tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65222001220993974822024-03-19T04:22:13.131+01:00CountessUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-18451966076441552322023-03-10T12:11:00.000+01:002023-03-10T12:11:44.495+01:00New EP 'Live By The Sword' to be released March 24<p>On March 24, we will release a new EP entitled 'Live By The Sword'. The EP features five songs: three band new ones, inlcuding the first song written for the band by our guitarist Valgard who joined us in 2019, and two new versions of older songs. These are 'Desisdaimonia' that was originally released on our sophomore album in 1994 (and <a href="https://youtu.be/XkyuKt6PeUU">played live last year</a> for the first time since 1995) and 'On Wings Of Defiance', the title track from our 2011 full-length.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4zCd6mhqvL55ZQYFNrwFn-0_NLV3bMY7r2EIaV5E6pRheJ4OnLQLxwhWuUrssJBZ7Bby0Dj5BRht9JJ89IJd9LsBYM09JoRk1OVLiZ93GFTmYYDO6b2WhtOWaNueYLit486yXOVw1d3yeulSU8ZNkPw8SgnxKFprnqBn1vvA06MTP7tmZctR90hZn/s1200/608ab847-4e1f-5a75-fbb8-de337319462e.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4zCd6mhqvL55ZQYFNrwFn-0_NLV3bMY7r2EIaV5E6pRheJ4OnLQLxwhWuUrssJBZ7Bby0Dj5BRht9JJ89IJd9LsBYM09JoRk1OVLiZ93GFTmYYDO6b2WhtOWaNueYLit486yXOVw1d3yeulSU8ZNkPw8SgnxKFprnqBn1vvA06MTP7tmZctR90hZn/s320/608ab847-4e1f-5a75-fbb8-de337319462e.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Tracklist:</p><p style="text-align: justify;">1. Raven Banners Fly (3:50)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">2. Spectre (4:33)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">3. Ballad Of Sigrid The Haughty (7:03)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">4. Deisidaimonia (4:45)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">5. On Wings Of Defiance (8:42)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The EP will be available on all major digital platforms such as <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/6knDZcDZ3KR7XmO62z6Dup" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://music.apple.com/us/artist/countess/390990094" target="_blank">Apple Music</a> and <a href="https://www.deezer.com/nl/artist/5364240" target="_blank">Deezer</a> as well as on our official <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">Bandcamp store</a>.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-52547387792818134052021-09-04T12:17:00.002+02:002022-08-11T14:02:38.459+02:00New single 'De Vloek Van Het Goud' out on September 17<p>On Friday, September 17, we will release a new single entitled 'De Vloek Van Het Goud'. The song was recorded during the 'Banners Of Blood' sessions, but not included on the album. The title means 'The Curse Of The Gold' and the song tells how greed, symbolized by gold, came into the world. Its main sources are stanzas 21-22 of <a href="https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/poe03.htm" target="_blank">Völuspá</a>. The idea that the thrice-burned witch and goddess was reborn each time as one of the three Norns – which I find very compelling – was first put forth by <a href="https://aswynn.com/" target="_blank">Freya Aswynn</a> if I am not mistaken (in <i>Leaves Of Yggdrasil</i>, p.77-78).</p><p>As for the translation of her name, ‘Gullveig’, in the two Dutch translations of the poetic Edda, by Jan de Vries (1938) and Marcel Otten (1994), two different options are chosen. De Vries does not translate her name at all and simply ‘dutchifies’ it as ‘Gulweig’ while Otten translates it as ‘Goudroes’ (literally ‘Gold Fever’). I decided to differ and translate her name as ‘Gouddronk’, which sounds good to my ears and is quite literal (‘gull’ meaning ‘gold’ and ‘veig’ possibly meaning ‘drink’).</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IXgrGiG6PUA" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><br /><span><a name='more'></a></span>In de mistige nevelen van een ver verleden<br />Was het goud nog geen reden voor strijd<br />Tot de eerste heks der Azen hal betrad<br />Haar toverkunst leidde tot haat en nijd<br /><br />Gouddronk was haar naam <br />Hebzucht bracht haar faam<br />De Azen trachtten haar te doden<br />Maar zij hoorde tot de Wanengoden<br /><br />Met speren doorboorden de Azen de heks<br />Tot driemaal toe werd Gouddronk verbrand<br />Maar opnieuw en opnieuw werd zij herboren<br />Loki at haar hart en nog was zij niet verloren<br /><br />Haar weergeld Wodan weigerde<br />Aan de Wanen te betalen<br />De eerste oorlog brandde los<br />Zo vertellen de oude verhalen<br /><br />(chorus)<br />De vloek van het goud<br />Driemaal gedood en nog in leven<br />Verwanten zullen strijden<br />Goud wil men liever nemen dan geven<br /><br />Driemaal verbrand, driemaal gedood<br />Telkenmale is de godin herrezen<br />Als verleden, als heden<br />Als toekomst kwam zij weer tot leven<br /><br />De Azen en Wanen sloten vrede<br />Maar de goudlust was niet verslagen<br />Tot aan de schemering der goden<br />Moeten wij mensen deze last dragen<br /><br />(chorus)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-91557605706104958372021-08-29T10:22:00.005+02:002021-09-04T12:19:29.280+02:00'Fires Of Destiny Over Europe' memories<p>Time for another trip down memory lane . . . Orlok looks back on our shows with Blackdeath and Barathrum in 2017.</p><p>"In February 2017, we did a short tour with Blackdeath and Barathrum. What made this especially cool was that it took place almost exactly twenty years after our <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2017/02/those-were-days-looking-back-on-our.html" target="_blank">shows with Barathrum and Sabbat</a>. Herjann, who was our keyboard player in 2014-2015, put a lot of work in putting the shows together. In addition to being the tour manager, he would also join Blackdeath on stage as live guitarist.</p>In the morning of February 23, we set off for Paris, where the first show would take place. After a drive of about six hours, we reached Paris where we would play our first-ever show in France. The club, <a href="https://www.leklub-paris.com" target="_blank">Le Klub</a>, turned out to be located in the heart of the city, practically next to the Notre-Dame. <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBmtDkjj93EU55NiP40wV2YoBCTHq0L6Be_3YYFrUqAMn1HVp0p6KmfCCLBid8ZifsUpb2EvmeUBPqhESNS5xIO2ofdQsLMtzXU9IHxVgwR9TKcOHMK89RnIUyAK_rUPxx5DsPz-YrGVQ/s4608/DSC02289.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBmtDkjj93EU55NiP40wV2YoBCTHq0L6Be_3YYFrUqAMn1HVp0p6KmfCCLBid8ZifsUpb2EvmeUBPqhESNS5xIO2ofdQsLMtzXU9IHxVgwR9TKcOHMK89RnIUyAK_rUPxx5DsPz-YrGVQ/w400-h300/DSC02289.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Arriving in Paris.</i></div></i><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a>We walked around the venue a bit and found the show would take place at a small but really cool place, sort of a dungeon-like cellar. We had been the first to arrive, but before long both Blackdeath and Barathrum arrived as well. It was cool to meet Blackdeath and see Barathrum again, almost two years since we had last played together at the <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2015/08/full-veneration-of-dead-2015-show-online.html" target="_blank">Veneration Of The Dead</a> festival in Rotterdam. We all did our soundchecks and then it was time for dinner. As anyone who has ever been in a band knows, you never know what food you're going to get on the road and, more importantly, if it will be any good. Le Klub had organised this well, though. <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-B4fDo8r0lZqfjVc6b-zjEwWLQyqlZ3SI63D_4lutvGyEMHsNiVnCIynJze8-0QcvVD3jAtlYT8XMiNLkLnXPDvdPzCinqjuhUZ2HT9L5y9Og6J1nyEaJLfamvELvn_-Yahx3cA5Xj8U/s1920/DSC02300.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-B4fDo8r0lZqfjVc6b-zjEwWLQyqlZ3SI63D_4lutvGyEMHsNiVnCIynJze8-0QcvVD3jAtlYT8XMiNLkLnXPDvdPzCinqjuhUZ2HT9L5y9Og6J1nyEaJLfamvELvn_-Yahx3cA5Xj8U/w400-h225/DSC02300.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Soundcheck in Paris.</i></div></div><p>We were sent to <a href="http://blackdog-bar.com/666" target="_blank">Black Dog</a>, a metal bar and restaurant down the street where we were served surprisingly good food. After dinner, we went back to the club and around 19:00 hours Blackdeath took the stage, as there was no local opener on this day. I had never seen Blackdeath before, but was quite impressed by their show. They were very tight and ripped through their set with utter conviction. It was immediately clear that this was a band that is very serious about their art. I was a bit surprised, though, that they only played new songs that hadn't even been released at the time (they would be released on 'Phantasmhassgorie' in 2019). After Blackdeath, we were up. We opened with 'Hymn To The Gods Of Yore' and played a really good <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/countess/2017/le-klub-paris-france-33f9a055.html" target="_blank">set</a>. The sound was good, the atmosphere was great, the place was packed and the audience responded really well. We had put together different set lists for each show, focusing more on older songs for places where we had never been before, like Paris, and more on newer songs for places where we had been before, like Oberhausen. After our set, we talked to a lot of fans who were all very enthusiastic. I remember there was a Chinese guy who had brought all of his CD booklets (he had a complete collection) to get them signed, which we were happy to do of course. I also caught a bit of Barathrum's impressive show, which was intense as usual, even though it wasn't easy for them with six band members on what really was a very small stage. You can watch a couple of their songs <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-rfb-pJCB4" target="_blank">here</a>. If I remember correctly, Demonos left the stage before the end of their set and just let the rest of the band finish the set on their own . . . by that time, we discovered the beer backstage had run out, which didn't really please us. Since there was no more beer anway, we duly packed all our stuff in our cars and the van Herjann had rented for the tour and drove to our hotel somewhere on the outskirts of Paris.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sQSgRQ-nPsM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFc7znf-AG8Ysd_d9PRdHG8gpn3V-38O0XPLCwObnbJ1ojBDfpu8NTxDD12_4vh_esgTUIbO384dLHe02K1LXfJ2BCIpZt2jQ2LiF5JjPWwArbS6iYdAAX5vILbZgdZGT4YQ6FCBS_eyU/s2048/DSC02302+-+kopie.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFc7znf-AG8Ysd_d9PRdHG8gpn3V-38O0XPLCwObnbJ1ojBDfpu8NTxDD12_4vh_esgTUIbO384dLHe02K1LXfJ2BCIpZt2jQ2LiF5JjPWwArbS6iYdAAX5vILbZgdZGT4YQ6FCBS_eyU/s320/DSC02302+-+kopie.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Having a smoke outside our hotel in Paris at 10:00 hours in the morning.</i></div></i><p>After a few hours of sleep, we had some breakfast and then we had to drive north again, to Antwerp in Flanders. This would be our first-ever show in Flanders, though we had played in Belgium the year before, but in Wallonia. The show would take place at <a href="https://www.hetbos.be" target="_blank">Het Bos</a>. After unloading our stuff, we went backstage and discovered the fridge was filled with some kind of weird biological beer. It was surprisingly good, though. The name of the club translates to 'the forest'. Behind the backstage was a small courtyard with some grass and shrubs that we assumed to be the forest. Then, when we were looking at a schedule on the wall with all kinds of activities that took place at the club, we saw that on Monday nights they had 'bosneuken' (forest fucking). This sent us into a bout of laughter, since we could just image middle-aged Flemish swinger couples getting together in this small courtyard every Monday night to do their business among the shrubs . . . when the laughter had died down, we discovered that the actual activity was 'boskeuken' (forest kitchen) and some anonymous joker had altered the text. By then, time had come to do our soundchecks. I remember the soundchecks took a really long time and there were some problems with the sound. When the soundchecks were finally done, we were fed. Unlike the day before, the food wasn't very good. It was some kind of vegan stuff that apparently was supposed to be some kind of curry but didn't taste like curry. In fact it didn't really taste like anything at all. I'm not blaming this on the fact it was vegan because elsewhere I've had vegan curry that was really good. After dinner, it was time for the show to start. