Our first show in a year!
anarcho-primitivist death metal.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Black and Green Metal
I get asked about other black and green metal bands fairly often. My response is always rather lack-luster primarily because it's a phrase that I've made up. It's an obvious play on black metal and "black and green", the colors associated with green anarchy. It's a short cut and only half the answer has more to do with the philosophical drive of the band rather than it's musical influences.
As often as I come up with terms, I tend to hate having to describe what Peregrine sounds like. Blackened death metal doesn't do it for me because the anger and feeling behind the music is, to me, as much of an influence as any bands that I've listened to or played in.
Whether or not other bands would want to self-apply the black and green metal label is probably more in their hands. Two bands that I know of have and do so rather aptly, Woccon and Savagist, both of which have former Peregrine members. I'm sure there are others, but I probably am just unaware.
Rather than trying to decide who wants to use what term, I'll just say a bit about bands that I'd say we share sonic and philosophical currents with.
The anarchist influence on death metal is hard to overlook. You can almost see multiple strains within the history of death metal; a lot of politically ambiguous (or worse) metal-heads like Morbid Angel, Deicide, Cannibal Corpse, and so on, and then the anarchist/crust punk rooted realm of grindcore and death metal.
Obviously I feel more kinship with the latter.
And here I'm referring more specifically to bands like Napalm Death, Carcass, At the Gates (who shared multiple members with anarcho-crusters extraordinaire, Skitsystem), Terrorizer, Brutal Truth, Disrupt, and so on. It's always been disappointing to me to see the death metal side lack the carry over that grindcore has more or less kept alive with bands like Nasum, Discordance Axis, and hundreds of others. To take music that comes from such a deep anger and neuter it completely by falling into macho-misogynist crap and dully militant imagery (attracting military fucks along the way) is exactly what we're trying to work against by putting the anarchist aspects in the forefront.
Amongst contemporary death metal bands, it's hard to find many bands doing just that. Napalm Death deserves as much credit as possible for keeping it going for all these years and still standing strong. Aside from them, and the occasional question of whether Arch Enemy are serious or just kind of cheesy, Misery Index stand apart. Unquestionably anarchist and down-as-fuck, while pushing the limits of grind-infused death metal.
It's ultimately easier to find friends in the metal-tinged world of "apocalyptic crust". Seeds in Barren Fields and Auryn, both of whom we've shared splits with, share roots here with SiBF taking just as much from their Swedish death metal roots. Riding the coat-tails of the historically anarchist filled world of crust; from Disrupt, Amebix, Discharge, Nausea, and on through the down-tuned and crushing influences of His Hero is Gone, Uranus, and From Ashes Rise, you have the breeding grounds for black and green fused crust.
With a history of questioning not only the state, but Progress, industrialism, and "development", you have the rage and you have the right targets. And it pours into the sound of bands like Schifosi, El Ego, Ictus, and Martyrdod, bands that add depth to d-beat madness that is rooted in equal parts metal and hardcore.
More and more bands on this side of the fence are coming into the black and green fold. Frankly, it just feels right.
And then you have the hardcore influenced side.
As far as explicitly anarcho-primitivist bands, killtheslavemaster would be the first. Technical, metallic hardcore or technical, hardcore-infused metal, they have the wits and riffs to merit the claim. Rooted slightly more in Daniel Quinn than Zerzan, Undying are a close second. Riding the fence between hardcore and metal, it might seem like an insult to accuse them of being on the forefront of metalcore, but the term literally seems appropriate and their ability to meld the two seems the primary reason why their appeal is almost universal. And also why they fit on stage with Napalm Death and Kreator as on tours like the "Total Liberation" tour with the more traditionally hardcore, yet black and green moshers, Gather.
Beyond that is the lo-fi, "Cascadian" black metal world.
Here the black and green is more spiritually fused than anything. I really have no personal problem with that, but I find myself really uncomfortable with the uber-pagan influence. Some of the bands have tossed up the black and green flag or at least the black flag (Panopticon immediately comes to mind), while Wolves in the Throne Room and a number of similar bands have chosen to skirt the edges of affiliation.
Of course my point isn't to call out bands that haven't made a firm stance, it's obvious that this is where Peregrine is coming from, but I understand that's not everyone's interest. However, it would be nice to be as firm about civilization as opposition to racism (which can always be a rough spot for the more pagan pride folks).
So, what I'm really getting at is that the term "black and green metal" is subjective and probably too new to want to really define. Instead I'd rather just point to some of the influences on the idea behind it, as I've quickly done here. I've spent and will continue to spend more time devoted to the non-music oriented influences, so I just wanted to get this out of the way.
Two bands that I think deserve an extra shout out are the indigenous black metal outfit Corubo (get past the production and "Ãngy Mbya Kueíry Hachypáma, Opa Mba'e Achy Avei" is one of the most powerful albums ever recorded) and death-grind Towardis/Let the World Die.
So if you're looking for more, these are some starting points. If you're looking for something elaborate, sorry to disappoint. But if you want to see more black and green metal out there, just make it happen...
