Black Metal

Wahrnehmung als Übersetzung. Brigitte Kowanz’ „Now I See“ (MUMOK Wien 2010) zwischen Paul Virilios Ästhetik des Verschwindens und Jean Baudrillards Simulationstheorie

Erschienen anlässlich
Redaktioneller Beitrag und Video-Künstlerporträt zur Ausstellung „Brigitte Kowanz. Now I See“ (MUMOK Wien, 2010). Produziert von CastYourArt (KA21 GmbH); Produktionscrew: Ewa Stern, Cédrik Kaub, Birgit Laback. Mit freundlicher Unterstützung des UNIQA ArtCercles.

Video
https://www.castyourart.com/brigitte-kowanz-now-i-see.html

Brigitte Kowanz’ Retrospektive „Now I See“ im MUMOK Wien (2010) entfaltet das gesamte Spektrum einer künstlerischen Praxis, die Licht, Sprache und Raum als epistemische Medien begreift. In installativen Eingriffen von 1984 bis zur Gegenwart wird Licht zum operativen Material einer Reflexion über Wahrnehmung selbst: Neon-Texte, Morsezeichen-Arbeiten, Spiegelsäle und architektonische Interventionen im öffentlichen Raum – darunter eine Lichtinstallation am UNIQA Tower – konstruieren ein Feld, in dem Form und Inhalt in tautologischer Verdoppelung zusammenfallen. „Wahrnehmung ist Übersetzung. Sprache ist Übersetzung“, so Kowanz: Licht wie Sprache sind nicht neutrale Träger, sondern Filter, durch die hindurch Wirklichkeit erst entsteht.
Der theoretische Rahmen des Beitrags verknüpft Kowanz’ Werk mit zwei medienphilosophischen Positionen, die den epistemologischen Einsatz der Arbeit schärfen. Paul Virilios Ästhetik des Verschwindens beschreibt, wie die Beschleunigung elektronischer Bildübertragung „stabile“ Bilder auflöst – Bildschirme werden zu Projektionsflächen von Gesellschaftsgespenstern. Jean Baudrillards Simulationstheorie radikalisiert diesen Befund: Realität ist immer schon künstlich produziert, das Verhältnis zwischen Subjekt und Welt von Ideologie und Mediencode durchdrungen. Kowanz’ Lichtinstallationen operieren in diesem Spannungsfeld: Sie machen die Bedingungen der Wahrnehmung sichtbar, statt Wahrnehmung selbst zu simulieren – und entwickeln damit eine operative Kritik an der Simulationsgesellschaft aus deren eigenen Mitteln.

Keywords: Brigitte Kowanz, Lichtkunst, Mediale Epistemologie, Paul Virilio, Ästhetik des Verschwindens, Jean Baudrillard, Simulationstheorie, Wahrnehmung als Übersetzung, Neon, Sprachinstallation, Operative Strukturen, Österreichische Gegenwartskunst

Ta część serii "Metapolityka polska" analizuje slawobiznes jako końcowe, miękkie ogniwo metapolityki słowiańskiej: rynek festiwali, warsztatów, kręgów, amuletów, motanek, ziół, koncertów relaksacyjnych, gimnastyki słowiańskiej, literatury popularnej i alternatywnej duchowości.

Artykuł pokazuje, jak słowiańskie dziedzictwo, zamiast pozostawać polem rzetelnej edukacji i badań nad kulturą ludową, bywa przekształcane w produkt przeżyciowy sprzedawany jako zakorzenienie, moc przodków, praca z energią, kobieca inicjacja albo duchowa regeneracja. W kolejnych rozdziałach omówiono mechanizmy marki słowiańskiej, festiwalową akademię emocji, synkretyzmy New Age, Wicca i neoszamanizmu, warsztatowy model wtajemniczenia, lokalny guruizm, ekonomię amuletów i rękodzieła, instytucjonalne oswajanie ezoduchowości, edukację dzieci, obieg literacko-festiwalowy oraz miejsca styku slawobiznesu z nacjopogańską metapolityką. Osobne miejsce zajmują przykłady środowisk internetowych, wydawniczych i gnostycko-ezoterycznych, które poszerzają słowiański rynek przeżyć poza wąsko rozumiane rodzimowierstwo.