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Ng2SDGX4wUlU3S2J05pPs0B2Es7L5Iq8pYu-eR5t-49wwReqngcayo30BxTLAb43jkiUNZ5NEuN7Cw2LQud5gb8Kq37QfUKh55HOmHe-RgyqAPwhyphenhypheno3joKTyqftALTfy6cg0n7V7Xx4/s2048/2017-02-24+16.15.08.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Ng2SDGX4wUlU3S2J05pPs0B2Es7L5Iq8pYu-eR5t-49wwReqngcayo30BxTLAb43jkiUNZ5NEuN7Cw2LQud5gb8Kq37QfUKh55HOmHe-RgyqAPwhyphenhypheno3joKTyqftALTfy6cg0n7V7Xx4/w400-h300/2017-02-24+16.15.08.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Time schedule in Antwerp.</i></div></i><p>There was a local opener on this day, Ars Veneficium, who played some typical modern black metal that didn't really leave a lasting impression on me. Up next were Blackdeath, who were excellent as they had been the day before. You can watch their full show <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3P2rNJBgjA&t=12s" target="_blank">here</a> (it was filmed by Ramtyr, who also filmed our shows). We were next and though we played a good <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/countess/2017/het-bos-antwerp-belgium-2bf9884a.html" target="_blank">set</a>, it wasn't as great as it had been the day before. There weren't that many people in the audience and the sound, as we had already feared after the issues during the soundcheck, wasn't that good. Especially the bass drums were EQ'd in a way that didn't let them cut through the mix but instead reduced them to some muffled rumble. Nevertheless, the fans we talked to after the show were pretty positive. After watching Barathrum and having a few beers, it was time to drive to our hotel.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7M_U16M4DiE" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><p>The next morning after breakfast we went to pick up Barathrum at the place where they were staying. True to their reputation, they were having beer for breakfast. We set off for Oberhausen, located in Germany not that far from the Dutch border. The show would take place at <a href="http://helvete.de" target="_blank">Helvete</a>, where we had also played in 2015. We soon found that not much had changed since then. Like in 2015, the soundchecks took ages because the sound people apparently had no idea what they were doing. And like in 2015, there was hardly any food. There were some buns that were so hard they were probably days old and at some point we were presented with one small tray of some kind of potato dish. For four bands . . . the beer supply was also rather limited, which was worsened by the fact anybody could just walk in and out of the backstage, even people who obviously had absolutely no business there. Since we had experienced all this before we had more or less been expecting this and decided to just get on with things. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl_IEDqkM1A7lgLsXyKCOOjt237cgUC4hrSnn93C8RFqhoe_Vuy1Itd8-3mpj6cFOTId8ST23q92R5h8Qn8H-X_xbWYheh26W91i0CCoqxqjIOXWmcqYyEqIe4HjKkiAoW-AfpSvJAR2E/s2048/2017-02-25+21.38.00.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl_IEDqkM1A7lgLsXyKCOOjt237cgUC4hrSnn93C8RFqhoe_Vuy1Itd8-3mpj6cFOTId8ST23q92R5h8Qn8H-X_xbWYheh26W91i0CCoqxqjIOXWmcqYyEqIe4HjKkiAoW-AfpSvJAR2E/w400-h300/2017-02-25+21.38.00.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Backstage in Oberhausen.</i></div></i><p>Just like in 2015, there were problems adhering to the time schedule and the first band started way too late. This was a local opener called Pestnebel, who were quite similar to the previous day's opener. Blackdeath were next and again impressed. When we got on stage, we noticed some problems with the monitors. After some communication with the sound people, this was largely fixed, but I still could hardly hear myself on stage. Nevertheless, in the club the sound was surprisingly good and we played a really good <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/countess/2017/helvete-metal-club-oberhausen-germany-23f9884f.html" target="_blank">set</a>. The audience was really into the music, so the atmosphere was great. Especially during the latter part of our show, when we played songs like 'Ritual Of The 7 Priests' and 'Chapel Of Doom' that are favourites among hardcore fans, the crowd really went berserk. When we went backstage after our show, we discovered there was hardly any beer left. After Barathrum had finished their set, which was as good as it had been the previous days, it was time call it a day and we left for our place to sleep.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HhUlPPaVLKM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><p>When we went back to where we had parked our cars the day before, near the club, we were in for a really unpleasant suprise. Our cars were gone. We had parked them where we had parked in 2015 as well and where Herjann told us he always parks in Oberhausen. However, it turned out this day was the one day in the year when parking there wasn't allowed because of some carnival procession that was taking place. So our cars had been towed. After a lot of phone calls, we managed to get a hold of the people we needed to talk to in order to get our cars back. The drivers went to pick up the cars, but we had to pay fines of €156,15 per car. We were extremely pissed about this, especially because it was completely unnecessary. While it is true we could have paid more attention ourselves, it would have been nice if someone at the club would have told us that on this particular day we couldn't park in the usual spot . . . after this ordeal, we drove across the border to Arnhem. Thankfully a relatively short drive, considering the time we had lost getting the cars back and the fact that the show at <a href="https://www.willemeen.nl" target="_blank">Willemeen</a> would be an afternoon show, scheduled to start at 15:00 hours. When we arrived at the club, we discovered the beer supply was not a problem here. After having a few drinks, we did our soundchecks and before long, the show started. I actually quite like afternoon shows because you don't have to wait for hours and hours before you get to play. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIu3CQmvg4FUikhM9XDr1sOBk7hwl4-j6SMQb4axlsYiBn2Eudz0RRU5EuD2LyBvz3A4eMfRbOGvrKZE5Gg71M1MPauovaB6qhvHvjAvbZ4lbfRaUMgNHMRDxq9eNrAzK_O-UJITmTQp0/s2048/DSC02306%25281%2529.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIu3CQmvg4FUikhM9XDr1sOBk7hwl4-j6SMQb4axlsYiBn2Eudz0RRU5EuD2LyBvz3A4eMfRbOGvrKZE5Gg71M1MPauovaB6qhvHvjAvbZ4lbfRaUMgNHMRDxq9eNrAzK_O-UJITmTQp0/w400-h225/DSC02306%25281%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Everybody together at the final show.</i></div></i><p>The opener was something special on this day: Herjann's band Cultus, for the occasion complemented by the Blackdeath members. Sadly, the sound was not very good and this prevented the often subtle guitar melodies from coming across well. Strangely enough, when I was backstage I could hear the music better than when I was standing in front of the stage. Nevertheless, it was cool to witness Cultus live. After Cultus, Blackdeath were up. It was a bit weird that these were the exact same people, just with a different person handling the vocals. Nevertheless, Blackdeath were great again and then it was time for us to go on stage. We played a good <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/countess/2017/willemeen-arnhem-netherlands-2bf9884e.html" target="_blank">set</a>, even though I had some issues handling the vocals. Because of the monitor issues the previous day, I had kind of stretched my voice too far and that gave me some problems on this day. The sound also wasn't all that good. Like in Antwerp, the bass drums were EQ'd really badly. Nevertheless, we were quite satisfied with our set. Next, Barathrum took the stage and we were given food. They served us some kind of shawarma dish that was pretty good, thankfully, and there was enough beer to wash it down with, just the way we like it.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8cvpCG7LRZM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><p>That brought 'Fires Of Destiny Over Europe' to an end. It was a short tour (Demonos called it a 'tourette' if I remember correctly) but, despite some setbacks, it was a lot of fun. I also think the Blackdeath-Countess-Barathrum package was a really strong one, presenting audiences with three bands that all have been active for decades and, more importantly, have always done things their own way, oblivous to fashions and trends. Below is a special playlist with songs that were played during these shows (note that the Barathrum song listed as 'The Force Of Evil' is actually 'Necromantical Ritual'. The tracklist is wrong on Spotify, just like on the CD). Enjoy!"</p><p><iframe allow="encrypted-media" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="380" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/4kdNpd68oAje94ZSoosbyo" width="100%"></iframe></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-88348397695742421472021-05-13T11:51:00.001+02:002021-05-13T11:51:39.081+02:00'Banners Of Blood' track by track<p>It's been three months since the release of our new album. The album has received an excellent reception from fans and critics alike. In this blog post, we discuss the album track by track.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3730357868/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=ffffff/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/banners-of-blood">Banners Of Blood by Countess</a></iframe></div><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a><b>Sword Of The Millennia</b> is the opening track. After being absent from our previous two full-lengths, the charcteristic old intro returns here. The song itself is a really crushing track, harking back to some of our older stuff, with some twists and turns nevertheless. The song is about the sword of the heretic, the protagonist of 1996's 'The Book Of The Heretic' and the protagonist of our classic song 'Child Of The Millennia' (who are one and the same).<p></p><p><b>Below The Sky</b> starts off with a punky riff, but soon turns to a heavy verse and a really bombastic chorus. Lyrically, it is a monologue by a pagan describing how he views the world.</p><p><b>Wall Of The North</b> tells the story of the battle of Tours in 732 CE, a painting of which by Charles de Steuben (1788-1856 CE) is depicted on the album cover. It's a traditional, pounding, heavy song with a quieter break that features a quote from the 'Chronicle of 754', the most detailed source on the battle. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh5wauKfZOaHZKqBep5cWXqaGoDWOwzvif96dJNO96cO2G5ubkt3ZWmdG1EcAY3M0Ur8nKKIknVMIf_9zFZnpwTdl8kfzPVmdncPPh288v-F7pJSmg7xzaDK60hzvHLEvVOvV1gDQTqnI/s2048/Chronicle_of_754%252C_London%252C_Egerton_1934%252C_fol._2r.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1496" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh5wauKfZOaHZKqBep5cWXqaGoDWOwzvif96dJNO96cO2G5ubkt3ZWmdG1EcAY3M0Ur8nKKIknVMIf_9zFZnpwTdl8kfzPVmdncPPh288v-F7pJSmg7xzaDK60hzvHLEvVOvV1gDQTqnI/s320/Chronicle_of_754%252C_London%252C_Egerton_1934%252C_fol._2r.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>A page from the 'Chronicle of 754'</i></td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>Ledovoye Poboishche</b> is our first-ever song in Russian and that tells the story of Alexander Nevsky's victory over the crusader knights in 1242 CE. Title means 'Battle On The Ice' as this battle was fought on a frozen lake (Lake Peipus). The song was inspired by Sergei Eistenstein's legendary 1938 film '<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Nevsky_(film)" target="_blank">Alexander Nevsky</a>'. </p><p><b>Night Of The Fallen</b> is probably the most old-fashioned black metal song on the record, inspired by the 1968 novel '<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Easter" target="_blank">Black Easter</a>' by James Blish (1921-1975 CE). The novel assumes black magic as describes in the grimoires actually works. It's about a wealthy arms dealer who hires a black magician to summons demons and let them loose of the earth for a limited amount of time, to enjoy the havoc they will create. This all goes predictably wrong and leads to armageddon.