Prayers from France
Nov 17, 2020 5:44:15 GMT -6
Thomas Eversole, nocturnaliridescence, and 2 more like this
Post by Dismas on Nov 17, 2020 5:44:15 GMT -6
[Warning] : I don't speak English, so I have to translate with DeepL. So I apologize if the intelligibility of my words is altered.
Hi,
I am 36 years old and I live in France. Although this country is commonly referred to as "the eldest daughter of the Church", the Christian Black scene seems to be non-existent outside of Memoria / Constantinople and Akroma (whose gender affiliation can be disputed).
This desert is not surprising when one knows that at the present time France has probably become one of the most anti-Christian countries (only a few Islamic republics can claim to compete).
This is why France has had no difficulty in developing its reputation in Black Metal, both Satanist (under the impulse of the Black Legions) and NSBM (under the iron rule of the Toulon scene: Seigneur Voland / Kristallnacht / Blessed in Sin).
About my background. I was baptized at birth and received Catholic instruction until I was 13 years old. Given that the Church has been misguided since Vatican II, it was only natural that I turned my back on it as a teenager.
Thus, I started listening to Black Metal in 1997. Soon I became marginalized, isolated, and plunged into a deep depression. From 1998 to 2010, I remained alone, locked up listening to Black Metal and nourish resentment towards everything and everyone. This depression also explains why I never found the motivation to learn to play an instrument to join a band.
Around 2010, my interest in Black Metal began to diminish. The democratization of the genre has seen the birth of too many uninteresting formations, and the sulphurous magic of the original "myth" was struggling to find its successor among the ephebe fans of the drum machine and Guitar Pro.
But this remoteness gave me the space I needed to be able to take an interest in other things. At the same time that I resumed my studies, I became involved in politics, which allowed me to re-socialize.
In 2014, God deemed it useful to place on my path a person who knew how to find the right words to gradually set in motion my reconciliation with Him. In 2017, at the age of 33 (a sign?), I returned to the pews of the Catholic Church (in a fundamentalist parish that has preserved the celebration of Mass according to the Tridentine rite).
However, I was far from having abandoned Black Metal. But as my faith grew, the cognitive dissonance became more and more unbearable (how can one claim to go to Holy Mass on Sundays and then listen to "F*** me Jesus" by Marduk or "Honor the **** of Mary" by Blessed in Sin?). Nevertheless, following the recommendations of the priests who told me not to listen to this music seemed unrealistic (would it be a good idea to ask a great classical music lover to give it up for any reason?).
Then I remembered that in the French-speaking Black Metal communities, some bands claiming to play "Christian Black Metal" had sometimes been laughed at.
But until very recently, I was convinced of a marginal phenomenon that only concerned about ten bands at most (Crimson Moonlight, Elgibbor, Antestor...),
However, while doing my research, I discovered that there was a much larger scene that literally passed under the radar of media coverage (in other words, a truly "underground" scene as Black Metal could be at the beginning of the 90s).
To date, I've counted almost 400 Christian Black Metal bands (or at least those that seem to be), which keeps me busy for a while and offers me an "acceptable" compromise to reconcile my faith and my appetite for this kind of music.
In fact, I had the pleasure of coming across an interview with one of my French compatriots, Vindsval (Blut Aus Nord), who said :
" Black Metal is an Art of opposition which must be animated by a certain form of subversion, both in form and substance. Marduk or Watain, for example, are not Black Metal bands in my opinion. I would call it vaguely « angry pop », they deliver exactly what is expected of them, their attitude is codified, their music is codified, classified, easily recognizable and assimilable. They are products of the century, perfectly formatted for an identified audience, the very opposite of what the essence of Black Metal is. Where is the subversion, where is the shock? Where is the questioning? Who can still imagine that Lucifer's glorification today is a transgressive act? On the contrary, it is playing a simple and obvious game, serving the times... When the monarch is yesterday's adversary, then the face of rebellion, in this world and its values, is perhaps that of Christ. Can Black Metal be Christic...This is the kind of interesting theme to develop and which can lead to an unexpected result on a musical level. More inspiring in any case for me than a harmless and conventional satanic hail.