Celem artykułu jest wskazanie granicy między kulturą, rekonstrukcją, religią, folklorem i produktem. Tekst nie neguje wartości popularyzacji Słowiańszczyzny, rękodzieła, tradycji ludowej ani edukacji regionalnej. Bada te sytuacje, w których brak źródeł, niejasne kwalifikacje prowadzących, terapeutyczna inflacja obietnic i komercyjny język duchowości tworzą podatne pole wpływu.

Dziewiąta część serii "Metapolityka polska" przenosi analizę z pola rekonstrukcji historycznej, muzeów, wystaw i cyfrowej produkcji autorytetu do środowiska muzyki ekstremalnej, przede wszystkim do nurtu narodowo-socjalistycznego black metalu. Nie chodzi tu o opis black metalu jako gatunku muzycznego ani o moralistyczną krytykę całej sceny metalowej.

Przedmiotem analizy jest węższe zjawisko: wykorzystanie muzyki ekstremalnej jako kanału metapolityki, w którym antychrześcijaństwo, neopogaństwo, estetyka wojownika, mit krwi i ziemi, rasizm, lucyferianizm, satanistyczna transgresja oraz kult siły zostają przetworzone w przekaz subkulturowy.

Centralnym przypadkiem tej części będzie Robert Fudali, występujący jako Rob Darken, lider projektu Graveland. W literaturze anglojęzycznej Graveland pojawia się jako jeden z ważnych przykładów narodowo-socjalistycznego black metalu, obok niemieckiego Absurd. Ryan Buesnel wskazuje, że nurt ten od początku lat dziewięćdziesiątych łączył black metal z treściami skrajnie prawicowymi, aryjską wyższością, pogańską duchowością i antyglobalizmem.

Równocześnie oficjalna autoprezentacja Graveland przesuwa język ku "epic pagan metal", estetyce walki, pogańskiego oporu, Ragnaröku i kultu bitewnego heroizmu. Muzyka ekstremalna działa tu jako laboratorium ideologiczne. Dźwięk, okładka, logo, pseudonim, wywiad, manifest, kaseta, fanzin, koncert, dystrybucja podziemna i późniejszy obieg cyfrowy tworzą środowisko, w którym radykalne idee nie muszą przyjmować postaci programu politycznego. Podane jako styl, bunt, mrok, transgresja, duchowa wojna z chrześcijaństwem albo powrót do "pogańskich korzeni", zaczynają działać przez afekt, hałas, agresję, mit i subkulturową inicjację.

¿Who are your demons? It's difficult to approximate to mental illness from an historical point of view. Even from the point of view of ideas-of philosophy-the only solution philosophically speaking is an archaeology of ideas to this respect. It's what Foucault began in this territorymental illness-and in the field of education. Nietzsche said we are "all the names of history" about. The difficult is the same. How to be a mental illness person in medieval age or in any other age? How to be the therapist?

Dette temastudie undersøger spændingsfeltet mellem kognitiv neurovidenskab og den æstetiske erfaring af ekstremmusik, med særligt fokus på black metal-projektet Myrkur og nummeret "Måneblôt". Opgaven udfordrer den kliniske forståelse af mental sundhed, som den præsenteres i whitepaperet Music in the Brain, hvor auditiv støj ofte reduceres til et "biologisk mismatch" eller en fejlmargin, der skal minimeres for at opnå homøostase.

Gennem en fænomenologisk-æstetisk analyse, funderet i Maurice Merleau-Pontys kropsfænomenologi og Hartmut Rosas resonansteori, argumenteres der for, at støjen i Myrkurs univers fungerer som en nødvendig "kulturel korrektion". Studiet belyser, hvordan Myrkurs bevidste brug af distortion, blastbeats og sonisk aggression transformerer støjen fra at være en kognitiv belastning til at blive en meningsfuld, legemliggjort arkitektur – en "auditiv hud".

Centrale teoretiske og analytiske fokuspunkter:

    Det Sublime vs. Det Skønne: En undersøgelse af, hvordan kollisionen mellem nordiske folketoner og black metal skaber en "sublim rystelse", der muliggør eksistentiel resonans frem for blot klinisk lindring.