</p><p><b>Banners Of Blood</b> is the title track, a slower and pounding song with a lot of atmosphere. The lyrics can be read as fantasy, but also tell a very real story.</p><p><b>Pagan Man</b> is a new version of the song that was released as a single in August 2020. The song is largely the same, but the album version has a much better sound than the single version had. The lyrics speak for themselves. </p><p><b>Fall Of The Achaemenid Empire</b> tells the story of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achaemenid_Empire" target="_blank">Persian empire</a> that lasted from roughly 550 BCE to 330 BCE. Though the largest and most advanced state there had been up to that point, like all empires, it had to fall in the end.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgGLcYy1NAJOJNKBN8uE20374PBh10G5QHJKTQQF229ni5WgL5ZM-uGkFosw6UVjUGe9Ahyphenhyphenm0hWvN5jtDwYO2jiNQcxhBbQGMBUpX44n2XNqQ1525RIIdhWLQiJQjc2gHqjGHA1eY0fs/s1098/Achaemenid_soldiers_against_Scythians.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="724" data-original-width="1098" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgGLcYy1NAJOJNKBN8uE20374PBh10G5QHJKTQQF229ni5WgL5ZM-uGkFosw6UVjUGe9Ahyphenhyphenm0hWvN5jtDwYO2jiNQcxhBbQGMBUpX44n2XNqQ1525RIIdhWLQiJQjc2gHqjGHA1eY0fs/s320/Achaemenid_soldiers_against_Scythians.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Soldiers of the Achaemenid Empire</i></td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>Slachting Der Saksen</b> (Slaughter Of The Saxons) tells the story of the Verden massacre in 782 CE, where Charlemagne had 4,500 Saxons beheaded because they refused to be baptised. An old-fashioned, epic song with an acoustic break that features a Latin quote from Charlemagne's law prescribing the death penalty for refusing to be baptised.</p><p><b>Last Man Of Honour</b> was released as a single a few weeks before the album. This song was inspired by the life and times of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saig%C5%8D_Takamori" target="_blank">Saigo Takamori</a> (1828-1877 CE), the leader of the Satsuma rebellion who is commonly considered to have been the last true samurai.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zjg57lI1E0c" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><p><b>Toortsen Uit Het Verleden</b> (Torches From The Past) is one of two songs in Dutch on this album. This is actually an older song that was written back in 2004. The arrangement was only slighty changed for this album. It is one of two songs on the album to feature acoustic guitars, for the first time on a Countess album since 2007's 'Blazing Flames Of War'. </p><p><b>Sword Symphony</b> is the last and longest song on the record and tells the story of Sigmund and his sword. It largely follows the tale as it is told in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%B6lsunga_saga" target="_blank">Völsunga saga</a>. Musically this is probably the most adventurous song on the album.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-23421265300422765792021-01-23T10:11:00.000+01:002021-01-23T10:11:01.926+01:00New album 'Banners Of Blood' to be released February 11<p>On February 11, we will release our long-awaited new full-length album, entitled ‘Banners Of Blood'.</p><p>'Banners Of Blood' is our sixteenth full-length and features twelve tracks of uncompromising metal music, blending first wave Black Metal and traditional Heavy Metal in a way only Countess can.</p><p>The albums features two songs in Dutch and, for the first time, a song in Russian: 'Ledovoye Poboishche' ('Battle On The Ice') tells the story of Alexander Nevsky's great victory over the crusader knights in 1242 CE.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPWWESXWCAJWcKBMKuqvox9UcpF2qH11TZp5ELdSSLvziRmD2DOjaCHCnzlwRvymgB7g_KN7fRcHWhI4bgZ72Osc_N4y3XT1pYonaAeItuBr9NQZgDxHPmSh__B_D_PeQnKa6KZq4_SU/s1400/Countess+-+Banners+Of+Blood+%2528album+cover%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPWWESXWCAJWcKBMKuqvox9UcpF2qH11TZp5ELdSSLvziRmD2DOjaCHCnzlwRvymgB7g_KN7fRcHWhI4bgZ72Osc_N4y3XT1pYonaAeItuBr9NQZgDxHPmSh__B_D_PeQnKa6KZq4_SU/s320/Countess+-+Banners+Of+Blood+%2528album+cover%2529.jpg" /></a></div><p>The new album also marks the first appearance on a Countess full-length of guitarist Valgard and keyboardist Häxa. </p><p>Everyone can get a first taste of the new album as of today. A digital single has been released for the song 'Last Man Of Honour'. This song was inspired by the life of Saigo Takamori, who is often considered to have been the last true samurai and who was born on this day in 1828 CE. The single is available on all major platforms such as <a href="https://open.spotify.com/track/3j5l28MWW2b6eg0lCm4Lf5?si=mg7NxPY4RiqsqMDpbQY81g" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, <a href=" https://music.apple.com/us/album/last-man-of-honour-single/1547316457" target="_blank">Apple Music</a> and <a href="https://deezer.page.link/9Jw1fAjmYHGw5vzx5" target="_blank">Deezer</a> as well as a free download on our offical <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/last-man-of-honour" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> site.</p><p>The album's full track list:</p>1. Sword Of The Millennia<br />2. Below The Sky<br />3. Wall Of The North<br />4. Ledovoye Poboishche<br />5. Night Of The Fallen<br />6. Banners Of Blood<br />7. Pagan Man<br />8. Fall Of The Achaemenid Empire<br />9. Slachting Der Saksen<br />10. Last Man Of Honour<br />11. Toortsen Uit Het Verleden<br />12. Sword SymphonyUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-79872251667930750952020-07-26T10:49:00.002+02:002021-05-13T10:31:23.250+02:00New single out on August 7While we are still working hard on our new album, we will already release a brand new song on all major platforms on August 7 (Elizabeth Báthory's birthday, coincidentally). Below is the official video for the single.<div>
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SdN9DWSbeVI" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-66511068008198917052019-01-05T09:51:00.001+01:002020-10-04T08:05:52.711+02:00Zagan leaves CountessWith regret we have to announce that our guitarist Zagan has decided to leave the band. He made this decision because his heart is no longer in being part of the band, as he feels he has accomplished all he can with Countess. While we are obviously sad to see him leave, we cannot but respect his decision.<br />
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Zagan joined Countess in 1995 and was part of the line-up that played quite a few shows in the mid-nineties - including our legendary <a href="https://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2017/02/those-were-days-looking-back-on-our.html" target="_blank">tour</a> with Barathrum and Sabbat - and recorded the '<a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2017/06/hells-rock-roll-ep-released-twenty.html" target="_blank">Hell's Rock & Roll</a>' EP. After the split of the live band at the end of 1997, he still occasionally worked with the band in following years. In 2013 he rejoined the band full-time and was instrumental in the resurrection of the live band the next year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI5kRQ78OaxOY6cIYd1u-3NoK4zfXH8cx-BfDhhZ0nTj9BN8hYPOexvF9_JI81j_SYJPV6M7i2KuKffj033RFmC0UVrhwcHz72id62BE_BBWzO6nYImmqC1fKPSNb0auLPDYg1nJxlFq8/s1600/zagan.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1549" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI5kRQ78OaxOY6cIYd1u-3NoK4zfXH8cx-BfDhhZ0nTj9BN8hYPOexvF9_JI81j_SYJPV6M7i2KuKffj033RFmC0UVrhwcHz72id62BE_BBWzO6nYImmqC1fKPSNb0auLPDYg1nJxlFq8/s400/zagan.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Zagan on stage in Augsburg in 2014</i></td></tr>
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Over the years, Zagan definitely left his mark on the Countess sound. Not only because of his great leads, but also because of his input on arrangements and of course because of the music he contributed to the band. He was responsible for our classic anthem 'Hell's Rock & Roll' and most recently wrote a substantial amount of material for our latest full-length 'Fires Of Destiny'.<br />
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We wish Zagan all the best for the future and the best of luck with whatever his future endeavours may be. Enjoy some of his most notable contributions to the Countess canon in this special playlist:<br />
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<iframe src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/5IPzdG4U6zQiF2SdycFJ4l" width="500" height="280" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-33487959898236352862019-01-01T14:34:00.002+01:002020-10-04T08:07:10.783+02:00Looking back on fifteen full-lengthsThis month, our official playlist takes the listener on a condensed trip through our entire discography. The playlist features one song from each of our fifteen full-lengths, picked by Orlok. For the occasion, Orlok looks back on all of these records and explains why he chose the tracks he did.<br />
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<i>The official playlist on Spotify</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT9w6TbaNHAtD-LTsybwUdzVCJ6t_5NzLLgHMWNYj-pCufm1paCiurJ3wsNxjws1yDyvLgCJVM9sYFYHiyuFOOgYdOlwotXH8s6cqZomI7SIrpKj5d84Nu1F8uBn8dnfahLlCfmRDTqRw/s1600/IMG_20151009_0001.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1387" data-original-width="1383" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT9w6TbaNHAtD-LTsybwUdzVCJ6t_5NzLLgHMWNYj-pCufm1paCiurJ3wsNxjws1yDyvLgCJVM9sYFYHiyuFOOgYdOlwotXH8s6cqZomI7SIrpKj5d84Nu1F8uBn8dnfahLlCfmRDTqRw/s200/IMG_20151009_0001.jpg" width="199" /></a></div>
"The first track is from our third album 'Ad Maiorem Sathanae Gloriam' (1995). This was a special record for us, since it was the first one recorded in an actual studio. Though this caused quite a bit of stress since we had just three days to record and mix everything, this proved to be a very educational experience and also led to the album having a pretty good sound. This was also the first Countess album to garner some positive reviews, much to our own surprise. The full story of the album can be found <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2015/10/ad-maiorem-sathanae-gloriam-released.html" target="_blank">here</a>. The album has a very distinct sound and some really good songs, the best known of which are undoubtedly 'The Priest Must Die' and '<a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2016/04/classic-tracks-the-wrath-of-satans-whore.html" target="_blank">The Wrath Of Satan's Whore</a>' that have both become classics and are still being played live. Here I went with the former, because it is a great opener - on record as well as live.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWJAmfOze_gQGglHi-sy6phaHOSwYQ3UTgE-3CKwV7Tp-NGSXsuDfrwaWYZ4bgCYfjNv4Kkug8R5IHdJuSYcjiq2VtsLyoYOWxCQMwOXiaXL2Mfg6QuQfF54uiDzzzYlUHpGF43YZwRY/s1600/Countess+-+The+Return+Of+The+Horned+One+-+Front+-+kopie.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWJAmfOze_gQGglHi-sy6phaHOSwYQ3UTgE-3CKwV7Tp-NGSXsuDfrwaWYZ4bgCYfjNv4Kkug8R5IHdJuSYcjiq2VtsLyoYOWxCQMwOXiaXL2Mfg6QuQfF54uiDzzzYlUHpGF43YZwRY/s200/Countess+-+The+Return+Of+The+Horned+One+-+Front+-+kopie.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
