For me it is "Heaven..." followed by "Opus...", the first one has such a diversity in songs which were incredibly powerful on their tour back then. Especially "Legion", "Darkness it shall be" and "Dracul va domni..." were so fantastic on that show that it blew me away. I only bought the album shortly before the gig but the songs were brutal but also memorable right in your face. For me the only Marduk album out of the whole discography that I instantly loved, most of the others needed some time to grow or stayed mediocre.

I think it's Viktoria....

I’m only really familiar with the legion era of Marduk so I would say without a doubt Heaven shall burn. Some say on this thread that they didnt like legions work but what is wrong with him seriously? i thought he did a killer job and that lineup was fantastic. Am i missing much by only listening to the legion era? I have a thing for the hyperspeed and seems weird to imagine them with a different vocalist,

Legion era is fine, but it's marred by a lack of inspiration. Grande Danse and World Funeral are serviceable albums that go on for far too long (although "Night of the Long Knives" has one of their best riffs). Nightwing is way too long, and Panzer Division just popularized a style that really kinda tarnished the scene's sound for awhile. I love Heaven Shall Burn quite a bit tho. Mainly though, people associated the Legion era with a shift towards a leaner, less dimensional sound. Listen to Those and Opus and you'll see how insanely varied and dark those albums are, and then go to Nightwing or World Funeral and it's just flat. You're definitely missing out on the Mortuus era though - Plague Angel is amazing, and Rom and Wormwood just serve you delicious riff salads.

Thanks, so I will have to listen to those in that case, so long as they're fast and brutal too haha. But I've heard Mortuus singing and doesnt grab me like Legion did, dunno if im being a bit harsh, and B War was a brilliant bassist. You don't hear much from the Legion lineup these days aside from the fact Morgan is the only person still in the band that was with them. B War is working on his other bands, Legion is a tattooist now and no one knows what Fredrik the drummer is up to right?

Almost finished listening to Rom 5:12 now, some cool songs on it and Riffs but about half of the album is midpaced??

Yes it is, but Rom 5:12 is fantastic, through & through. Wormwood is somewhat similar to Rom in mixing various atmospheres & tempos, and as PhilosophicalFrog said, Plague Angel is amazing.

C'mon- ignore the naysayers- modern day Marduk destroys! (same as classic era) This is one of the greatest extreme metal bands of all time. In the Top 10 or 20 for sure, prolific & powerful & their subject matter provocative & transgressive, which is what metal's about. Marduk will stand the test of time \m/

So which Mortuus era albums are solely hyperspeed?

Well, somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems both Serpent Sermon & Frontschwein are pretty fast through & through. Definitely faster than Rom & Wormwood.

Plague Angel has a lot of mid-paced stuff, but when it's fast it's punishingly fast. Brutal album in the truest sense. Maybe their best of the "new" era.

The other night after work I was in one of those moods that demanded relentlessly brutal brain-scouring music, so I popped in Disgorge's Consume the Forsaken, which is pretty much my gold standard for that sort of thing; afterward I wanted to sustain the mood, wanted something a little different in tone but still worthy of being "paired" with the Disgorge, and on a whim went for Plague Angel, kind of expecting to switch it after a few seconds. As it turns out, that album matches perfectly the sort of thing brutal death bands aim for. It's not all trebled out with distortion like other "brutal" black metal stuff. Totally visceral, guttural, fucking tectonic plate shattering music. So yes, I'd recommend that one for some high velocity impact spatter. (Romans is my fav new era Marduk, though.)

Those of the Unlight, no doubt. That to me is classic Marduk at their finest. Right behind it I'd actually say Serpent Sermons. It's the one I listen to the most.

Everything else is under those two. The only ones I haven't heard in full are World Funeral and Plague Angel. I'm a bigger fan of their mid-paced stuff, and even prefer the Mortuus era in most respects. Frontschwein took a while to grow on me since I didn't like it at first. Same thing with Viktoria, right now I don't like the album but it could have the same result down the road.

That's so cool to hear! I used to listen to this very album each and every evening after returning from work for the longest time back in '02/'03. Developed a steady routine of heading home, putting on the CD and getting high until I felt ready to go downstairs and socialize again. Good times!; and yes, this album fits the criteria for gold standard really nicely!

I really need to revisit Plague Angel... I remember it being extremely punishing, but still catchy and interesting unlike Panzer Division. When PA came out I must have been in one of my more raw underground phases, because I didn't listen to it a whole lot. I think it could be the "Heaven Shall Burn" of their newer era.

The first album I heard was Heaven Shall Burn (loved it) but I think my fav is Opus Nocturne of the albums that I have. I lost interest in the band for some reason after Panzer (even though I liked that album) so I'm not familiar with the rest of their catalog. I would have a lot of catching up to do to make a final judgement on my fav of their career. But for now I'm going with Opus. Heaven Shall a close second.

One of the strongest discographies in black metal, maybe metal period. Only one I outright dislike (Panzer Division Marduk) and a few middling (Heaven Shall Burn, World Funeral, Fuck Me Jesus). Dark Endless, like Necrophobic's The Nocturnal Silence, is swedeath with a dark vibe that's not overly generic. Those of the Unlight and Opus Nocturne are two of the best albums of the second wave. Plague Angel and Frontschwein showed how they could keep things interesting and still be blast-happy maniacs. They've got a few solid live albums too.

Luckily, Rom 5:12 is so magnificent it makes the choice easy. Few albums convey such oppressive bleakness. They work in some solos, a breakdown (the ending of "Vanity of Vanities"), clean singing and an atmospheric industrial track without screwing up the cohesion. Mortuus is in top-form--he sounds positively deranged. Thoughtful lyrics and great cover art are pluses.

For most underrated album, I'd say Serpent Sermon. It reminds me of Exhumed's Necrocracy, in that it's extremely aggressive, but still catchy. Also, they were both well-received, but have been kind of forgotten.

Marduk is one of those rare bands that have a huge discography that I enjoy completely. Even their more lackluster albums are just solid black metal. I think 'Heaven Shall Burn' and 'Opus Nocturne' are my favorites though I agree with Cat III that 'Serpent Sermon' is severely underrated. 'Plague Angel' and 'Frontschwein' are highlights for me as well.

'Viktoria' is the lowest album on my list but even it is a decent listen. Not many bands have such a high level of output.

Lords of the Nightrealm

Funny thing about Marduk, Panzer Division Marduk might be their most famous, or even relentless, album, but as this thread shows, they have several "better" albums. In my case, Opus Nocturne, Heaven Shall Burn, and Plague Angel all clearly rank above PDM. I feel like Plague Angel is the Mortuus-era Opus Nocturne, I was wondering whether the band would still bring it without B. War and Legion, but they sure pulled it off.

As for their other albums, seems like everything after Heaven... just copy-pasted that album, until Plague Angel. For some reason I did not like ROM. I liked Serpent Sermon, especially because of the awesome bonus song Coram Satanae, it was a genuine surprise the first time I heard it and I still enjoy it.