    Haptisk lytning: En transformation af Laura U. Marks' begreber til det auditive felt for at forklare, hvordan støjen mærkes som taktil tekstur og fysisk berøring.

    Sansningens politik: En diskussion af neurodiversitet og retten til at "bebo dissonansen" som et modspil til samtidens neoliberale affektkontrol og krav om optimering.

Opgaven konkluderer, at sundhed i en æstetisk kontekst ikke handler om reparation eller elimination af mørke, men om evnen til at integrere både "englen" og "monstret" i en samlet, resonansgivende væren-i-verden.

Diante da variedade de expressões femininas no metal extremo, constituídas pelo modo como algumas mulheres cantam, tocam, se vestem, se maquiam e produzem suas músicas, videoclipes, fotografias e capas de discos, optamos por analisar neste
capítulo as representações lírico-musicais do feminino em quatro músicas do álbum Bellatrix, um álbum conceitual, dedicado exclusivamente à história de mulheres guerreiras de várias épocas e lugares, lançado em 2019 pelo Frantic Amber, uma banda de death metal sueca formada, em sua maioria, por mulheres. Assim, seguimos com
a proposta de investigar os modos de subjetivação femininos no contexto poético-musical do metal extremo.

This study is dedicated to examining the role of narratives and
imagery from Scandinavian mythology in the work of the Norwegian
musician Varg Vikernes. The existing historiography on this subject contains significant gaps, which underscores the relevance of its more profound investigation. Through an analysis of the lyrics from all musical
compositions by the Norwegian artist, the author concludes that Varg
Vikernes interprets and reinterprets mythological narratives in a distinct
manner, developing a unique system of metaphors. He employs this system throughout almost all phases of his creative career to articulate his personal ideological tenets with greater clarity. Thus, the Baldr (hero from Scandinavian mythology) becomes a central figure for the musician, and Baldr's fate–the most frequently utilized narrative. Concurrently, within his interpretative framework, Ragnarök (The end of the world) serves as a
metaphor for the struggle to establish new values in the modern world.

Les auteurs de ce volume,  se démarquant du lien  rattachant  lumière et vérité, se revendiquent des travaux d'Anne Le Brun sur le noir et se proposent d' étudier, dans un cadre multidisciplinaire, , la dimension heuristique de  l'obscurité.

Este es un borrador que conservaba en mi ordenador y que forma parte de un compendio para un diario filosófico académico. Algunos pasajes estaban escritos a mano, por lo que iré añadiendo las páginas transcritas digitalmente tras haber cambiado mi espacio de reflexión. En este escrito examino la liminalidad en el álbum Dekadens, de Lifelover. El diario permanece inédito y refleja mis años de formación como investigador, antes de cruzar el umbral hacia la investigación independiente.

Dissection’s Storm of the Light’s Bane is a unique blend
of metal music and philosophical lyrics that explore
themes of morality, ethics and man’s inner struggles.
Each song on the release is a separate chapter of a
story presenting various reflections on human nature,
suffering and destiny. This article aims to show how
the individual compositions explore these themes
and what reflections can be drawn from them. The
compositions analysed are: Night’s Blood, transporting
the listener into a world of nocturnal phenomena.
The song’s lyrics explores issues such as the dilemma
of choosing between good and evil and existential
loneliness. The analysis draws on the idea of freedom
contained in Sartre’s Being and Nothingness and the
concept of the shadow according to Jung.
Unhallowed, focuses on anti-religion, blasphemy
and the celebration of evil. It expresses extreme emotions and ideologies contrary to commonly accepted
moral and social norms. The lyrics describes an apocalyptic world full of pain, plague and pestilence, where themes of the moral and spiritual decline of
humanity dominate.The analysis deals with questions of morality, free will and human responsibility
in the face of evil.
Where Dead Angels Lie, a poetic tale of an angel
tempted by dark forces, interpreter through the lens
of Jungian shadow. Retribution, a dark narrative about
the struggle between light and darkness. The lyrics
describes the fall of the light that once dominated the
earth, which now gives way to darkness symbolising
evil and destruction. The moral consequences of this
struggle are analysed by referring to the Nietzschean
concept of the death of God and nihilism.
Thorns of Crimson Death, an epic tale of the
ghosts of fallen warriors who return to remind us
of past battles and tragedies. The piece is analysed
through the lens of Maurice Halbwachs’ theory of
collective memory and Jacques Derrida’s hauntology.
Soulreaper, a poetic reflection on the inevitability
of destiny and the role of suffering in human life. An
analysis of the work shows suffering as an integral
part of existence, alluding to the Nietzschean concept
of amor fati – love of fate.

