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Features - Column
 Dethroned Emperor #2 In Memory of Celtic Frost Column by Josh Haun | May 2nd, 2008
"Thirst for disgrace
Watch his break
The Emperor's killed"
- from "Dethroned Emperor" by Celtic Frost
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In the previous segment of Dethroned Emperor I had mentioned the unfortunate news that Celtic Frost has once again disbanded. That said, I feel it is only fitting to eulogize the band that gave this column its name and has been such a source of inspiration to the metal underground for over two decades.
I first heard Celtic Frost sometime in the late 1990s, during which time the band was in limbo, having last released Vanity/Nemesis at the beginning of the decade. I was only just starting to listen to the more "extreme" types of metal, as it wasn't particularly easy for a kid trapped in the bowels of the midwest, sentenced to catholic school, to get ahold of anything outside the meager metal selections offered by Musicland and Best Buy.
Fortunately, I had discovered the wonders of mailorder and was able to pick up my first Celtic Frost CDs, To Mega Therion and Into the Pandemonium. After reading about how influential the early Frost albums had been in magazines like Rip and Guitar World, I finally held in my hands what were arguably the legendary band's two most revered releases. Needless to say, they did not disappoint. The band's music possessed a discernable sense of darkness and forlorn majesty that somehow seemed more "real" than the blood and guts imagery being pedaled by most the death metal bands I had been exposed to at the time.
What immediately struck me about the pair of albums was how radically different they were from each other. While To Mega Therion was a moldering slab of crusty death thrash, Into The Pandemonium possessed a sound that was atmospheric, stately and almost gothic in its approach. Tom G. Fischer's incomparable death-grunt and gnarly guitar tone served to signify that both records were indeed the work of the same band, but apart from these distinguishing features, they might as well have been polar opposites. I later learned that for better or worse, never making the same album twice was one of the keys to Celtic Frost's notoriety in the metal underground.
As the years went on, my appreciation of Celtic Frost deepened and I tracked down all of their releases with the exception of 1988's Cold Lake, an unfortunate foray into glam rock that I refuse to acknowledge the existence of to this very day. I bought bootleg t-shirts because at the time there was no such thing as "official" Celtic Frost merchandise. I imagined what it would've been like to experience their music in a live setting and would spend hours listening to their records and pouring over the photos, lyrics and liner notes. I pondered where the band would be today if they had managed to somehow press on rather than imploding. I guess you could say I was obsessed. Celtic Frost were simply so unlike anything I had experienced before in metal that I was totally mesmerized by every aspect of their being.
When it was announced that Celtic Frost had reformed, my anticipation was through the roof. Only the smallest, most cryptic bits of info seemed to make themselves known, and the band was truly shrouded in the air of mystery I had always imagined swirling around them. What would the new album sound like? Would they attempt to recapture the spirit of one of their highly regarded prior works, such as To Mega Therion or Morbid Tales, or would they stay true to the Celtic Frost ethos and take another dramatic step forward in musical progression?
When Monotheist finally arrived in 2006 via Century Media, the answer turned out to be a little bit of both. The recording possessed all the impenetrable darkness and malevolent atmosphere of previous Celtic Frost records, but it was even more monolithically heavy and bleak, almost death doom in its leaden approach. Once again, Celtic Frost had presented us with a Pandora's Box of horrific wonders.
That very summer, my dreams would be realized when I had the opportunity to witness Celtic Frost live while serving as a publicity intern for Metal Blade Records. The occasion was nothing short of monumental, as the band took the stage at the House of Blues in Hollywood and proceeded to treat the audience to a powerful, career-spanning set that kicked off with "Procreation of the Wicked" and culminated in the epic "Synagoga Satanae." Needless to say, I was utterly awestruck from beginning to end and unable to do anything but stand stone still, completely enthralled by what was unfolding before me. I looked around and noticed members of the opening acts SunnO))) and Goatwhore standing amidst the crowd, showing equal reverence towards the band that has been praised by nearly everyone that's ever had anything to do with heavy music from Dave Grohl to Darkthrone. With an incredible comeback album under their belts matched by gripping live presentation, it appeared as if the possibilities were endless for the reunited Celtic Frost. I eagerly awaited hearing word of their next move.
But somewhere thereafter, it all went wrong. Some would say it could only be a matter of time before a band so innovative, so unafraid to defy the trends and blaze their own trail no matter what anyone else thought, would collapse in on itself. The news is a devastating blow not only to me as an avid fan, but to the metal community as a whole, as we have witnessed the second death of the genre's last truly venerable elder gods. The metal world owes Celtic Frost more than can ever be repaid, and it isn't even slightly out of line to suggest that death, black and thrash metal would not exist as we know them today if it wasn't for the groundwork laid down by this legendary band.
Celtic Frost is dead. Long live Celtic Frost.
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For more on Celtic Frost's breakup, check out Tom G. Fischer's blog, Delineation II. Wrath of Averse Sefira has also written a fitting eulogy for Celtic Frost on his blog, Mnemonic Possession.
In decidedly less grim news, if you haven't heard Origin's alternately brain-melting, flesh-peeling Antithesis, you're missing out on one of the year's most devastating death metal albums. This is easily the Kansas quintet's best record yet, worth the price of admission for John Longstreth's drumming alone. You can check out the track "The Aftermath" from this vicious metallic whirlwind on the band's MySpace page.
After a sophomore slump with the rather uninspired United in Regret, melodic death metallers Arsis have returned to form with the excellent We Are The Nightmare. One again, MySpace has the goods, with a whopping 3 tracks from the album available for your headbanging pleasure.
Australian gore-grinders Fuck… I'm Dead have lined up a handful of extremely rare US tour dates alongside countrymen The Day Everything Became Nothing before ripping it up at this year's installment of the infamous Maryland Deathfest. Check out the band's MySpace page for a full list of dates and come out to support quality grind from down under.
Back over to the bad news dept., US black metal titans Wolves in the Throne Room have dropped off their scheduled summer tour with Boris and Torch due to "personal reasons." If you haven't checked this band out yet, you owe to yourself to give them a listen.
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Any bands or labels interested in news/interviews/reviews/etc. for future installments of Dethroned Emperor, get in touch: jhaun@sonicfrontiers.net.
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