10 Greatest Black Metal Albums Of The 21st Century

Providing nearly two hours of original music, the third album from Swiss mavens Schammasch is a three-disc extravaganza of depressive black metal. Mixing the tranquil intellectualism of “post-black metal” with the eye-catching imagery and primal heaviness of the genre’s roots, Triangle is an expansive experience that demands your time, but is undoubtedly worth every second of it.

Every 33-minute movement of this lengthy ride provides an alternate approach to black metal, boldly experimenting with tone and song-writing. ‘Part I: The Process of Dying’ is an exercise in undiluted extremity, channelling the Schammasch that presented itself on the group’s two prior albums.

‘Part II: Metaflesh’ is a slower, melodic, progressive section, packing ambient vocals and doom metal inspiration, while maintaining must-have’s like blast beats and despondent riffing. Finally, ‘Part III: The Supernal Clear Light of the Void’ goes totally balls to the wall with its eclecticism, possessing minimal singing, darkly atmospheric movements and an emphasis on percussion above all else.

All three of these subsects combine to make Triangle truly blackened bliss, avant-garde but also wholeheartedly rooted in its genre. The album is an admirable feat in its length and diversity, but it goes above and beyond by somehow succeeding at every approach it attempts.