Abstract (editors note)
In this Treatise on the Cut, the essay develops a philosophical meditation centered on the irreducible "cut"—the ontological wound, the minimal difference between "life" (phenomenal space and appearance) and "the living" (the resistant tension that generates subjectivity, duration, and otherness). This cut, manifesting as time, consciousness,
and the friction of meaninglessness, forms the tragic core of human existence, making impossible both a total collapse into pure animality and absolute coincidence with representation.
The argument unfolds by showing that awareness of this cut is the root of freedom and wisdom: not in suturing it through reductive philosophies, but in consciously inhabiting its tension with lightness and balance. This framework extends to a critique of conventions (scientific, legal, aesthetic) as provisional nets over the abyss; politics as coercive control over meaning and the distribution of pain; technology as an amplification of separation that exiles us from presence; and civilization as a reactionary "landscape" imposed on the formless real.
The treatise concludes by advocating a minor philosophy—nomadic, agnostic, and accompanimental—that teaches
speaking from within the wound without pretending to close it, transforming radical not-knowing into a shared
practice of resistance. Facing death's final cessation, this minimal voice in the void affirms that continuing to address the nameless is, incredibly, sufficient.

Det er ingen tvil om at advers og revers tilhører samme mynttype: Advers: Arethusa med hodet til venstre, delfiner rundt, merke under halsen. Revers: Rask quadriga til venstre, triskeles over, ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ i ekserguen, AI nedenfor. Dette gjør den til en speilvendt kopi av myntene preget av Agathokles, tyrann og senere konge av Sicilia, 317-289 f.Kr. Det eneste problemet er at disse myntene kun er kjent som tetradrakmer (16-17 g). Langt tyngre enn 2,62 g, som peker mot en hemidrakme (2,4-2,8 g).

Det er mange som fortjener en takk for stort og smått ved veis ende i dette studiet. Først av alt vil jeg takke min veileder, Øystein Sørensen, for mange fruktbare samtaler og stø koordinering hele den lange og mangslungne veien frem til masteroppgavens slutt. En god takk fortjener også Oddmund Hoel for nyttige hint og vink i starten og slutten av prosessen. Likeledes retter jeg en takk til Nynorsk Kultursentrum for utlån av databasen over avisen Den 17de Mai. De ulike stadiene av masterstudiet har vaert både spennende, utfordrende og strevsomme og jeg er svaert takknemmelig over å ha fått dele dem med alle fine mennesker jeg har laert å kjenne på masterprogrammet i Historie. De mange gode samtalene som har forekommet over en kopp kaffe på pauserommet vil sent glemmes. En god porsjon nye ideer, motivasjon og pågangsmot har blitt sanket i slike møter. En stor porsjon takknemmelighet retter jeg også mot venner og fagfeller for gode samtaler, konstruktiv tilbakemelding og korrekturlesing underveis. Saerlig Anette Tøgard,

In this essay, I wish to analyze the shift in anti-religious sentiment in heavy metal music from the days of the “Satanic Panic” to today. I claim that much of the idea of “Satanism” which certain  conservative American groups associate with this genre of music stems not from the music itself, but rather from discourses external to it. Moreover, I contend that the explicit anti-religious references in current heavy metal music emerge as a direct response of rock artists to the many  accusations of “Satanism” which conservatives have put forward over the years. Thus, in the first part of this essay I shall analyze the lyrics of twelve songs taken from three popular American metal bands and artists active after 1990. Afterwards, I will use discourse analysis in order to  see what sort of relationship arose between metal artists and their most vocal opponents, during the “Culture War '' and in its aftermath. Finally, I will connect the aforementioned findings in order to prove my point.