As often as I come up with terms, I tend to hate having to describe what Peregrine sounds like. Blackened death metal doesn't do it for me because the anger and feeling behind the music is, to me, as much of an influence as any bands that I've listened to or played in.
Whether or not other bands would want to self-apply the black and green metal label is probably more in their hands. Two bands that I know of have and do so rather aptly, Woccon and Savagist, both of which have former Peregrine members. I'm sure there are others, but I probably am just unaware.
Rather than trying to decide who wants to use what term, I'll just say a bit about bands that I'd say we share sonic and philosophical currents with.
The anarchist influence on death metal is hard to overlook. You can almost see multiple strains within the history of death metal; a lot of politically ambiguous (or worse) metal-heads like Morbid Angel, Deicide, Cannibal Corpse, and so on, and then the anarchist/crust punk rooted realm of grindcore and death metal.
Obviously I feel more kinship with the latter.
And here I'm referring more specifically to bands like Napalm Death, Carcass, At the Gates (who shared multiple members with anarcho-crusters extraordinaire, Skitsystem), Terrorizer, Brutal Truth, Disrupt, and so on. It's always been disappointing to me to see the death metal side lack the carry over that grindcore has more or less kept alive with bands like Nasum, Discordance Axis, and hundreds of others. To take music that comes from such a deep anger and neuter it completely by falling into macho-misogynist crap and dully militant imagery (attracting military fucks along the way) is exactly what we're trying to work against by putting the anarchist aspects in the forefront.
Amongst contemporary death metal bands, it's hard to find many bands doing just that. Napalm Death deserves as much credit as possible for keeping it going for all these years and still standing strong. Aside from them, and the occasional question of whether Arch Enemy are serious or just kind of cheesy, Misery Index stand apart. Unquestionably anarchist and down-as-fuck, while pushing the limits of grind-infused death metal.
It's ultimately easier to find friends in the metal-tinged world of "apocalyptic crust". Seeds in Barren Fields and Auryn, both of whom we've shared splits with, share roots here with SiBF taking just as much from their Swedish death metal roots. Riding the coat-tails of the historically anarchist filled world of crust; from Disrupt, Amebix, Discharge, Nausea, and on through the down-tuned and crushing influences of His Hero is Gone, Uranus, and From Ashes Rise, you have the breeding grounds for black and green fused crust.
With a history of questioning not only the state, but Progress, industrialism, and "development", you have the rage and you have the right targets. And it pours into the sound of bands like Schifosi, El Ego, Ictus, and Martyrdod, bands that add depth to d-beat madness that is rooted in equal parts metal and hardcore.
More and more bands on this side of the fence are coming into the black and green fold. Frankly, it just feels right.
And then you have the hardcore influenced side.
As far as explicitly anarcho-primitivist bands, killtheslavemaster would be the first. Technical, metallic hardcore or technical, hardcore-infused metal, they have the wits and riffs to merit the claim. Rooted slightly more in Daniel Quinn than Zerzan, Undying are a close second. Riding the fence between hardcore and metal, it might seem like an insult to accuse them of being on the forefront of metalcore, but the term literally seems appropriate and their ability to meld the two seems the primary reason why their appeal is almost universal. And also why they fit on stage with Napalm Death and Kreator as on tours like the "Total Liberation" tour with the more traditionally hardcore, yet black and green moshers, Gather.
Beyond that is the lo-fi, "Cascadian" black metal world.
Here the black and green is more spiritually fused than anything. I really have no personal problem with that, but I find myself really uncomfortable with the uber-pagan influence. Some of the bands have tossed up the black and green flag or at least the black flag (Panopticon immediately comes to mind), while Wolves in the Throne Room and a number of similar bands have chosen to skirt the edges of affiliation.
Of course my point isn't to call out bands that haven't made a firm stance, it's obvious that this is where Peregrine is coming from, but I understand that's not everyone's interest. However, it would be nice to be as firm about civilization as opposition to racism (which can always be a rough spot for the more pagan pride folks).
So, what I'm really getting at is that the term "black and green metal" is subjective and probably too new to want to really define. Instead I'd rather just point to some of the influences on the idea behind it, as I've quickly done here. I've spent and will continue to spend more time devoted to the non-music oriented influences, so I just wanted to get this out of the way.
Two bands that I think deserve an extra shout out are the indigenous black metal outfit Corubo (get past the production and "Ãngy Mbya Kueíry Hachypáma, Opa Mba'e Achy Avei" is one of the most powerful albums ever recorded) and death-grind Towardis/Let the World Die.
So if you're looking for more, these are some starting points. If you're looking for something elaborate, sorry to disappoint. But if you want to see more black and green metal out there, just make it happen...
Good news/Bad news
So we've got a little bit of good news and bad news.
The good news is that we're going to be playing a Marie Mason benefit in Baltimore on July 16th. This is going to be our first show in a year and it's going to kill with the added benefit of helping Green Scare prisoner Marie Mason.
Come out to this show. We'll post more on this later, but, seriously, come out to this show. We will bring it.
The bad news is that we're having to drop the Masakari/Alpinist show. I, KT, am an idiot. In my overzealous want to play this show I didn't realize that I was already set to do something else. Try as I might, I cannot change it.
