This is my first post =/ possibly controversial topic. I'm new to this thing so lets see how it works out.

When I received the 2010 reissue of Nechrist/Нехристь in the post, I noticed some things that had changed from previous releases. Firstly the celtic cross symbol that was on the original artwork has been removed, which is sometimes associated with white supremacist and other hate organisations.

Also, some of the lyrics have been changed, noticeably in The Call of Aryan Spirit and Jesus Blood, where all mention of killing jews has been removed and replaced with different lyrics, white man’s power is changed to proud man’s power. I am not sure if any more lyrics have been altered, as most of the album is in their own language (Russian or Ukrainian, not sure). However, using Google translate it seems that anti-semitic lyrics are present also in Black Raven, In the Fire of the Wooden Churches and Nechrist – The Dance of Swords. However, the 88 individual tracks on the CD are still present.

Is this alteration just to help with distribution of the CD or have they done this based on changes to ideology? I know a few years ago there was rumour of them ditching the racist and NS stuff but… I am not sure. Maybe this is an indication of the latter? What are your general opinions on this?

Nechrist is one of my favourites from this band musically speaking, so that is why I am interested in this.

Below are the different lyrics as seen in the reissue booklet: and also the alternate artwork. ++ indicates lyric changes.

The voice calling me into darkness,
Open the gates through which I'll leave
The call of the ancient blood calls me to fight
The call of slavonic blood

Aryan lands with the boundless expanse
Through milleniums come to me
The forests and steppers everything I own
Is given to the damned +fucking+ tribe

My blood is calling me, and I won't calm down
Until I taste the smell of their blood
The moon whispers about the darkness
The stars are leading me through the clouds

Silver people with white skin
Are gathering to perform a rite
The wisemen are cursing on the +bastard+ scum
And I see the +proud+ man's power!

Spit in +ugly+ faces, cut them into pieces
Let them choke with their lie
Let the woods grow up on their corpses only +proud+ man's power!

We are the only ones to have the right for this land!
It's ours, indeed!
These rivers have been flowing together with our blood for ages
This grass has grown on the bodies of our killed warriors
Hey, stay with us, our aryan spirit!

Let our slavonic blood boil up with our hatred
Hey, our land, stay with us!
Let every step on our land turn for the damnation on +them+!
+Our+ power, you have to destroy of useless tribes
Under your glorious obsession!
Because they are not people,
They are worms whose mission is only parasitism
Let the aryan spirit support us!
The war is sacred! total war!


http://s1065.photobucket.com/albums/u391/dunkelheit616/Nokturnal%20Mortum/?action=view&current=NokturnalMortum-Nechrist.jpg&newest=1

There is an interesting interview with Vargoth in Frostkamp magazine where he talks about politics if you want to read.
http://frostkamp.wordpress.com/2008/08/05/nokturnal-mortum-interview/

If you read the lyrics from any of the songs on The Voice of Steel, you will find it difficult to find anything "racist" about it, aside from a line about "pride of blood" from the title track. Whether this signifies a change of heart or an attempt to reach a wider audience and increase sales, I don't know. I've noticed an overall trend in the Eastern European pagan metal scene where bands are shying away from the racial politics (Temnozor being another big example; their latest album does have a few references to "fair-haired children" and things like that, but are lacking anthems like "Watch the Falcon Fly" or "White Thunder Roars"), but I don't know why that is happening. There are still a few pagan metal bands out there who have explicitly racist lyrics or artwork (like Velimor), but I don't think it's as widespread as it was five-to-ten years ago.

I think you hit the nail on the head.

It does seem strange. But what is the point on cutting down on little bits of racism here and there, when you still have a song titled The Call of Aryan Spirit?

They may as well go the whole hog or not bother - it can't be about reaching a wider audience, surely?

Either way, I do like a bit of Nokturnal Mortum.