Forsideillustrasjon: S14720.12 Bunnskår / Hel bunn av kokekar (ikke spannformet). Funnet in situ i gulvlag på Hølland, Rogaland. Funnet er ikke saerskilt omtalt i artikkelen i dette nummeret, men foto inngår i den samlete dokumentasjonen fra utgravningen. Det skarpe skillet mellom svart/brunt i skårenes profil skyldes brenning med dyremøkk som også ble påvist i ovnsanleggene på lokaliteten. CC-BY foto: Anette Graesli Øvrelid, AM, UiS. Vi ser fram til å høre fra deg!

Har du hørt om Fra Kristiania-Bohêmen?
Det intense, eksistensialistiske frihetsmanifestet som ble beslaglagt samme dag det utkom den 12. desember 1885? Arbeidernes frigjøring på 1930-tallet førte nemlig til het debatt om denne boken, og 20 år senere ble den igjen publisert.

Hervör sem dúvida foi um nome a despertar a criatividade de artistas escandinavos ao longo dos tempos, a figura de mulheres guerreiras desperta o interesse em leituras como as Eddas e as Sagas e nas representações românticas do séc. XIX na Escandinávia, neste artigo discute-se algumas visões da mulher guerreira da Era Viking, em contrapartida com o que se sabe arqueologicamente sobre elas, e a ótica
utilizada na figura da Hervör de Peter Arbo e a Hervör homenageada na canção
da banda Månegarm.

This article pioneers an exploration of the child and childhood in metal music. Using a grounded-theory approach, it examines the prevalence of 'the child' in metal music lyrics. The findings reveal a strong correlation between childhood imagery and specific metal subgenres, indicating that children's representation in metal serves both aesthetic and social diagnostic purposes. These representations of the child reflect broader cultural constructs. They engage with common topics associated with the child, such as hope or despair for the future, the idealization of nostalgia and childhood innocence, and the impact of trauma over generations. The child is used to create pathos across genres; she is named in passing and used to shock. Ultimately, however, metal music does not challenge dominant constructs of the child. This article offers a brief introduction to the constructivist turn in childhood studies and highlights aspects of the common mythos of childhood. Metal music uses unquestioned norms around childhood to support its genre expression and emotional affects. The child thus plays an integral role in defining the cultural and aesthetic essence of metal music.

"Allure is a special and intermittent experience in which the intimate bond between a thing's unity and its plurality of notes somehow partially disintegrates" (Guerrilla Metaphysics , p.143) Wolf tones tend to be characterised as unwanted octaval pulsing resonances in orchestral music found on stringed instruments. There is considerable literature on how to avoid or get rid of them, even equipment that has been created to eliminate them from performances and recordings. Allure and the plurality of notes caused by wolf tones obscure the designated notation from being heard in a pure form as these accidental harmonics cry across Ebs and G#s, screaming and lamenting over the purposeful and desired notes. It is this undesired liminality of sonorous wailing and destructive capability that imposes itself upon the intended. These howling wolf tones are not unwanted. Black metal has tended to embrace their abyssic qualities as their otherness and sonic representation of the void offer a door into the unknown, sonically and performatively. Black metal's preoccupation with the occult, in ritual and performance is well documented from bands such as Mayhem, Behemoth, Darkthrone and Denigrata that demonstrate what the occult sounds like to its adherents.

Muinaiset jumaltarut ovat erottamaton osa black metal -musiikin ja -kulttuurin kuvastoa. Lukemattomat genren yhtyeet ovat ammentaneet jo vuosikymmeniä inspiraatiota oman kulttuurinsa esikristillisestä menneisyydestä ja muinaisista jumalista. 1 Muinainen mytologia ja jumaltarut ovatkin olleet black metalin keskeisiä teemoja yhdessä satanismin, okkultismin ja nihilismin tapaisten aiheiden kanssa viimeistään 1990-luvulta lähtien. 2 Huolimatta norjalaisten, osin myös suomalaisten 3 ja ruotsalaisten 4 , yhtyeiden noususta genren keskiöön -josta kohta tarkemmin -soitettiin black metalia 1990-luvun alkaessa muuallakin. Hyvin omaperäinen ja merkittäväkin ilmiö oli jo 1980-luvun loppupuolella syntynyt kreikkalainen black metal. Verrattuna pohjoismaisiin genren edustajiin kreikkalaiset yhtyeet sovelsivat raakaan äänimaailmaan pehmeämpiä, perinteistä heavy metalia lähempänä olevia sävyjä ja rauhallisempaa tempoa. Voidaan sanoa, että genrelleen ominaisesta synkkyydestään huolimatta kreikkalaisen black metalin äänimaailma on lähempänä välimerellistä lämpöä kuin pohjoisen kylmiä metsiä. 5 Merkittävimmiksi kreikkalaisen black metalin pioneereiksi nousivat muun muassa kaksi ateenalaisyhtyettä: Varathton ja Rotting Christ. 6 1 Tunnetuin esimerkki lienee muinaisskandinaavisen mytologian käyttö norjalaisessa black metalissa. Ks. esim.