"
Anyway, at the moment I have very little knowledge about the Christian scene. But luckily I came across this community forum that I think will help me refine my culture (and one day, why not project myself on the opening of the first French Unblack distribution label).
Dominus Vobiscum
Hi,
I am 36 years old and I live in France. Although this country is commonly referred to as "the eldest daughter of the Church", the Christian Black scene seems to be non-existent outside of Memoria / Constantinople and Akroma (whose gender affiliation can be disputed).
This desert is not surprising when one knows that at the present time France has probably become one of the most anti-Christian countries (only a few Islamic republics can claim to compete).
This is why France has had no difficulty in developing its reputation in Black Metal, both Satanist (under the impulse of the Black Legions) and NSBM (under the iron rule of the Toulon scene: Seigneur Voland / Kristallnacht / Blessed in Sin).
About my background. I was baptized at birth and received Catholic instruction until I was 13 years old. Given that the Church has been misguided since Vatican II, it was only natural that I turned my back on it as a teenager.
Thus, I started listening to Black Metal in 1997. Soon I became marginalized, isolated, and plunged into a deep depression. From 1998 to 2010, I remained alone, locked up listening to Black Metal and nourish resentment towards everything and everyone. This depression also explains why I never found the motivation to learn to play an instrument to join a band.
Around 2010, my interest in Black Metal began to diminish. The democratization of the genre has seen the birth of too many uninteresting formations, and the sulphurous magic of the original "myth" was struggling to find its successor among the ephebe fans of the drum machine and Guitar Pro.
But this remoteness gave me the space I needed to be able to take an interest in other things. At the same time that I resumed my studies, I became involved in politics, which allowed me to re-socialize.
In 2014, God deemed it useful to place on my path a person who knew how to find the right words to gradually set in motion my reconciliation with Him. In 2017, at the age of 33 (a sign?), I returned to the pews of the Catholic Church (in a fundamentalist parish that has preserved the celebration of Mass according to the Tridentine rite).
However, I was far from having abandoned Black Metal. But as my faith grew, the cognitive dissonance became more and more unbearable (how can one claim to go to Holy Mass on Sundays and then listen to "F*** me Jesus" by Marduk or "Honor the **** of Mary" by Blessed in Sin?). Nevertheless, following the recommendations of the priests who told me not to listen to this music seemed unrealistic (would it be a good idea to ask a great classical music lover to give it up for any reason?).
Then I remembered that in the French-speaking Black Metal communities, some bands claiming to play "Christian Black Metal" had sometimes been laughed at.
But until very recently, I was convinced of a marginal phenomenon that only concerned about ten bands at most (Crimson Moonlight, Elgibbor, Antestor...),
However, while doing my research, I discovered that there was a much larger scene that literally passed under the radar of media coverage (in other words, a truly "underground" scene as Black Metal could be at the beginning of the 90s).
To date, I've counted almost 400 Christian Black Metal bands (or at least those that seem to be), which keeps me busy for a while and offers me an "acceptable" compromise to reconcile my faith and my appetite for this kind of music.
In fact, I had the pleasure of coming across an interview with one of my French compatriots, Vindsval (Blut Aus Nord), who said :
" Black Metal is an Art of opposition which must be animated by a certain form of subversion, both in form and substance. Marduk or Watain, for example, are not Black Metal bands in my opinion. I would call it vaguely « angry pop », they deliver exactly what is expected of them, their attitude is codified, their music is codified, classified, easily recognizable and assimilable. They are products of the century, perfectly formatted for an identified audience, the very opposite of what the essence of Black Metal is. Where is the subversion, where is the shock? Where is the questioning? Who can still imagine that Lucifer's glorification today is a transgressive act? On the contrary, it is playing a simple and obvious game, serving the times... When the monarch is yesterday's adversary, then the face of rebellion, in this world and its values, is perhaps that of Christ. Can Black Metal be Christic...This is the kind of interesting theme to develop and which can lead to an unexpected result on a musical level. More inspiring in any case for me than a harmless and conventional satanic hail.
"
Anyway, at the moment I have very little knowledge about the Christian scene. But luckily I came across this community forum that I think will help me refine my culture (and one day, why not project myself on the opening of the first French Unblack distribution label).
Dominus Vobiscum