Hail Satan!

So enough pussyfooting around. Let's get down to brass tacks: DEATH METAL! Lots of crazed and frequently Scandanavian bands that don't just sing about hating God, they actually burn down churches! That sort of dedication, my friends, is what true art is all about. There's a documentary about this subculture and the filmmakers recently discussed their fascinating experiences interviewing some of black metal's literally murderous stars in jail. Want to check out some of the perps for yourself? Give our regards to Gorgoroth and Burzum. You can find the link to Deicide yourself.

All of which naturally brings us back to the Mountain Goats. There was a great interview in The Believer this summer with John Darnielle where he discussed his love of Death Metal, but they've yanked it from their site. But you can still experience him waxing rhapsodic about Incantation's recently minted classic "Decimate Christendom." He even penned an ode to the genre, which eschews irony and aims to pull your tongue straight through your cheek. Inspirational verse: "When you punish a person for dreaming his dream/ Don't expect him to thank or forgive you/ The best ever death metal band out of Denton/ will in time both outpace and outlive you." All together now...