Mayhem - Ordo Ad Chao

Mayhem's Ordo Ad Chao from 2007 is available on the Season of Mist Bandcamp. A wildly divisive album when it was it was released, Ordo Ad Chao has since received status as an uncomfortable black metal masterpiece. Unorthodox song structures and heavy use of dissonance gives the music an almost improvisational feel. That feel is enhanced by the production, the album sounds as if its being performed in the basement beneath you. Like you're a fly on the wall of some infernal, subterranean gathering.

The production can't hide the dizzying display of musicianship. You're flooded with waves of blazingly fast tremolo picking, bludgeoning by double-bass drumming, and baffled by schizophrenic tempo changes and almost jazzy fills. And then there's the vocals by Attila Csihar. Croaks, hisses, growls and grunts. Insane shrieks and maniacal laughter, the man does it all. Read the reviews from Sputnik Music, Metal Review and From the Dust Returned, and file under not so easy listening.

Attila Csihar. Photos by Carmelo Española.

In a short time Season of Mist Records has established a strong presence on Bandcamp. They have individual band pages and a catalogue site:

seasonofmistrecords represents the current, up to date titles, and bands who already had bandcamp sites made by anyone outside of the label.

The catalogue site represents the back catalogue. It includes bands that are no longer on the label, but whose albums we still have the rights to sell. Its also a means to sell albums for bands that already have bandcamp sites with other labels, or that otherwise don't want to have a bandcamp site.

Both sections are updated regularly. Right now there are 219 albums on the Season of Mist Records Bandcamp, including three, other, albums by Mayhem.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]