'The Return Of The Horned One' (1994) was as raw, primitive and admittedly flawed as our first album, yet still managed to become a definite classic over the years. Probably because it has a whole bunch of really strong songs, quite a few of which we are still playing live today, like 'Ritual Of The 7 Priests', 'Aleidis' and of course '<a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2016/05/classic-tracks-bloed-in-de-sneeuw.html" target="_blank">Bloed In De Sneeuw</a>'. Read all about this record <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-return-of-horned-one-released-on.html" target="_blank">here</a>. I know some diehard Countess fans still consider this our finest album and though I do not share this opinion, I certainly respect it. As hard as it was to choose a song from this album, I decided to go with 'Fire & Blood' simply because it's a track that I like a lot. The pictures, both on the album cover and in the booklet, were taken at Burg Lockenhaus where Elizabeth Bathory once roamed.<br />
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'The Revenge Of The Horned One - Part II' (2002) may be our most maligned album. Personally I think if we had have given the record another title, people would not have reacted so negatively to the album. The songs for both 'Revenge' albums were recorded during the same sessions, after all. But perhaps it indeed isn't one of our strongest records. Here I chose 'Child Of The Millennia', a song that even people who otherwise loathed the record agreed was really good. The original artwork for both 'Revenge' albums was provided by Demonos Sova. On an interesting sidenote, for digital distribution (iTunes, Spotify and so forth) the original covers were not accepted and we had to use alternative covers.<br />
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'Fires Of Destiny' (2016) was our first album to feature Mortüüm on drums. I still like this record a lot and I don't think there is a single weak track on it. For this playlist, I picked 'Today Is A Good Day To Die'. This song is special to me because it has a long history: the first version dates back to 2004. Through the years I wrote and recorded several demo versions, but I was never really satisfied with it. Then sometime in 2015 while we were working on new stuff, Zagan showed me some riffs he had and I immediately realized these would be perfect for this song. So we recorded it for this album and we began playing it live as well.<br />
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'The Revenge Of The Horned One - Part I' (2001) featured a more traditional sound and was probably our most straight-up metal album up to that point. Quite a change in direction after 'Shining Swords' that was released the year before (but recorded later). The 'Revenge' albums were the result of a burst of creativity in late 1998 - though not released until a few years later. What I remember most about these records is that we had a lot of fun recording them and this probably shows in the material. Admittedly, there is some stuff that's perhaps a bit silly, but these albums also feature quite a few really cool tracks. The best one is probably 'Hymn To The Gods Of Yore', a song that has long been one of my personal favourites. It was eventually recorded again (twice, actually) and has been a regular in our live set since 2014.<br />
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From 'Ancient Lies And Battle Cries' (2014) I chose 'By Hammer And Blood'. While most of the songs on this album are either long and slower or short and faster, this one strikes a nice balance between these two types of songs. 'Ancient Lies' of course marked the return of Zagan: his first appearance on a Countess album since the 'Revenge' albums (not counting the live bonus tracks on 'Heilig Vuur'). It's also an album we spent considerably more time on than most of our other records: it took almost three years to complete from the beginning of writing the material in early 2011 to finishing the final mix at the end of 2013.<br />
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'The Book Of The Heretic' (1996) is quite a unique album. Our only concept album to date, marred by an awful mix, yet still hailed by many as a masterpiece. How this all came to pass is a long story that has been divulged many times already, but anyone interested in the full story can read it <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-book-of-heretic-released-twenty.html" target="_blank">here</a>. There are indeed some cool songs on this record that were eventually played live and a few were even recorded again. For this playlist I chose 'Give Me Your Soul' because it's quite representative for the album and also because this song is somewhat less affected by the bad mix than most of the other tracks.<br />
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'Burning Scripture' (2010) may be one of our least known albums, probably because we didn't do any promotion for it at all. It is one of my personal favourites though; it has some really good songs that are perhaps more compact and a bit thrashier than most Countess material. It also has a coherent theme connecting the songs: the struggle against monotheism. As hard it was to choose one track from this album, I went with 'The Mad Pharaoh'. It's a song that was originally written in 1997 and went through a lot of changes and different versions until it was finally released on this album. The original artwork for the album was provided by Saevus, who did an excellent job in visualizing the record's theme.<br />
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'Blazing Flames Of War' (2007) was another one in a series of album I recorded more or less on my own. On this one, Othalaz makes a guest appearance, though. He played the acoustic guitars on the record and can be heard on the song I picked, 'Gods Of My Fathers', a pretty old-fashioned Countess song.<br />
This album is one of the few Countess albums from which not a single song has ever been played live. No specific reason for that - it's simply a matter of having such a vast back catalogue that there are always way too many songs from. The original artwork for the album was provided by Annick Giroux.<br />
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'Holocaust Of The God Believers' (2006) was kind of a continuation of the previous record, yet with a bit more of a nefarious feel to it. It lacks a theme connecting the songs, but there are some really cool songs on this album, some of which are quite unlike anything we had ever done before, such as the country-inspired 'Rebel Stand' and the oft misunderstood, but apparently quite popular cut 'Columbine High Blues'. It's also one of only three Countess records not to feature any keyboards. For this playlist I picked the title track because it simply is one of the most raw and brutal songs we ever did. It is also the one song off this record we eventually played live.<br />
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'The Shining Swords Of Hate' (2000) is a complete love-it-or-hate-it affair, even more so than any of our other albums. Probably because it's quite different from anything else we have ever done, opinions on this record seem to be extremely divided. I still think this album was an interesting experiment; it certainly has a unique atmosphere. Most of the songs were barely outlined when I began recording and improvised on the spot. Writing and recording the entire album took just two weeks. Picking a song from this album was not easy, but I decided to go with 'Te Vuur En Te Zwaard'.<br />
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'On Wings Of Defiance' (2011) was the last album recorded before Countess became a full band again. There are a few songs on the album that we eventually played live, most notably 'I Am The Infidel', but for inclusion here I picked the title track. It's a cool and epic song - even when it's not all that long - that kind of summarizes the entire record. Like the preceding album, this record has a coherent theme connecting the songs: standing for what one believes in, against whatever odds, whatever the cost. The album's first eight tracks all tell tales of defiance and the title track explicitly vocalizes this theme.<br />
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'The Gospel Of The Horned One' (1993) was our first album and though it was - objectively seen - rather bad to say the least, it nevertheless managed to become somewhat of a legendary record. Probably because it harked back to first wave black metal at a time when most bands were moving away from that sound, but the album also has a really unique atmosphere. I think the atmosphere is still unequalled by any later Countess recording, no matter how much better these may be both musically and soundwise. It was also the first of our albums to be released on vinyl, in 2014. There are also some cool songs on this record, the most popular song of course being 'Kneel Before The Master's Throne' and that's the one I decided to pick.<br />
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'Heilig Vuur' (2004) was the first album released after the 'Revenge' records and hailed by many as a return to form. The reason for this may be that for this record I decided to go back to basics. There is no experimentation here, just a collection of straightforward old school black metal tracks. It was also our first - and so far only - album completely in Dutch. This certainly added to the album's atmosphere and was also the reason why we added the three Dutch-language songs from the 1996 live album as bonus tracks. While the title track - that would years later become a live staple and would be recorded again as well - is probably the album's most popular song, here I picked the short instrumental 'Stemmen In Het Woud' ('Voices In The Forest'). We never did many instrumentals, but I really like this one. It's short, to the point and just sounds pretty good.<br />
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'Spawn Of Steel' (2005) is obviously the most traditional metal album we have ever done and not just because it has quite a few simple, over-the-top lyrics about the glory of metal. It has been hailed by many as (one of) our best and it's easy to see why: there are simply a whole lot of great songs on this album, quite a few of which we liked enough to play them live and even record them again for the 'Sermons Of The Infidel' compilation in 2014. For this playlist, though, I picked the record's closing epic 'March Of The Ten Thousand' that tells the story of Xenophon's '<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anabasis_(Xenophon)" target="_blank">Anabasis</a>'. I like most of the many closing epics we have done through the years but this one may be my favourite. I've always enjoyed writing historical lyrics (probably because I grew up listening to Maiden) and this is one that turned out rather well in my opinion. The rather brilliant original artwork was provided by Demonos Sova and this may well be my favourite Countess album cover."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-71488548420532090172018-11-16T09:02:00.001+01:002020-09-07T20:42:20.403+02:00New singles releasedWe have released a couple of new digital singles this year: new recordings of classic songs with a few arrangement tweaks and improved production.<br />
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A new version of 'The Wrath Of Satan's Whore' was released on April 16. Originally released on 'Ad Maiorem Sathanae Gloriam' in 1995, this song is a definite classic. Read all about the song's history <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.com/2016/04/classic-tracks-the-wrath-of-satans-whore.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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On July 17, a new version of 'Ritual Of The 7 Priests' was released. This song was first released on 'The Return Of The Horned One' in 1994 and, like 'The Wrath Of Satan's Whore', is still a live staple today.</div>
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Like the new version of 'Heilig Vuur' we released last year, all these new versions are available as free downloads on our official <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> site.<br />
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A new version of 'In Hate Of Christ' was released on November 16. Originally released on 'The Book Of The Heretic' in 1996.<br />
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Though released in 1996, this song wasn't played live until almost two decades later.