However, Masakari and Alpinist are two of the best bands out there, so go watch them kill you. Wherever you might be...
The good news is that we're going to be playing a Marie Mason benefit in Baltimore on July 16th. This is going to be our first show in a year and it's going to kill with the added benefit of helping Green Scare prisoner Marie Mason.
Come out to this show. We'll post more on this later, but, seriously, come out to this show. We will bring it.
The bad news is that we're having to drop the Masakari/Alpinist show. I, KT, am an idiot. In my overzealous want to play this show I didn't realize that I was already set to do something else. Try as I might, I cannot change it.
However, Masakari and Alpinist are two of the best bands out there, so go watch them kill you. Wherever you might be...
Monday, May 9, 2011
The Original Affluent Society
I'm not a huge fan of Sahlins nor post-structuralism, but he's done some amazing work that heavily impacted our understanding of nomadic gatherer hunter societies.
This essay crashed the scene in 1966. It turned what were once conventional ideas about human nature on their heads and exposed that civilization had not only failed to offer us any value or growth, but taken it away. The primal anarchy in which our nomadic gatherer-hunter ancestors and relatives live is stronger than anything technology produces. And it will outlast.
"The wanderers will re-arise."
The Original Affluent Society
This essay crashed the scene in 1966. It turned what were once conventional ideas about human nature on their heads and exposed that civilization had not only failed to offer us any value or growth, but taken it away. The primal anarchy in which our nomadic gatherer-hunter ancestors and relatives live is stronger than anything technology produces. And it will outlast.
"The wanderers will re-arise."
The Original Affluent Society
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Egalitarian Societies
If you only read one anthropological essay, let this be it: Egalitarian Societies by James Woodburn.
Woodburn is largely responsible for laying out the distinctions between hunter-gatherer societies, why some are the most egalitarian societies to ever exist to why sedentary hunter-collector societies had more rigid hierarchies. What this essay says about human nature and our primal anarchy says more than everything in the anarchist cannon.
It is by seeing where hierarchy and power originate that we can find the methods to undo it.
Egalitarian Societies
Woodburn is largely responsible for laying out the distinctions between hunter-gatherer societies, why some are the most egalitarian societies to ever exist to why sedentary hunter-collector societies had more rigid hierarchies. What this essay says about human nature and our primal anarchy says more than everything in the anarchist cannon.
It is by seeing where hierarchy and power originate that we can find the methods to undo it.
Egalitarian Societies
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Post-Historic Primitivism
Paul Shepard, above all, has probably been one of the most important influences on anarcho-primitivism and is often shamefully overlooked. This essay is one of his later ones and proves that Shepard was metal before metal existed.
When it comes to critiques of domestication, framing the vitality of wildness, the connectivity of all life, Shepard laid the path.
Post Historic Primitivism
When it comes to critiques of domestication, framing the vitality of wildness, the connectivity of all life, Shepard laid the path.
Post Historic Primitivism
Monday, April 25, 2011
Against His-Story, Against Leviathan
Much of the contemporary anarcho-primitivist milieu owes its existence to Fredy Perlman.
A devout anarchist who escaped the Holocaust, waded through the workerist-productionist notions of anarchism to become a voice against the father of the State: civilization itself. Along with the post-left anarchists and far-left communists like Jacques Camatte, Perlman overturned traditional notions of power, revolution, the left's embrace of production, the spiritual crushing of the civilizing process, the innate destructiveness of modernity on our earth, and the lineage of opposition to civilization from its inception.
His life was cut short in 1985, but he's left behind a legacy filled with inspiration, devotion and a sense of emotion that has hardly been replicated since his demise.
Against His-Story, Against Leviathan is his masterpiece. A history of civilization told through its dissidents in an oral fashion. It's a scathing critique of civilization and one of the most powerful texts ever written.
I'm no fan of reading shit online. I have copies of the book, but too far behind on mail order to post it up for sale till I get a system figured out for getting packages out the door faster. Pick up a copy of the book. If you can hack online reading, the link below is for the entire book.
I can't recommend this enough.
Against His-Story, Against Leviathan
A devout anarchist who escaped the Holocaust, waded through the workerist-productionist notions of anarchism to become a voice against the father of the State: civilization itself. Along with the post-left anarchists and far-left communists like Jacques Camatte, Perlman overturned traditional notions of power, revolution, the left's embrace of production, the spiritual crushing of the civilizing process, the innate destructiveness of modernity on our earth, and the lineage of opposition to civilization from its inception.
His life was cut short in 1985, but he's left behind a legacy filled with inspiration, devotion and a sense of emotion that has hardly been replicated since his demise.
Against His-Story, Against Leviathan is his masterpiece. A history of civilization told through its dissidents in an oral fashion. It's a scathing critique of civilization and one of the most powerful texts ever written.
I'm no fan of reading shit online. I have copies of the book, but too far behind on mail order to post it up for sale till I get a system figured out for getting packages out the door faster. Pick up a copy of the book. If you can hack online reading, the link below is for the entire book.
I can't recommend this enough.
Against His-Story, Against Leviathan
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