over this era of their discography, often are the same who are celebrating a return to form with the latest two records. Again, what seems to matter is the genre of music being played, and not the actual quality of the music. Which is a little sad, really, since there are legitimate reasons to criticize the music beyond just "they aren't kvlt anymore".

I haven't really liked anything the band has done since Transilvanian Hunger because I basically view "retro" metal as being creatively kind of bankrupt. I think it's possible to look ahead by looking back (Darkthrone's classic early 90s trilogy is this par excellence), but simply reproducing the style of your influences is not something that typically interests me.