This thesis documents practice-led research exploring the intersections of, and tensions between, improvised invocation ritual within a chaos magick paradigm and Buddhist insight meditation. I explore the extra-normal self-those aspects of consciousness not usually present, or not usually accessible, in day-to-day life-by mean of improvised ritual work with the extra-normal voice and seek to maintain a Buddhist 'witness' consciousness throughout these explorations. I also explore the tensions between politics, aesthetics and spiritual practice; in particular, queer and trans politics, a timbre-centred vocal aesthetics and chaos magick, shamanic and Buddhist spiritual practices.

The piece consists of nine (or ten) sections alternating between free and scored; the scored sections all consist of silences of different qualities asking the players to explore ways to facilitate the scored silences. In composing with scored silences, the piece attempts to challenge the idea of silence as a transcendental signifier (or of signifying nothing) and seeks to question the assumption that a piece can convey particular experiences for an audience—silences, in particular, can evoke vastly different responses in people experiencing the ‘same thing’. In this sense, one might read the piece as ‘impossible’ and/or an exploration of the impossibilities of communication, but hopefully one that pushes the players (and perhaps audience) to explore these impossibilities with more rigour or attention to detail

This paper examines the enduring tension between witchcraft and Christianity, particularly in African contexts, through the existential lens of Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. By invoking Kierkegaard's categories of despair, dread, the leap of faith, and the concept of the individual before God, this study seeks to understand the psychological and spiritual forces that drive some Christians to simultaneously profess faith in Christ while fearing witchcraft. The paper contends that Kierkegaard's thought offers a critical pathway for liberating Christian consciousness from superstition and fear through radical inwardness and personal faith.

This chapter presents an analysis of the Danish black metal artist Myrkur’s
song Ulvinde: p. 117. (She‑wolf) as a feminist digression from previously established expressions of the black metal subculture and music genre as a masculine sphere. In this context, digression should be understood as a deviation from an established norm, not as an abrupt break from its mainstream, but as a slight inching or nudging away from that which is considered its norm. Myrkur as an artist largely makes use of the same signifiers that make up the total cultural expression of black metal as a music genre, but, in turn, gently pushes them along a digressive trajectory that establishes a feminist space in a male‑dominated arena. I take a semiotic approach in this analysis, focusing on signifiers that express cultural concepts inherent to black metal music.

Black metal is steeped in a harsh, raw, dissonant sonic world. Its misanthropy and blasphemy are screamed into the void. However, this is not the whole story. Black metal has always also been about songs and atmospheres, and many acts have taken it into a more melodic, harmonious and/or dreamlike direction. I will argue that this should not be dismissed as an abandonment of black metal's 'purity', much less a commercial sellout. Bands such as Blut Aus Nord, Wolves in the Throne Room, Deafheaven, Alcest and Lustre have hardly scored mainstream commercial success, but their body of work brings both melody and meditative immersion into the heart of a recognisably black metal ambience.
This essay will argue that such experiments in sound offer a mutation of black metal, not its surrender; and that it is possible to encounter the radical, iconoclastic spirit of the music in what could be called a blackened naiveté which resists the attempts of even black metal purists to define and domesticate it.

Contracted with Anthem press, tentatively scheduled for publication early 2027.