Personally, I hope this isn't the reason they did it. After all, this is the band that left an international contract with The End Records because of the original NeChrist release. Maybe they realized that you don't need to hate another culture or ethnicity in order to have pride in your own. I don't know. Maybe Varggoth fell in love with a pretty Jewish girl.

maybe it's a bit of both. Reflecting about silly, stupid stuff done as an "angry young man" and maybe restraining from that as an actual adult person. Yes, I know, age is not a factor when it comes to hating whatever group of people but sometimes one's mind changes for whatever reason and one gains just a different view of things.
However the possibility of reaching a bigger audience is now way more easy (internet) than to times of the release of "NeChrist" and "shocking" possible new consumers with racial lyrics is sth NM would want to step back from now that chances are good their music (and as such maybe a bit of money) will be heard by 1378% more people than in 1999.

Alas, I love the theory of "falling in love with a jewsih girl" The power of love, yeah!

Seems like one part growing up, one part wanting to reach a wider audience. Good to see some bands ditching the retarded and juvenile racist themes.

Want to know the real reason? They've been watching My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.

For the love of Perun,

OT: I don't think they did a very good job of appealing to a larger audience if they still have NS stuff in their native language as well as the 88 track thing still going on. And helping with the distribution of the CD by slightly altering the lyrics isn't going to help sell more. They're still signed to the same obscure label (Oriana).

Probably for distribution purposes I'd think.

You're just a hopeless romantic, aren't you!
As funny as it is though, that could be the reason!

In any case, I think Voice of Steel is an absolute masterpiece in terms of music. (Haven't listened to NeChrist) I rarely bother with the lyrics anyway, especially when they are in a language I don't understand. Racist or not, I won't let the artist's personal views ruin the music I enjoy. You know, separation of doer and deed and all that shit.

It surprises me people still get offended over lyrical content like a mother watching The Simspsons twenty years ago

I don't see how this makes sense as the song title has not been changed and the word aryan is still in the lyrics. Not going to do much to change people's minds. Honestly the band is getting increasingly popular anyway and I'm sure most people know of their past political sentiments so it's not a big deal. This is still my favorite album of theirs and I've never let their ideology get in the way of my enjoyment of the music. Who cares.

Complete inconsistency and trying to pc an album without actually making an effort to do so. Failed execution, and a failure of an album to begin with. The gutter-point in NM's career.

While we're focusing on this album, does that say "NeChrist" on the cover at the bottom? That "Hexpucmb" thing? Dumb question, serious answer please. What's he holding on the cover anyway? Looks like Bugs Bunnie's dismembered head.

It's hilarious how racist lyrics get removed while bands who write about murdering or raping people are still getting their music sold freely.

I wonder why people refer to abandoning your ideas in order to maintain political correctness as "growing up".

Because racism and culture threat paranoia is childish at best.

I would say because that kind of anger and hatred is typically very juvenile in nature and often people do simply outgrow them, or those beliefs become less fervent and important to them, and I'm saying this as someone who's own father refers to as having "radical" (his polite way of saying right-wing) beliefs.



Oh come on now. The latter is often tongue in cheek or just shock value. The former is closer to preaching actual violence and sometimes even genocide.

NM is pretty shit though anyway, doesn't really matter if they grew out of the racist bullshit.

It's pretty clear to me what's going on. They haven't changed the lyrics that much, but just enough to soften the blow a little bit. Perhaps their ideology has changed, but I think it's likely more a matter of trying to appeal to a greater number of people. This band is huge now, relatively speaking; they obviously are getting a lot of recognition outside of the tight-knit eastern pagan black metal circles and I can't say how many newcomers to their music The Voice of Steel has brought in, but I can for sure tell that the numbers are astronomical.

And you can't really convince anyone by pushing their irritation buttons or making them think right off the bat, "jee, stupid racist band, I won't bother". All those bands who have blatantly racist content, insult all kinds of ethnic groups and so on, are really just preaching to the already converted One has a lot more success spreading an ideology by attempting some subtlety and inspiring thought rather than drunken "here here!"s...

That said, there still isn't much subtle about this band and no matter how anthemic they become they just leave me completely cold. But I can see why in particular their new stuff appeals to vast crowds of people, and why they'd want to keep it that way.