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-87594227878330402482017-12-15T16:04:00.002+01:002020-09-07T20:48:04.789+02:00Newsletter midwinter 2017Welcome to the midwinter edition of the official Countess newsletter. In this edition we look back on what has been keeping us busy the past year.<br />
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Midwinter sale: 25% off everything</h3>
If you place an order at our <a data-cke-saved-href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/merch" href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/merch" target="_blank">webstore</a> between now and December 31st, simply use <b>midwinter</b> as your discount code and you’ll get 25% off your entire order!<br />
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Free download: new version of 'Heilig Vuur'</h3>
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In September we released a brand new version of our classic track 'Heilig Vuur'.<br />
In appreciation of the fans who have supported the band over the past 25 years, we decided to make this single available as a free download on our official <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/heilig-vuur-2" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> site.<br />
Additionally, the single is available for a normal price from all major digital outlets such as <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/heilig-vuur-single/1291071273" target="_blank">iTunes</a>, as well as for streaming on <a href="https://open.spotify.com/track/5HFrIl4fnKsGSFAsR9wiK1" target="_blank">Spotify</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4TDQ6yKO4A" target="_blank">YouTube</a>.<br />
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Live album 'Into Battle' finally released</h3>
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More than 20 years after it was recorded, our live album was released by <a data-cke-saved-href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" target="_blank">New Era Productions</a> and <a data-cke-saved-href="http://heidenshart.nl/" href="http://heidenshart.nl/" target="_blank">Heidens Hart</a>. The album was released on cassette (limited to 100 copies) as well as on CD. The album is now also available digitally and physically from our our <a data-cke-saved-href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/into-battle" href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/into-battle" target="_blank">Bandcamp store</a>.<br />
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Full discography now available on all platforms</h3>
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Our full discography is now available digitally on all major platforms for streaming and/or download. These include <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/6knDZcDZ3KR7XmO62z6Dup" target="_blank">Spotify</a> (where on our artist page, you'll also find a bunch of cool playlists, including personal playlists of all members of the band), <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/countess/390990094#see-all/recent-albums" target="_blank">Apple Music</a>, <a href="https://play.google.com/store/music/artist/Countess?id=Acur2r6efefm2gd2p7t5qu3izsa" target="_blank">Google Play</a>, <a href="http://tidal.com/store/artist/6509435" target="_blank">Tidal</a>, <a href="http://www.deezer.com/artist/5364240" target="_blank">Deezer</a> and <a href="http://us.napster.com/artist/countess" target="_blank">Napster</a>.</div>
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Split 7" with Sabbat released</h3>
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In October, New Era Productions released a split 7" featuring ourselves and Japanese legends Sabbat. The Sabbat side features a couple of tracks from their show at Baroeg Rotterdam in 1997; our side features two tracks from our 'old school' set at the same venue in 2015 ('The Wrath Of Satan's Whore' and 'Aleidis').</div>
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Of course limited to 666 unholy copies so get one <a href="http://new-era-productions.nl/shop/p-z/3318-sabbat-countess-split-picture-ep.html" target="_blank">here</a> before they're all gone.</div>
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Final shows of the year</h3>
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In December, we ended the year with a couple of cool club shows together with our esteemed colleagues Heretic: one in the legendary Little Devil in Tilburg, the other one in AJZ Bahndamm in Wermelskirchen (pictured).</div>
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Setlists from these shows can be found <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/countess/2017/little-devil-cafe-tilburg-netherlands-7be1be5c.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/countess/2017/ajz-bahndamm-wermelskirchen-germany-63e1be53.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
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'Hell's Rock & Roll' 20th anniversary</h3>
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Two decades ago, our legendary 'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP was released. In honour of this occasion, Orlok looked back on the creation of this record in <a data-cke-saved-href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2017/06/hells-rock-roll-ep-released-twenty.html" href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2017/06/hells-rock-roll-ep-released-twenty.html" target="_blank">this blog post</a>.</div>
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'Fires Of Destiny Over Europe'</h3>
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We had a great time on the road in February with Barathrum and Blackdeath during the 'Fires Of Destiny Over Europe' tour.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNCcJnJfHUG4-7YM-1CSq0nRiJ0jOUA9YkYKZSvxRpD3FNDGxxUzBF96X2Dcao3xwpp51V3b2OFMMV6F6j_wUGGN1vYQYSggtcwYVuqFDiNU9ENe-hUURsQs9v_UYjfT_xOP5-ngsgTP4/s2048/Tour2017_group.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1539" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNCcJnJfHUG4-7YM-1CSq0nRiJ0jOUA9YkYKZSvxRpD3FNDGxxUzBF96X2Dcao3xwpp51V3b2OFMMV6F6j_wUGGN1vYQYSggtcwYVuqFDiNU9ENe-hUURsQs9v_UYjfT_xOP5-ngsgTP4/s320/Tour2017_group.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-87630146390581201562017-10-20T16:56:00.001+02:002020-09-07T20:48:59.142+02:00Classic tracks: Chapel Of DoomIn a brand new instalment of our 'classic tracks' series, Orlok looks back on the history of 'Chapel Of Doom'.<br />
"The origins of this song go back to 1992. At the time, I was singing in a band called Forgotten. The band only lasted a few months and never released anything. We mainly played covers of bands like Danzig, Celtic Frost and Massacre. We did have the intention to write original material as well, though, so I wrote some lyrics for the band.<br />
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At the time, I had several prints of works by H.R. Giger on my walls and one night I poured myself some vodka and simply sat in front of my favourite of his works, <a href="https://art.vniz.net/en/giger/Giger-The_Spell_II.html" target="_blank">'The Spell II'</a> from 1974. Staring at and immersing myself in the painting, it didn't take long before lyrics came to me. I wrote them down on my typewriter and simply called the song 'The Spell'.</div>
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<i>The original version released on 'The Book Of The Heretic'</i><br />
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When nothing came of Forgotten, I forgot about the lyrics I had written for the band for a while until I found them again a few years later, somewhere in the summer of 1995, while I was working on material that would become 'The Book Of The Heretic'. I had a few musical ideas that I figured would fit very well with these lyrics and before long the song was written. I did change the title to something I felt was more fitting than the rather generic 'The Spell'. At first the song became 'Into The Chapel Of Doom' but I eventually shortened that to just 'Chapel Of Doom'.<br />
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<i>The original lyrics, typewritten in 1992</i></div>
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When 'The Book Of The Heretic' was released in 1996, reactions to 'Chapel Of Doom' were very positive. Playing the song live was something that never came up at the time, though, since it is not really an easy song to play and also because we didn't have live keyboards at the time so it was more or lees impossible to do anyway.<br />
We never forgot about the song, though and when we picked a few more old songs to record anew for the 'Sermons Of The Infidel' compilation in 2014, it didn't take us long to decide to include 'Chapel Of Doom'. The new version turned out pretty decently, with a slightly more compact arrangement than the original version and of course a much better sound as well as an excellent guitar solo.<br />
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<i>The 2014 version released on 'Sermons Of The Infidel'</i><br />
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A few years later again, after we had played at the 'Odium Nostrum' festival in Utrecht, we were hanging out backstage and while having a few beers we were discussing possible songs to add to the live set. When 'Chapel Of Doom' was mentioned, we all quickly agreed it was worth a shot to try to play it live. So we started rehearsing it and when that went to our satisfaction, we played it live for the first time at the 'Tampere Black Mass' in October 2016. Since we were pleased with the way the song works live and the audience response to the song was great, we also played it during the 'Fires Of Destiny Over Europe' shows in 2017."</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-48914926838007419592017-09-28T17:29:00.001+02:002020-09-07T20:50:05.574+02:00New single 'Heilig Vuur' released todayToday, we have released a new single. Since 2017 marks Countess' 25th anniversary, we recorded a brand new version of the classic title track from our 2004 Dutch-language album 'Heilig Vuur' ('Holy Fire'). With a few arrangement tweaks and improved production, the new single sees the song reach its full potential.<br />
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The single also marks the first appearance on a Countess release of our new keyboardist Häxa, who joined our ranks last year.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>In appreciation of the fans who have supported us over the past 25 years, we have decided to make the new single available as a free download on our official Bandcamp site.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=199991723/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=888888/tracklist=false/artwork=none/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/heilig-vuur-2">Heilig Vuur by Countess</a></iframe><br />
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Additionally, the single is available for a normal price from all major digital outlets such as <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/heilig-vuur-single/id1291071273" target="_blank">iTunes</a>, as well as for streaming on <a href="https://open.spotify.com/track/5HFrIl4fnKsGSFAsR9wiK1" target="_blank">Spotify</a>.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-70505422591542345212017-06-15T12:05:00.001+02:002020-09-07T20:50:54.411+02:00Newsletter midsummer 2017Welcome to the midsummer edition of the official Countess newsletter. In this edition we'll have a quick look at what has been keeping us busy for the past half year.<br />
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Midsummer sale: 20% off everything</h3>
If you place an order at our <a data-cke-saved-href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/merch" href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/merch" target="_blank">webstore</a> between now and June 30th, simply use <b>midsummer</b> as your discount code and you’ll get 20% off your entire order!<br />
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Fires Of Destiny Over Europe</h3>
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We had a great time on the road in February with Barathrum and Blackdeath; both great bands as well as excellent company.<br />
This picture of all the bands was taken at the final show in Arnhem.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyQjT3afMQ3UeWIqUlEJRg3WstKp0J2bw3v0ek0hxCroMVWqyYbBfvKUkRir_vm-kTLjuPuw_NGoFB-EYKtMiDqoz19H2d5ZL4QPvKTpYWeWz6XybOfqLrqiedfFvCB9hCQIfOq6ldrP0/s1600/pic4+-+kopie+%25282%2529.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="960" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyQjT3afMQ3UeWIqUlEJRg3WstKp0J2bw3v0ek0hxCroMVWqyYbBfvKUkRir_vm-kTLjuPuw_NGoFB-EYKtMiDqoz19H2d5ZL4QPvKTpYWeWz6XybOfqLrqiedfFvCB9hCQIfOq6ldrP0/s320/pic4+-+kopie+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Most of our music is now available for streaming on Spotify. On our <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/6knDZcDZ3KR7XmO62z6Dup" target="_blank">artist page</a>, you'll also find a bunch of cool playlists, including personal playlists of all members of the band.</div>
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Live album released on tape</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcLPLqCLGXX2vYP_sfrvd3p73Buz1Zh1MRVGv4DykolLBvGGJzGRbEn0h7IzUs-3kNq3pjo9pynIEepr06T9KNC16yERHZbCdgkPZPoVmtkPDztzmUaqnDHqH8RP12LjuG6_L7Ol9DAvc/s1600/16864664_395518880812718_8827370875735056287_n.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="655" data-original-width="800" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcLPLqCLGXX2vYP_sfrvd3p73Buz1Zh1MRVGv4DykolLBvGGJzGRbEn0h7IzUs-3kNq3pjo9pynIEepr06T9KNC16yERHZbCdgkPZPoVmtkPDztzmUaqnDHqH8RP12LjuG6_L7Ol9DAvc/s200/16864664_395518880812718_8827370875735056287_n.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
More than 20 years after it was recorded, our live album was released by <a data-cke-saved-href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" target="_blank">New Era Productions</a> and <a data-cke-saved-href="http://heidenshart.nl/" href="http://heidenshart.nl/" target="_blank">Heidens Hart</a> on cassette, limited to 100 copies. A CD version is in the works by the same labels and the album is now also available digitally from our <a data-cke-saved-href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/into-battle" href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/into-battle" target="_blank">Bandcamp store</a>.<br />
