The Darkthrone logo, as it has appeared on the band's releases since its first album, Soulside Journey. In 1996, the finished album Goatlord was released, with vocals added by Fenriz.īlack metal years Early black metal years: 1991–1994 These tracks were entirely instrumental but they demonstrated the band's gradual shift towards black metal.
Immediately following the release of this album, the band continued writing and recording new material, recording on tape until a full album was ready. Although mainly death metal in style, there were some elements of black metal present in terms of artwork and songwriting. Because of a small recording budget, the band could not afford the kind of studio they wanted but, thanks to the members of Nihilist and Entombed, they were able to record their album at Sunlight Studios. In 1990, they recorded their first studio album, Soulside Journey. They were subsequently signed to the independent record label Peaceville Records with a four-album contract. During 19, the band independently released four demo tapes: Land of Frost, A New Dimension, Thulcandra, and Cromlech. In late 1987, the band changed their name to Darkthrone and were joined by Dag Nilsen. Their main inspirations were Autopsy, Venom, Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, Slayer and Nocturnus. They were a death metal band by the name of Black Death whose members were Gylve Nagell, Ivar Enger and Anders Risberget. The band that would become Darkthrone formed in late 1986 in Kolbotn, a small town south of Oslo. From 2006, their music strayed from the traditional black metal style and incorporated more elements of traditional heavy metal, punk, and speed metal, while more recent albums have also included doom metal. They have sought to remain outside the music mainstream. They are considered the peak of the band's career and to be among the most influential albums in black metal.ĭarkthrone has been a duo of Fenriz and Nocturno Culto since guitarist Zephyrous left the band in 1993. Their first three black metal albums- A Blaze in the Northern Sky (1992), Under a Funeral Moon (1993) and Transilvanian Hunger (1994)-are sometimes dubbed the "Unholy Trinity". Formed in 1986 as a death metal band named Black Death, in 1991 Darkthrone embraced a black metal style influenced by Bathory and Celtic Frost and became one of the leading bands in the Norwegian black metal scene.
Darkthrone is a Norwegian extreme metal band from Kolbotn, Akershus.