Yeah, I guess not. I know you like them and I understand the reasons that you like them, which are the exact same reasons I dislike them as much as I do. It's strange though that they get compared to Incantation, one of the darkest death metal bands in existence (and bands generally). Perhaps this isn't a good comparison for them then. Incantation is the second most similar artist in voting (which I actually voted DOWN) to The Chasm. They're also apparently similar to both Demigod and Funebrarum, two other bands specifically notable for the dark atmospheres and feelings they conjure up.

However, I think you are right that they can't be compared to one band, since they have a mixture of styles going on. Either way, I find them to be devoid of heaviness, sadly so. Putting brutality aside (which they absolutely lack), at least they could be heavy and I don't even feel they achieved that much. And like I said, the flat low-end lacking guitar tone and crystal clear production don't help any of this along.

But I find it difficult to believe that darkness is not something they are, at least peripherally, aiming for. Since epic and transcendental do not exclude the pursuit of darkness as well, and their themes feel as if they are, at least, attempting a degree of darkness. Their themes feel Lovecraftian to me, like dark-ish epic sci-fi/fantasy. Even in your own review, you described them as dark in your concluding paragraph. Regardless, they do not feel the least bit dark to me, and thus they failed to provide an important aspect I look for in death metal.

I don't think I'd rate any of their albums lower than 50% because all of them have some redeeming degree of musical quality, but on the other hand I don't think I'd rate any higher than 60-70% because they all lack good songwriting. Giving it a really low score is understandable to a point but I think it's not realistic when you judge all of their musical aspects.

They are devoid of any redeeming qualities to me musically/sonically. I hate just about everything about them and I think I expressed this pretty clearly in my review, so technically my score of 24% is rather generous really. However, I do think they are good musicians and performed well on the album in that respect, but that's really the only thing I'd say is any good at all about that album, their performances.

As for the darkness aspect, the darkness they attempted, whatever kind or flavor it be, failed in my eyes. That album doesn't feel dark to me at all, in any sense, and that's a negative to me.

I'm usually a guy who can see and agree with both sides of an issue, so while I agree with many points of your review I can also understand why some people think otherwise. And I usually devote such low scores for the really bad stuff, you know when people can't even play their instruments right or the songwriting is inexistent.

Not joking you around, I was just making conversation. Hey, this is a discussion board isn't it?!

Drumming Edge, I think you make a reasonable case for why you and perhaps others do not like The Chasm, but you throw in the word "brutality" maybe a dozen times in that thing, and seem to find it a real problem that The Chasm falls short in that area even though they're going for something completely different. I also couldn't help but notice that every other band you mentioned in that review sounds well...nothing at all like The Chasm. Who are these people who compare them to Incantation? They're so wrong. maybe they just say that because Daniel played guitar and did vocals on Diabolical Conquest, but his own band really couldn't be more different: towering melodious riffs, leads flying all over the place again with loads of overt melody, a completely different vocal style that certainly isn't aiming for brutality, and so on.

I do find the band to be pretty dark at times but "triumphant' is indeed a good way of elucidating the feeling of much of their music. Other vague adjectives like cosmic and vast also come to mind. I'm not really sure why you threw in all that stuff about lyrics and so on even though I agree that some of those long songs could use vocals to add a little texture to things. It's a shame that this is likely to be the last Chasm album as I actually think they're capable of topping it, as good as it is, and that Conjuration and Deathcult are still probably their best.

Guys, this is the same dude who thinks that Manowar is the best band ever and that Joey DeMaio is the savior of metal. You shouldn't take his opinions very seriously.

PS: The Chasm rules, by the way.

http://www.metal-archives.com/reviews/Ghost/Opus_Eponymous/284573/Evil_Wicked_Twisted_Mind

"I know my doom. I am not being pretentious, but I am confident when I say I know my doom. I've loved the genre for years, a love which continues to grow and I have done my fair share of research. So, when I talk about doom metal I like to think I know what I am talking about."

And he calls Ghost "doom"

The guy who reviewed the new Convulse album needs to do some research. He bitches that there are only "two songs" on it, but obviously downloaded it from somewhere, otherwise he would know that there are FOUR songs, according to this: http://www.facebook.com/Convulse#!/phot ... =1&theater

Guys, this is the same dude who thinks that Manowar is the best band ever and that Joey DeMaio is the savior of metal. You shouldn't take his opinions very seriously.

So you don't think bands should be judged on the merits of what they were going for, and how good they are at it, rather than how well they achieve some standard of a genre? I think bands can do anything they want and shouldn't be forced to stick to conventions of the genre; that sounds like a really boring musical world otherwise.

Lol, wut? You are pathetically confused about who I am and what I like.

Let's not confuse DrummingEdge for EmeraldEdge, now.

Svart themselves market it as a two track EP: http://www.svartrecords.com/shoppe/deat ... il-cd.html

Sorry DrummingEdge. As pointed out by Mike, I confused you with someone else (someone who also happens to be a massive anus). I apologize. You're still wrong about The Chasm though

To confirm, the promo packet I received for the EP had just the two studio tunes.

Indeed, 2005 was a transformative year for Frog. It was the year where he first found absolute transcendence in the grime of black metal. When he abandoned the cleanliness of symphonic black metal, and looked further into the abysmal hordes of underground satanic music. It was the year of no return, and Sargeist opened the gates slowly and deliberately, showing him just enough to crave more blackened filth – to forge his own path musically, realize that excellent songwriting can overcome any obstacles of production. Sargeist was, in a way, the catalyst for understanding black metal as it truly is; a frightening, harrowing, mind-opening experience. It was the beginning of a discipleship that would transform him as a musical listener – the embrace of the immensity of metal, and what truly wondrous things one could find when one stripped away all pretentions and looked solely at the passion and devotion of those creating it.

Ugh, what the hell is this?

He hasn't listened to None So Vile, he can't have.