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'Hell's Rock & Roll' 20th anniversary</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdiRUHVR47CI9EArw8VIkm7vAFT_4SIur7Hrck7wmvhBPf5GvntqRdNgN0lnJ9ezVDQK982k34e9KBL-7JfK7pV7nJBrZWGLVFCI_xIYArebhZ-0vq392EaIxnLyNBFIwSBxVxG0E-Oa4/s1600/IMG_20160422_0012.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1062" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdiRUHVR47CI9EArw8VIkm7vAFT_4SIur7Hrck7wmvhBPf5GvntqRdNgN0lnJ9ezVDQK982k34e9KBL-7JfK7pV7nJBrZWGLVFCI_xIYArebhZ-0vq392EaIxnLyNBFIwSBxVxG0E-Oa4/s320/IMG_20160422_0012.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Two decades ago, our legendary 'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP was released. In honour of this occasion, Orlok looks back on the creation of this record in <a data-cke-saved-href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2017/06/hells-rock-roll-ep-released-twenty.html" href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2017/06/hells-rock-roll-ep-released-twenty.html" target="_blank">this blog post</a>.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-35869954972622958282017-06-01T14:33:00.000+02:002018-02-28T11:10:48.633+01:00'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP released twenty years agoTwo decades ago today, our legendary 'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP was released. Time for Orlok to look back on the creation of this record.<br />
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"Back in early 1997, we decided to record a few new songs and release these as an EP. Zagan and Warhead came up with the idea to do so at 'Freelation' in Rotterdam because they knew the engineer, who had been their history teacher in school . . . so we went to this studio and talked to the guy, Peter Vlietstra, who seemed a cool guy indeed and we set a date for the recording.<br />
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We had one day to record three songs, so things were pretty relaxed, especially since we had rehearsed the songs really well. We spent an hour or so setting up the drum kit (Warhead brought his own Pearl-and-Zildjian kit to the studio, exact details of which can be found in the EP booklet) and then we started playing. Zagan played his Ibanez S 440 SH through a Marshall Valvestate 8082 Bi Chorus 200, using no effects other than his Boss HM-3 while I played my Aria Pro II, through a Hughes & Kettner Bass Kick 505, not using any effects at all.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhar1jdwuCndEbOuLEk1jeNMD4-tphEtnm2q7VqoGVcDO1IPZwulo82eSNLbKjinzovc-o0fx6_9p84m5qfQrnniZx8WMAUASuMSTxsdD6OmwWJ66qOkbvnx3zQNyI_hszpQBFKWZ5ucFc/s1600/IMG_20160422_0013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhar1jdwuCndEbOuLEk1jeNMD4-tphEtnm2q7VqoGVcDO1IPZwulo82eSNLbKjinzovc-o0fx6_9p84m5qfQrnniZx8WMAUASuMSTxsdD6OmwWJ66qOkbvnx3zQNyI_hszpQBFKWZ5ucFc/s400/IMG_20160422_0013.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We soon found out Peter Vlietstra had quite high standards. After the first take of the title track we went into the control room feeling this was a pretty good version but the engineer was shaking his head, telling us this take sucked. He played back the tape and pointed out exactly what was wrong with it so we recorded it a couple more times until the engineer was satisfied as well.<br />
Strangely enough the song we had feared might give trouble, 'Son Of The Dragon', because of all the breaks, was done in one take and the song that really gave trouble turned out to be 'Dokkum 754', not because we made mistakes or anything but because we somehow had a hard time getting the feeling right.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifDuXZqZF1qhq-vu-dMOaN-4gexOe8BcbOSUFXzL_XW4S6LHzREx0DhNjhyLfLNcdVxmBiKR98F34UV6pS0wkqcPDm1lPycpEv8IsG7ihDxKzTkyuT4_xwot_Wb79pwPwzsRNx_WIV0Qs/s1600/IMG_20160422_0010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1057" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifDuXZqZF1qhq-vu-dMOaN-4gexOe8BcbOSUFXzL_XW4S6LHzREx0DhNjhyLfLNcdVxmBiKR98F34UV6pS0wkqcPDm1lPycpEv8IsG7ihDxKzTkyuT4_xwot_Wb79pwPwzsRNx_WIV0Qs/s320/IMG_20160422_0010.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
When we finally had a version on tape we could all live with we were getting hungry. After dinner we finished the recordings. Zagan recorded all the rhythm guitar parts another time and then he started on the guitar leads, adding a Boss CE-3. For the leads in the title track he switched to his Ibanez RX350-BK to get a warmer, bluesier feeling into them which turned out quite well.<br />
Only one song, 'Dokkum 754', needed keyboards so that did not take a lot of time which left only the vocals after which Peter Vlietstra quickly made a rough mix we could take home and listen to before we would do the real mix, scheduled for a week later.<br />
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The next week we went back to the studio, accompanied by Opyros, where to our horror we found out there was a little bass mistake left in the title track. First Peter Vlietstra tried to use a computer to correct it but since he didn't really know how the thing worked there was no option left but to record the bass part in that song again. So Opyros and I went to fetch my bass while Zagan and Warhead borrowed the engineer's car to get an amp. The amp we had used a week earlier was unavailable to us now so I had to use Warhead's own small Vantage VB30. When the bass part was finally more or less OK we could start mixing, at last, which, thankfully, went smoothly and after adding 'On The Wings Of Azazel' from the live album as a bonus track on the master DAT we were done. This was done as a teaser for the full <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2016/11/live-album-recorded-twenty-years-ago.html" target="_blank">live album</a> that we were planning to release later that year.<br />
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Of course, after the recording the problems started when the pressing was delayed for months. The guy who handled this for us had promised it would be no problem at all to have the CD's by April 19, when a presentation gig was scheduled, but then, adding apologies to weak excuses, he said we would at least have them before the <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2017/02/those-were-days-looking-back-on-our.html" target="_blank">tour with Barathrum and Sabbat</a> would commence on April 29, but of course that didn't work out either and in the end the EP wasn't released for another few months.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4w7_ozA6Qgraudl-wXEghv0Osms5e3a_eRGLxMAVUO8sA7J-bnnmX8WMoYpGNrjJELaODf2PrUC7X7jz55qyGwnTRZe_ERjgAPu-gK37WlHakymdnKf4mgadm_S9qeRLyRlDfm3wYJs4/s1600/IMG_20160422_0006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4w7_ozA6Qgraudl-wXEghv0Osms5e3a_eRGLxMAVUO8sA7J-bnnmX8WMoYpGNrjJELaODf2PrUC7X7jz55qyGwnTRZe_ERjgAPu-gK37WlHakymdnKf4mgadm_S9qeRLyRlDfm3wYJs4/s400/IMG_20160422_0006.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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In spite of all this trouble we were quite satisfied with the result when it was finally out, feeling this was finally a release really representative of what Countess was all about. Fans were also really enthusiastic about the EP, but reviews and sales were rather disappointing. Looking back, it might have been a better idea to have released the full live album with three new songs as bonus tracks instead of an EP. At the time it seemed like a good idea though.<br />
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Over the years, the 'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP gained somewhat of a legendary status. The fact that it was unavailable for many years may have played a part in this, but it is also a really cool EP. Both the <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2016/05/classic-tracks-hells-rock-roll.html" target="_blank">title track</a> and '<a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2016/04/classic-tracks-son-of-dragon.html" target="_blank">Son Of The Dragon</a>' are amongst our most popular tracks and are still live staples today."<br />
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Today, the EP is available physically from our official <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/hells-rock-roll" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> store; as well as digitally from numerous outlets such as <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/hells-rock-roll-ep/id1132014980" target="_blank">iTunes</a> and it can also be streamed on Spotify:</div>
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="280" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/album/02kod57ZXbHsEZ5ANXyQ7w" width="500"></iframe></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-19937181421505403382017-02-09T16:00:00.001+01:002018-03-01T09:55:18.401+01:00Those were the days: looking back on our 1997 shows with Barathrum and Sabbat<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">Since we are exactly two weeks away from doing a short tour with Barathrum, almost exactly twenty years after we first toured with them, we figured this would be a good time to look back on these legendary shows.</span><br />
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The
following is a slightly edited and expanded version of a report Orlok wrote for
<a href="http://annick.blackwidowpromotions.net/morbidtales/" target="_blank">Morbid Tales #6</a> back in 2007. All right, here we go: a trip down memory lane .
. .</div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">"In early
1997, the line-up that had been together for two years by then, admittedly with
a few interruptions, was on the brink of breaking up (what a surprise – we may
have split up more often than we played 'Countess Bathory'). Then all of a
sudden we got two offers for gigs, one in Bussum and one in Wassenaar and we
thought; whatever, let’s continue. Those gigs turned out pretty cool and got us
enthusiastic about the band again. We decided to record three new songs for a
mini CD and when around that time Opyros informed me that he was putting
together a tour for us, Barathrum and Sabbat from <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Japan</st1:place></st1:country-region>, we were pretty excited. It
would be a privilege to play with the legend that Sabbat is and ever since Demonos
and I first met in January 1995 (when I was recording 'Ad Maiorem') we had
wanted to tour together.</span></div>
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<a name='more'></a><span lang="EN-GB">Of course, ‘tour’ is a big word for what would be
seven gigs, but at least they were in two different countries (the <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Netherlands</st1:place></st1:country-region> and
<st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Germany</st1:place></st1:country-region>).
However, scheduling complications arose when it turned out one of us would be unable to do the last three gigs. This nearly killed our chances of
being on the bill at all, but Opyros managed to find a solution: we could do
the first four gigs and then Wizzard would step in and take our spot for the
final three. This wasn’t what we had imagined, but it was better than nothing.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoui_oujFsKDrPAWCs7erAOZfDlUkhaeRvwEivEHUAwnw3NuW1wqt8e-z1p0Dd0uzYmm0Cqu65YNBMKFJC6RsrX9MY9XvRTNQn8rYPLsO0Y9eEYthGLHoZjkdiWwbpNX5Ru6BxWA9ulLU/s1600/1997-2017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoui_oujFsKDrPAWCs7erAOZfDlUkhaeRvwEivEHUAwnw3NuW1wqt8e-z1p0Dd0uzYmm0Cqu65YNBMKFJC6RsrX9MY9XvRTNQn8rYPLsO0Y9eEYthGLHoZjkdiWwbpNX5Ru6BxWA9ulLU/s400/1997-2017.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">History repeating itself, more or less</span></i></td></tr>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB">April 29: Geleen</span></b></div>
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The first gig was in Geleen. We were pretty pissed that we didn’t have the mini CD yet, that we were supposed to promote, because of incredible delays due to fuck-ups by the guy responsible for the printing. Nevertheless, we went down to Geleen with Warhead’s old Ford Sierra station car. There, we met Sabbat. They were cool, but we couldn’t really communicate with them because they didn’t speak any English. Well, they knew two English words: ‘beer’ and ‘fuck’. And they were cold constantly; everywhere we came the first thing they did was try to turn up the heat, even before attacking the fridge . . . Barathrum were there too, having driven all the way from Suomi in a rented car. I think they told us that they had gotten into a fight as soon as they had arrived in Maastricht the day before . . .</div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">The place was all right but there were not that
many people in attendance. Opening were Conquered My Fears (basically Bifrost
with a different name) but I didn’t really catch that much of their show as we
were preparing for our own, since we were up next here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">We took the stage and played a decent set, but
somehow it wasn’t that good. There were some problems with the amps or the
sound at one point if I remember correctly and we fucked up 'The Wrath Of Satan's Whore' in a
major way. The audience barely responded (save for the guys from the other
bands). When we were done the others drove back to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rotterdam</st1:place></st1:city> (where they lived and the next gig
would be the day after) but I decided to stick around to see Barathrum and
Sabbat. Both bands were amazing, but with them, too, the audience response was
below par. I was having a good time though. Finally hearing songs like 'Victory
Feast' and 'Mion’s Hill' live was quite an experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">After the gig, we
(the Barathrum guys, one of the Sabbat guys and myself) bought some 50 cans of
beer and started drinking. I also remember showing one of the Barathrum guys
how to play 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' while sitting at the bar with a guitar. Then
one of the Finns went back to their car and fetched a bottle of Finnish vodka.
If you check the inside of the 'Revenge - Part II' booklet, the photo on the
upper left was taken that night. You can see the (almost empty) vodka bottle.