When you say they leave you cold, do you mean the music in general, or the lyrics themselves? I mean, ignoring the lyrical content, I definitely think Voice of Steel has some powerful tunes.

The lyrics don't bother me. It's not that I don't pay attention to lyrics (I do, I find it really helps one understand where an artist is coming from and, anyway, is part of the overall package); I just see them as shouts of exuberant romanticism and zeal, in line with plenty of what metal does and often does well. I do mean the music. Just seems rather empty to me, more admirable perhaps at times than it is actually good, in that one can tell they possess a certain talent and excitement for what they do, but it does not resonate with me at all. I kind of marveled at the ambition of Voice of Steel but no matter what progressive surprises they throw in I just don't see them as a band I'd ever really want to listen to. It's all very big and anthemic and prideful but it's speaking to someone who is not me.

Well that's fair enough. I was nicely surprised when I heard Voice of Steel but I can see where you're coming from.

I don't think so not with a band like Nokturnal Mortum after they released Goat Horns they were offered a contract with Nuclear Blast and they refused it because they saw NB as a commercial metal label so I can't see why they would be interested in increasing sales all of a sudden.

Oh and the voice of steel is the best album of 2010.

Metal love story of the century! Let's set him up, guys!

I mean, you set him up. I'm sure not going near him.

Yeah, those black metal people are usually quite weird. Stay away, hehe.

2009.

Just the band covering their asses via the record label's requirements. As the band grows this album in particular would start to gather the wrong crowd and they'd end up in a similar position to what Skrewdriver found themselves. A NS front instead of an actual 'working mens' band which the intention always was.

Winterfylleth sacrificed their ex-bassist Chris in a similar fashion.

I can understand they changing in mentality, but it's pretty wimpy to change and cover up the stuff you have done in the past.

Was that the guy with the Sunwheel shirt on their first album? I was wondering if that was the case.

Not too sure as I only got the promo of Heritage, but C. Westby was the original bassist for the group before all the fuss was kicked up pre-Satans Hollow gig a few years back. And the band unanimously agreed between them to drop him due to the unwanted attention it created.

Nothing wimpy about it. You are just projecting. It is their art and they can do what they want with it.

Damn Abom... not gonna argue taste or anything, but it's hard to imagine not being enthralled by some of those incredible riffs and atmospheres. Volkish pride isn't really my bag either, but just the fucking music itself is pure overwhelming epicness and passion and resplendence.

This. I also agree.

Anyway, I'm white, so any racist beliefs don't offend me. Can't understand a word they're saying anyway seeing as how it's mostly in a different language... Voice of Steel is one fucking awesome record though. First time I played the CD, it absolutely floored me. So, yeah, I don't care what kind of beliefs you have - if you put out that kind of awesome music, then I will definitely support you.

How does removing/changing lyrics later change anything? I mean the original music still exists, right?

Exactly. That's political correctness for you.


Shut the hell up.

"All of a sudden"? Goat Horns was released almost 15 years ago. A ton changes in 15 years. They might have kids and families to take care of now. Or they might be sick of being broke musicians. With the style they played on the last album they could definitely have relatively good sales for an extreme metal band. Its very catchy stuff and a lot of people I know who are only mildly into extreme metal really liked that album. However, if the band is associated with national socialism then that will kill their marketability.

The other possibility is that they just realized that racism is retarded and no longer wanted to have their art associated with it.

Please be more constructive with your comments instead of just telling me to shut up.

True. But denying your past for any reason is quite poor. Too bad they're a good band, actually.

There's a big difference between denying your past and trying to make amends for it. I have no idea what they're hoping to achieve by reinventing the album artwork and lyrics, but I'd rather not jump to conclusions. Lots of conclusion-jumping in this thread elsewhere, too.

I didn't much care for NeChrist but I've finally given The Voice of Steel a decent listen and it is overwhelmingly immense and impressive. Wish I'd listened to a friend's recommendation many months ago