Dark Funeral

It's albums like this which frighten me, for after listening to this album for the 30th time in as many days, I begin to think that I am becoming a black metal convert. All that it takes to dispel this belief is to throw on, say, most of the other crap that is spawned daily from the norse netherworld. I may be a black metal snob, but it takes something pretty special to catch my interest in this genre, and Vobiscum Satanas just dragged me in from the first cut. A brilliant blend of Emperor's power and Dissection's finesse, Dark Funeral have created (along with studio mastermind Peter Tägtgren) an epic opus sure to rank among the best albums released this year. Sure, the sound is pure evil, standard, black metal, but something, maybe the strong sense of melody, or the crystal clear production, forces me to listen to this over and over. While rather short (clocking in at roughly 34 minutes) the album blends well as a whole, spreading the satanic vibe over 8 tracks of grandiose musical landscapes. Many may find this too similar to Emperor or Dissection, but I might actually prefer this album to the former for everyday listening (Dissection just kills too much to be surpassed), but that is my personal taste for today. So, definitely pick this beast up and figure out for yourself if Dark Funeral have managed to enter the sacred halls of evil hall of fame. As for me, I give it a solid 8 for effort, performance and overall production. One interesting rumor is that supposedly bassist/vocalist Emperor Magus-Caligula is none other than Masse Broberg from the first two Hypocrisy albums!
8 out of 10