The Sabbat guy is passed out on the table and Demonos is close to falling down
too . . . I’m behind him making the sign of the horns. It was really late when
we finally went to bed. Actually there were no beds so I slept on the stage; a
few hours later Opyros was kicking me and yelling I had to get up because we
had to drive to the next gig. Yeah, those were the days . . .<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 13.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">April 30: Rotterdam<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB">We drove to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rotterdam</st1:place></st1:city> in a van Opyros had rented for the
tour. Somewhere near <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Dordrecht</st1:place></st1:city>,
we stopped at a McDonald’s for some junk food breakfast. Eating made my
hangover go away rather quickly and I was feeling fine again when we reached <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rotterdam</st1:place></st1:city>. It was a sunny
day and we just hung out around the Baroeg, having a few beers, until time came
for the show to begin, which was pretty soon since it was an afternoon show.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLqnV-sRa4YMtg2JtVkpqJtYt06e5SewG5_HUK9-yHXWzlI2ZFOrC0z0j_oGWc0k4MY6wbJLUHiEMW_VBPasf29kumY1I0LoAv2S3dVOhDsGCJvBN3-7LVR7AOJp0YKLK-gkxS2wDVwds/s1600/IMG_20160211_0009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLqnV-sRa4YMtg2JtVkpqJtYt06e5SewG5_HUK9-yHXWzlI2ZFOrC0z0j_oGWc0k4MY6wbJLUHiEMW_VBPasf29kumY1I0LoAv2S3dVOhDsGCJvBN3-7LVR7AOJp0YKLK-gkxS2wDVwds/s320/IMG_20160211_0009.jpg" width="233" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The official Baroeg program</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Opening were Wrok, who made quite an impression.
Not so much because of their improvised brand of extremely primitive black metal as
because of the slideshow of various massacres and holocaust images they
projected onto a screen during their gig. I thought it was entertaining, but
the Baroeg people thought otherwise and just cut off the power to end their
show. Sometime later, they even provided Wrok with a trophy for being the worst
band ever having played there.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">Next up were Barathrum, who were pretty good
again and after that Sabbat took the stage, being utterly brilliant as they had
been the night before. They were even better a live act than I had thought. I
was shocked that there were few people in the audience. This was a
once-in-a-lifetime chance to see one of the most legendary black metal bands ever live,
after all. Maybe the fact that this was a holiday in the <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Netherlands</st1:place></st1:country-region>
(the queen’s birthday) had something to do with this.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">In <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rotterdam</st1:place></st1:city>,
we were the headliner. With the other bands, we had agreed that we would shift
the playing order every day and both Barathrum and Sabbat thought it obvious
that we would headline in our town, <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rotterdam</st1:place></st1:city>.
The guy from the Baroeg who had booked the show wasn’t happy about this (of the
bands playing, he only liked Sabbat and had announced them as headliner).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">We took the stage and we triumphed. We played
true metal for an hour and the audience enjoyed it. Of course, we started with
'The Priest Must Die' (though I changed the words to 'The Queen Must Die' for
the occasion – I wonder if anyone noticed). From then, it was utter chaos. Had
the gig the day before been somewhat subdued, this day we had the real metal spirit.
We ripped through our classics and a few new ones with true conviction (<a href="https://play.spotify.com/user/countessmetal/playlist/28hJV5xDObNMaaKryNXl6e" target="_blank">setlist</a>).<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5lbHJd5tm2FbguT_kW-f3KSdNJ4qXRiMja9CuYKgedLCK_jrI22sqVCknK3cqNP0jetf-OgoHbOtnZmehkwUuWNGbcD2ojfxss7JWi2-J96b303AB6BIO-t0PtKGqpsmUXuljf0E9GE/s1600/IMG_20160422_0003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5lbHJd5tm2FbguT_kW-f3KSdNJ4qXRiMja9CuYKgedLCK_jrI22sqVCknK3cqNP0jetf-OgoHbOtnZmehkwUuWNGbcD2ojfxss7JWi2-J96b303AB6BIO-t0PtKGqpsmUXuljf0E9GE/s400/IMG_20160422_0003.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Demonos, Zagan and Orlok backstage in Bramsche</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
There was a certain incident while we were
playing, when Demonos climbed onto the stage and onto and amp, opened his
trousers and started to masturbate on stage. I thought that was pretty funny,
but the Baroeg people had other ideas and dragged him from the stage. Still, we
were pretty satisfied with the performance we had given in our home town.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">Afterwards, we went for a bite with some friends
and after that, we went home. The next day would be a day off and the day after
that we were going to play in <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Berlin</st1:place></st1:state>
. . .<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="EN-GB">May 2: Berlin<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">For the German gig we took a guy called Rafael
along as sort of roadie. He was a guy that Zagan and Warhead knew from school
and he did all kinds of stuff for us in 1997. He did the cover art for 'Hell’s
Rock & Roll' and came with us to several gigs as our ‘official’
photographer. During this tour, his main duties were also to take pictures, to
drive the car so Warhead wouldn’t have to do all the driving (Zagan and myself
not having drivers’ licenses) and to take care of all kinds of stuff that might
come up.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFUdybhteMuksQGIG-q-ppQJ8ww_Xv54WBnMbDxH8EXNIHA1Mzeet62LXPCaS8BC6CbkF_Pt12oYic6eXskF_f8W7ykP99HosE3I9-To0dfVyajNA6Iip_WCwBJpcfKwYQuay9hs_8-ZI/s1600/2013-01-20_167+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFUdybhteMuksQGIG-q-ppQJ8ww_Xv54WBnMbDxH8EXNIHA1Mzeet62LXPCaS8BC6CbkF_Pt12oYic6eXskF_f8W7ykP99HosE3I9-To0dfVyajNA6Iip_WCwBJpcfKwYQuay9hs_8-ZI/s400/2013-01-20_167+-+Copy.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">The Berlin show</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We drove to <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Berlin</st1:place></st1:state> in Warhead’s old Ford Sierra station
car again. It comfortably managed 180 kph (about 115 mph) on the Autobahn but
when we were nearing <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Berlin</st1:place></st1:state>
we got caught in a major traffic jam because there had been an accident
involving some trucks or whatever. We got stuck there for several hours, which
was especially unpleasant since it was awfully hot that day. Nevertheless, we
did make it in time to 'Die Insel' in time. 'Die Insel' was a really cool
place, sort of a castle-like building located on an actual island somewhere in <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Berlin</st1:place></st1:state>. We had played
there a year earlier as well and found that not much had changed. There were
several floors in this place and the floor above the floor where we were
playing was the ‘goth’ floor, so we spent the afternoon looking at all kinds of
barely dressed goth chicks. When they went up the stairs, many of them offered
a nice view of what was under their skirts. We weren’t there to gawk at chicks
in skimpy black skirts though, so we duly did a sound check and then we were
fed. We were quite anxious about the food, because the year before they’d given
us vegetarian food and we had rather loudly complained about that. This time,
the food was exactly the same, with the exception that they added some
minuscule bits of sausage here and there to pacify us. At least there was
enough beer to wash it down with.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">The evening came and it took ages before things
went underway. After the first band had played, Seirim, Barathrum took the
stage and we were up next. I think it was <st1:time hour="2" minute="0" w:st="on">02:00</st1:time>
hours by then. The place was packed, though, so the atmosphere was great. I
think there were about 200 people there and the place wasn’t that big. I even
recognized some faces in the audience from the year before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">We started playing and the crowd reacted
enthusiastically. People were banging their heads and singing along. This was a
real metal night. It was incredibly hot on stage, but we kept playing with as
much or perhaps even more vigour than in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Rotterdam</st1:place></st1:city>,
because the audience reacted so well (after the gig, someone who frequently
attended gigs there told me he’d never seen such a response from the audience
to any band before). When we had gone through our entire set a</span><span lang="EN-GB">nd anything else we could think of to play, the
audience still kept on yelling for me. So as a final encore, we did 'Kneel
Before The Master’s Throne' which sounded awful because Zagan’s guitar had become
terribly detuned by then, but still it was great, simply because of the
incredible atmosphere. Looking back, I think this was the single best gig we
did in the nineties.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">After our own gig, I grabbed a beer and watched Sabbat, who of course
were brilliant again. After that, we had to leave to drive to the next gig. I
think it was <st1:time hour="6" minute="0" w:st="on">06:00</st1:time> hours or so
by then. It was getting light again, but in spite of that we got somewhat lost
trying to find our way of Berlin . . .</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNh3gOc7qyVMAq5DEMvpDSZnbyxhC4T7MqGHhcHenujdRqmplcWZnMqMZuhqr0XN3yhUAKJqhmdTmO4FpvI8fu7lSUpeYEmR25LfYL0ZbGke5k0uZrgRabrie9SIRNfN9TvW07emZL1Pk/s1600/IMG_20160422_0018+-+kopie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNh3gOc7qyVMAq5DEMvpDSZnbyxhC4T7MqGHhcHenujdRqmplcWZnMqMZuhqr0XN3yhUAKJqhmdTmO4FpvI8fu7lSUpeYEmR25LfYL0ZbGke5k0uZrgRabrie9SIRNfN9TvW07emZL1Pk/s400/IMG_20160422_0018+-+kopie.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Backstage in Berlin with Sabbat</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span lang="EN-GB">May 3: Bramsche</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">We drove most of the day until we arrived sometime in the afternoon in
Bramsche, near Osnabrück, where the gig would take place at the 'Alte
Webschule'. We walked around the place a bit and found it to be a very unlikely
place for a black metal gig. All the walls were painted white and they had been painted
recently, so the whole place smelled of paint.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">After eating a bit we did a sound check and
discovered that the amps were pretty crappy worn-out pieces of equipment that
didn’t seem to produce a lot of volume. When the first band played, Tha-Norr on
this day, our fears about the amps were confirmed. I was standing next to Zagan
in front of the stage and we could just talk to each other without even raising
our voices while Tha-Norr was playing. That was pretty weird. We didn’t have a
lot of time to think about this, though, since there was one other band and we
were up after that. I don’t remember that much about this gig except that it
was pretty all right, considering the circumstances.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB">When we were finished with our set, we got into
the car and drove home straight away, arriving home in the middle of the night.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwt5cArk5qGDITwn4gtFPOK0s-tQghTISo5YYScFYHO4MOQM86_fjCHnIWUkOENO_9oB2wozwBJCG4O1efjx8l29CMW59q6V4UIq9KjE5UZJ7CPe_sqAKfVTCATAWO0zDdK5Q1Z8D_gyE/s1600/MorbidTales_Countess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwt5cArk5qGDITwn4gtFPOK0s-tQghTISo5YYScFYHO4MOQM86_fjCHnIWUkOENO_9oB2wozwBJCG4O1efjx8l29CMW59q6V4UIq9KjE5UZJ7CPe_sqAKfVTCATAWO0zDdK5Q1Z8D_gyE/s400/MorbidTales_Countess.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">This report how it originally appeared in Morbid Tales #6</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
So that was it, at least for us, the other
bands continuing for three more dates. Looking back, it was quite a cool
experience even when I would of course have preferred to do a whole lot more
gigs. Even so, the Sabbat-Barathrum-Countess package may very well have been