The book offers a set of coherent reflections upon - or rather, performances of - ‘black metal theology’. Like black metal theory, black metal theology is a mutual blackening and complication of black metal and theology. It is not merely an attempt to think theologically upon the body of black metal, or to extract its themes, but to hear black metal as a discourse on God, a talking/singing/making heard of God in which divine simplicity is fatally compromised, while releasing divinity into the transmutatative power of decomposition. The texts vary from more standard academic explorations to more experimental forms, in order to multiply the genres of theology and make its limits porous. The form reflects the guiding idea of the content: to challenge notions of divine simplicity and immutability and to construct a radical theology of a divine that decays and the divinity of decay itself. Decay is a processual, multiagency, creative process in which the boundaries between life and death, the organic and inorganic are complicated. Taking inspiration from Nietzsche (‘Gods too decompose’) and Derrida (‘there is no simplicity in God’), the essays presented here trace the processes of decay through theological motifs of creation, incarnation and resurrection in order to construct a heretical notion of demonic/divine sovereignty made audible in its own decay into corrosive sound.

La storia del Project inizia nel 1974, quando Alan Parsons, londinese ventiseienne ed Eric Woolfson, scozzese di 29 anni si incontrano negli studi di Abbey Road, a Londra. Il primo è di casa negli studios, visto che in quel tempio della musica ha iniziato a lavorare sin dall'età di 19 anni, come tecnico del suono per i Beatles e i Pink Floyd. Partecipa alla realizzazione di album che hanno segnato la storia del rock come Abbey road e Let it be dei Beatles, The dark side of the moon e Atom heart mother dei Pink Floyd. Nel 1976 collaborerà con Al Stewart per la realizzazione del celebre album Year of the cat. Eric Woolfson è invece un avvocato alla soglia dei trent'anni e si diletta nel tempo libero come session man. La passione musicale dello scozzese la eredita dallo zio che a Glasgow suonava il pianoforte e che lo ispira a voler diventare un musicista. Eric inizia a suonare il piano da autodidatta ma non è in grado di leggere la musica. Ben presto riesce a lavorare come turnista al pianoforte con artisti del calibro di Jimmy Page e John Paul Jones che in seguito formeranno i Led Zeppelin, riuscendo a fissargli un incontro con Andrew Loog Oldham, il produttore discografico dei Rolling Stones. Da questo momento Eric riesce a far breccia nel mondo musicale, collaborando con diversi artisti di fama ed è in questo periodo che ha l'idea di realizzare un concept album ispirato a Edgar Allan Poe: sarà il motivo dell'incontro con Alan Parsons. Alan Parsons in quel momento invece decide di lasciare i Pink Floyd e come da lui stesso affermato: «Fu una decisione difficile. I Pink Floyd mi fecero un'offerta generosa, ma avevo appena avuto un singolo nella top ten del Regno Unito come produttore. Così risposi che mi ero stancato di lavorare come ingegnere del suono per i Pink Floyd e che avrei portato avanti la mia carriera da produttore. Ebbi un incredibile successo nel Regno Unito, con due singoli consecutivi al primo posto della classifica dei singoli. Mi sembrava di fare la scelta giusta, rifiutando quel lavoro per i Pink Floyd. Mi offrirono un lavoro come ingegnere del suono a tempo pieno in studio e dal vivo. Lo rifiutai, ma era la cosa giusta da fare. Non avevo alcuna intenzione di diventare un semplice impiegato nello staff dei Pink Floyd. Wish You Were Here non fu un lavoro mio, ma di altre persone». I due singoli da produttore di Alan Parsons al numero 1 nella UK chart nel 1975 sono January dei Pilot e Make me smile dei Cockney Rebel. L'apporto del leggendario ingegnere del suono e musicista, Alan Parsons, sull'opera dei Pink Floyd, si era rivelato, a dir poco, fondamentale. Alan Parsons aveva collaborato con la band nel corso delle sessioni d'incisione del disco che, da molti, viene considerato come il capolavoro indiscusso dei Pink Floyd e che, in ogni caso, rappresenta una pietra miliare nella storia della musica contemporanea. Parliamo del monumentale Dark Side Of