Who amongst the inventors of Black Metal would warrant the top two places in this list? Venoms contributions to the development of several sub-genres of extreme metal have been well-documented elsewhere and they are generally conceded to be the inventors of Black Metal. Buried Alive begins with a cemetery interment, the sonorous intonations of a priest and the sound of dirt being shoveled onto a coffin. An eerie, reverb drenched chord progression begins, seemingly emitting from the coffin itself My bones are decayed, my flesh it doth rot, Im lying in silk, take the lid off this box croons Venom vocalist/bassist Cronos sinisterly. Absolutely Classic.
1. "Countess Bathory" by Venom, 1982
Its debatable whether or not 17th century Hungarian countess Elizabeth Bathory actually bathed in the blood of dead virgins but that matters little in Venoms retelling of the popular legend in head crushing, black metal fashion. Countess Bathory is perhaps the best track on the entirety of the Black Metal album and nary a mention of Satan in the entire song. There are rare occasions where everything about a song is done to perfection this is one of them. It is my sincere hope that you have enjoyed hearing these tunes again and considering their place in our list of "10 Great '80's Black Metal Songs Not About Satan. Additions? Deletions? Praise? Disgust? As always I am happy to read and respond to your comments below.