Black metal | part 4

  - How did the visual images and the overall style of bm-releases change in the era of banning various radical symbols?

- You need to understand that there are radical symbols on an international and local scale. It seems that there are not many topics left in Europe that can actually anger or scare. At the Modern Heavy Metal 2020 conference, one researcher argued that if extreme right-wing politics become the norm for some countries, then perhaps the NSBM will cease to be so attractive, as it will lose its radical component. Maspero and Ribaric also wrote about this in their book Wolves Among Sheep: The History and Ideology of the National Socialist Black Metal.

In Russia, at least one more topic has become topical, working with which can bring problems to musicians. I do not remember a conversation with foreign colleagues in which they did not ask me about the situation with the Russian Orthodox Church. Members of the Todestriebe group in an interview with "People from the Crow Island" say that they also find positive sides in this state of affairs, because the forbidden always attracts, that is, their audience will only grow if the concert is disrupted at least once. In general, this conflict contributes to an increase in the number of visual materials on anti-Christian themes.

Todestriebe - Vicarius Filii Dei

- How did the design change in Russian black metal? Did the old bands manage to create visual standards for the Russian bm, or is a special style only being felt now?

- The situation has changed a lot for the better in recent years. Release design has become more skillful and of better quality. Real masterpieces have replaced unremarkable covers with photographs of the forest and texts typed in an overly "cunning" font, or with ideological, but not very well-drawn art. This is probably due to the greater availability of artists, designers and reference projects on the Internet.

Wardra - "Copper colored sky"

- What is the role of designers in the Russian bm today? Are these people close to groups who do something out of friendship or cheaper, or do we have recognized masters?

- I am very glad that this role, in principle, is becoming visible. Many bands began listing the names of artists and designers in press releases next to the names of the musicians who participated in the recording. This simple action helps artists get good orders and devote more time to their favorite work, so the level of visual culture gradually rises.

Of course, there are musicians who handle the design themselves or seek free help, and not all cases get a bad result. But there are also those who are attentive to the choice of the artist, because the visual component is partly what the project will be associated with, the logo and key images in general can become someone's tattoos. Fortunately, there are more and more notable masters, there are plenty to choose from. A few years ago, there was material in Furfur about Russian artists who make covers for foreign bands. I will slightly supplement this list with those whose works I see more and more often on the web: Elena and Vladimir Snegotsky, known as the Rotten Fantom project, designed the releases of many bands (Endless Winter, Wardra, Tuga, etc.) and some posters for Ritual Booking; Andrey Otshivaloff - author of forest logos for Slowsnow records; Milya Yanovskaya is a Siberian artist who worked with Sargeist, Second to Sun, Ultar, Alexander Morkh Shadrin and Alexander Geldt have a decent list of clients, including foreign ones, Vladimir Prokofiev is engaged in covers and logos.