The Moon. Ed è così che nasce l'incontro tra Parsons e Woolfson, quando entrambi percepiscono di possedere talenti che si completano a vicenda ma è Parsons, stufo ormai di essere comprimario per altri a chiedere a Woolfson di fargli da manager. Nasce così il Project che, nato ufficialmente nel '75, assumerà il nome dell'ex tecnico del suono dei Beatles e Pink Floyd. per una nuova casa discografica. Arista reagisce, intentando una causa multimilionaria per violazione del contratto, mentre The Sicilian Defense rimane inedito. La richiesta dell'etichetta di un nuovo album nel 1982 viene, tuttavia, soddisfatta da una raccolta Best Of contenente una nuova canzone, You Don't Believe. You Don't Believe riappare nell'album successivo, Ammonia Avenue del 1983, con la voce di Woolfson, così come Vulture Culture del 1984. Entrambi gli album portano in primo piano sintetizzatori ed elettronica, oltre al sassofono. Vulture Culture, tuttavia, non vende le tante copie di Eye In The Sky e di Ammonia Avenue, mentre il successivo album del 1985 Stereotomy non se la passa nemmeno così bene. Con le vendite in calo e le nuove star come Whitney Houston in ascesa nel roster dell'etichetta, Arista è ora più che disposta a concedere un po' di riposo a Parsons & Co. Durante questo periodo, il Project produce la colonna sonora completamente strumentale di Andrew Powell per il film Ladyhawke, che genera polemiche per la presenza di rock and roll contemporaneo e synth-heavy in un ambiente medievale. Il 1987 vede l'uscita di Gaudi, un album sottovalutato sulla vita e gli obiettivi dell'architetto spagnolo Antonio Gaudi, ma quello che nessuno sapeva all'epoca è che risulta essere ufficialmente l'ultimo album di Alan Parsons Project. Dopo Gaudi, Woolfson inizia a lavorare sulle idee per il prossimo album di Project, Freudiana. Ma avendo sviluppato un fascino per i musical teatrali (e in effetti, molti critici nel corso degli anni avevano paragonato le canzoni più grandiose del progetto Alan Parsons al teatro musicale), Woolfson si interessa a trasformare Freudiana in una pièce teatrale. Con diversi successi sia come co-sceneggiatore che come cantante al suo attivo, Woolfson non impiega molto a radunare investitori e artisti interessati a mettere in scena la produzione, ponendo così fine all'Alan Parsons Project. Woolfson continua a creare musical, basandosi sugli album del Project e sui relativi temi, tra cui Gaudi, The Turn Of A Friendly Card, e Freudiana (anche se quest'ultimo lavoro non è attribuito al Project, pur avvalendosi della scuderia di musicisti del gruppo e delle voci, tanto di Woolfson, quanto di Parsons. Con Woolfson fuori dal gruppo, Parsons decide di andare avanti, ma senza il nome "Project", poiché avverte che la band non sarebbe stata la stessa senza le composizioni e la voce di Woolfson. Come con tutti i suoi album precedenti, Parsons continua a non cantare come voce solista, ma solo quando necessario e preferisce rimanere nella cabina di mixaggio. La maggior parte delle canzoni vengono scritte dagli stessi membri della band, che avevano mostrato le loro abilità nell'album Keats prodotto da Parsons e il risultato porta nel 1993 all'album Try Anything Once. Sebbene Parsons abbia detto di essere impegnato a preoccuparsi della musica, per dettare un tema coeso ai cantautori, sembra comunque trasmettere un messaggio di rischiare e fare o dire cose che non si potrebbero fare o dire altrimenti. Arista pubblica l'album, ma le vendite deludenti (nonostante un breve aumento del supporto dei canali radio e video musicali per il singolo "Turn It Up") lasciano Parsons senza un'etichetta per il suo prossimo album. Durante la pausa tra gli album, Parsons e la sua band hanno fanno qualcosa che non avevano fatto dalla spinta promozionale per Tales Of Mystery And Imagination nel 1976: hanno organizzato un tour mondiale con una sezione trasversale del nuovo materiale da Try Anything Once e tutti i loro album precedenti, incluso Tales.

A retrospective of Running with the Devil: Power, Gender, and Madness in
Heavy Metal Music by Robert Walser (1993), one of the first academic books written about heavy metal; subsequent metal research has often grown in complementary directions, emphasizing topics which Walser neglects while avoiding topics Walser discusses at length.