one of the most unique in the history of underground metal."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-79032673406883327432016-12-15T16:44:00.000+01:002018-03-01T10:11:54.078+01:00Newsletter midwinter 2016As the year draws to a close, we can conclude that 2016 has been another memorable year for Countess. We released a new album and our second album was released on vinyl 22 years after its original release . . . in this newsletter we’ll take a look at some key events from the past year and we’re announcing a special midwinter sale.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Midwinter sale: 20% off everything</h3>
If you place an order at our <a data-cke-saved-href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/merch" href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/merch" target="_blank">webstore</a> between now and December 31st, simply use <b>midwinter</b> as your discount code and you’ll get 20% off your entire order!<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<h3>
New album 'Fires Of Destiny'</h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj-r6jo8WkuJxQETzedhyphenhyphenLfirrSEVX1SsIb1tAEPhJ58wkV7cySQQzeH0Kffk8zr8AXMXSueVj6hrohTm1X1_uJG-R4cgHVKxUfvGTak2UDbcq1b1QSjSHCEApc9iil3zX0h1Ye8NI5hA/s1600/Fires+Of+Destiny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj-r6jo8WkuJxQETzedhyphenhyphenLfirrSEVX1SsIb1tAEPhJ58wkV7cySQQzeH0Kffk8zr8AXMXSueVj6hrohTm1X1_uJG-R4cgHVKxUfvGTak2UDbcq1b1QSjSHCEApc9iil3zX0h1Ye8NI5hA/s200/Fires+Of+Destiny.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
In June, we released our new album 'Fires Of Destiny'. Our fifteenth full-length, the record features ten tracks of uncompromising metal, blending first wave Black Metal and traditional Heavy Metal in a way only Countess can. The album is available everywhere, including <a data-cke-saved-href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/fires-of-destiny" href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/fires-of-destiny" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a>, <a data-cke-saved-href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/fires-of-destiny/id1129148440" href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/fires-of-destiny/id1129148440" target="_blank">iTunes</a> and <a data-cke-saved-href="https://play.spotify.com/album/6vmFvcXp45Frm5Ctt4rNYp" href="https://play.spotify.com/album/6vmFvcXp45Frm5Ctt4rNYp" target="_blank">Spotify</a>.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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The album received a <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2016/07/fires-of-destiny-review-round-up.html" target="_blank">great response</a> from numerous reviewers:<br />
<br />
"easily one of the best metal albums of 2016. I’m not kidding" (<a data-cke-saved-href="http://underground-siege.com/2016/12/07/countess-fires-destiny/" href="http://underground-siege.com/2016/12/07/countess-fires-destiny/" target="_blank">Underground Siege</a>)<br />
<br />
"Countess embody the joy and gift of pure metal, and this album is a must listen" (<a data-cke-saved-href="https://wonderboxmetal.wordpress.com/2016/07/23/countess-fires-of-destiny-review/" href="https://wonderboxmetal.wordpress.com/2016/07/23/countess-fires-of-destiny-review/" target="_blank">Wonderbox Metal</a>)<br />
<br />
"ten tracks of unfashionable, but stirring metal" (<a data-cke-saved-href="https://thesoundnottheword.wordpress.com/2016/07/18/countess-fires-of-destiny/" href="https://thesoundnottheword.wordpress.com/2016/07/18/countess-fires-of-destiny/" target="_blank">The Sound Not The Word</a>)<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
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</div>
<div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifeTyT_PftAiSsRTdE_Bv9TaG_ri6M8gDCKfeulHMW8msL28fY0M603z0RPvQoKjZhD8V2re4-0Bi58a8C11i6-cQQQEP2q6CLnoPs_W8jIwxLKySXQ-uQB6HVTwAnVIVlCZ9ojsNRY00/s1600/pic4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifeTyT_PftAiSsRTdE_Bv9TaG_ri6M8gDCKfeulHMW8msL28fY0M603z0RPvQoKjZhD8V2re4-0Bi58a8C11i6-cQQQEP2q6CLnoPs_W8jIwxLKySXQ-uQB6HVTwAnVIVlCZ9ojsNRY00/s320/pic4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<h3>
Special live shows</h3>
In July, we played our first show in Belgium at the Radiant Art festival and in October we returned to Finland to headline the Tampere Black Mass II. This picture is from the Odium Nostrum festival in Utrecht.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
Vinyl release of 'The Return Of The Horned One'</h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijlU4LS7-SWKM8Ve2GZ5ZfU8jciS2k_GAJZaDshk4iL9hqqxq09mUFKkt46SLq35QF8xKt5Ardr-84t30rca8yfUlr4Snt8Mw-cNhW5wIH_huYfT38LOZw_vyzhppFZXc12vSVl-1TorY/s1600/foto%2525202_zpsb1hevpml.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijlU4LS7-SWKM8Ve2GZ5ZfU8jciS2k_GAJZaDshk4iL9hqqxq09mUFKkt46SLq35QF8xKt5Ardr-84t30rca8yfUlr4Snt8Mw-cNhW5wIH_huYfT38LOZw_vyzhppFZXc12vSVl-1TorY/s200/foto%2525202_zpsb1hevpml.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
In September, our legendary second album was released on vinyl by <a data-cke-saved-href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" target="_blank">New Era Productions</a> and <a data-cke-saved-href="http://heidenshart.nl/" href="http://heidenshart.nl/" target="_blank">Heidens Hart</a>.<br />
<br />
Read all about this legendary album in <a href="http://countessmetal.blogspot.nl/2016/09/the-return-of-horned-one-released-on.html" target="_blank">this blog post</a>.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7LETAJhbAKQ8SQVGxeskGoCmdRgPXwNfb0hCY2BfboTKUj5EtGYrpM8fHO_d4Rj3IHxYPl6-XZLOCJKXCJdOxKOWB7l4tNqMLEIIlOvtRn11q7C7Uv9d9hNv0EEDo-uGrvbrrh0hG9j4/s1600/bcb-feb2017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7LETAJhbAKQ8SQVGxeskGoCmdRgPXwNfb0hCY2BfboTKUj5EtGYrpM8fHO_d4Rj3IHxYPl6-XZLOCJKXCJdOxKOWB7l4tNqMLEIIlOvtRn11q7C7Uv9d9hNv0EEDo-uGrvbrrh0hG9j4/s200/bcb-feb2017.jpg" width="140" /></a></div>
<h3>
<b>Fires Of Destiny Over Europe 2017</b></h3>
In February next year, we will hit the road with Barathrum and Blackdeath, almost exactly twenty years after our tour with Barathrum and Sabbat:<br />
<br />
23/2 Le Klub, Paris<br />
24/2 Het Bos, Antwerp<br />
25/2 Helvete, Oberhausen<br />
26/2 Willemeen, Arnhem<br />
<br />
Anyone interested in booking us in 2017 can contact us at <a href="mailto:bookings@countessmetal.com">bookings@countessmetal.com</a>.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Häxa joins Countess</h3>
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In June, following the departure of Herjann, Häxa joined Countess as the band's new keyboard player (picture taken at the Radiant Art festival).<br />
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Follow us on social media</h3>
We maintain an official presence on several so-called social media, including <a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.facebook.com/CountessMetal" href="http://www.facebook.com/CountessMetal" target="_blank">Facebook</a> and <a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.twitter.com/CountessMetal" href="http://www.twitter.com/CountessMetal" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, where you can follow us for all the latest news and updates concerning Countess. You can also follow us on <a data-cke-saved-href="https://play.spotify.com/artist/6knDZcDZ3KR7XmO62z6Dup" href="https://play.spotify.com/artist/6knDZcDZ3KR7XmO62z6Dup" target="_blank">Spotify</a> and subscribe to our official <a data-cke-saved-href="https://www.youtube.com/user/countessmetal?sub_confirmation=1" href="https://www.youtube.com/user/countessmetal?sub_confirmation=1" target="_blank">YouTube channel</a>.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-27919539652657669202016-11-02T13:36:00.000+01:002018-02-28T11:13:21.811+01:00Live album recorded twenty years agoOn November 2, 1996 we recorded a live album that was never released. In honour of the twentieth anniversary of this occasion, Orlok recalls the album's history.<br />
"Back in the mid-nineties, when we played live people were always telling us that our songs sounded much better live than they did on the albums. So we got the idea to do a live album. We arranged a gig at the place where we usually rehearsed in Schiedam, which was also sort of a club and there was a studio there as well, which would make recording the gig relatively cheap and easy.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9nw8qVKuJW12yFjXZlvXcGbqYKijhtVapoEszYXQi203pLFQqfqPvzcI5juTLsYX_IXggmhJQtTTP82yOcvxXASRWuyWkbMd0lSIBds7pz5GVdGeMF5lRj6K-iCp-knfAa3iEFE7w5c/s1600/Into+Battle.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9nw8qVKuJW12yFjXZlvXcGbqYKijhtVapoEszYXQi203pLFQqfqPvzcI5juTLsYX_IXggmhJQtTTP82yOcvxXASRWuyWkbMd0lSIBds7pz5GVdGeMF5lRj6K-iCp-knfAa3iEFE7w5c/s1600/Into+Battle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>The intended cover for the live album</i></div>
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We picked a bunch of songs for inclusion on the album and rehearsed these pretty well. Most were from the first four albums, but we included a few new ones as well. On the day of the gig we rehearsed in the afternoon, then set up the recording equipment together with the engineer. Then we just played the gig, which went really well. We didn’t feel any real pressure because of the fact the gig was being recorded.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The atmosphere in the club was great. Even when there weren’t that many people, they were all really into the music. Too bad we forgot to aim a few mikes at the audience, so you can't really hear the crowd on the actual album. Among the chosen few attending were Opyros and some other German guys we had met when we’d played in Berlin and Leipzig earlier in the year. They had all come to Holland for the single purpose of witnessing this gig, making it something quite special.<br />
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<i>The band, the engineer (on the far right) and several members of the audience after the show</i></div>
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A few days after the gig, we all went back to the place and spent an evening and the entire night on finishing the album. First, we listened to everything. Then we did a few overdubs here and there to correct some minor errors and then we started mixing, which is where this album went somewhat wrong. I blame that on the fact that it was really late and the engineer was gulping down whiskey in large quantities.<br />
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Of course, we decided to found our own label not too long after the recording of this live album. We recorded and released the 'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP in early 1997 and planned to release the live album later that year, to be entitled 'Into Battle'. However, it is a matter of history that the EP sold very badly and there were no funds to release the live album. <br />
There would be no more Countess releases for a few years until the band resurfaced on Opyros’ new label Barbarian Wrath. By then, the live album was already a few years old and since there was always more than enough new material to release, releasing this live album was something that never even came up.<br />
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Several tracks from the live album have been released, though: 'On Wings Of Azazel' was included on the aforementioned EP, as a teaser for the full live album and the three Dutch-language tracks were added to 2004's 'Heilig Vuur' album as bonus tracks. In 2014, the live rendition of 'Kneel Before The Master's Throne' was added to the CD re-release of 'The Gospel Of The Horned One' by New Era Productions and Heidens Hart.<br />
Looking back, I think the live album could have sounded much better with a better mix. That being said, it still is a worthy document. This is what Countess was at this point in time."<br />
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UPDATE: In 2017 the live album was finally released after all these years by <a href="http://new-era-productions.nl/" target="_blank">New Era Productions</a> and <a href="http://heidenshart.nl/" target="_blank">Heidens Hart</a>. The album was made available on cassette, professionally copied and limited to 100 copies as well as on CD. Today, it is available both digitally and physically from our official <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/into-battle" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> site and digitally from all major platforms such as <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/into-battle/1313711475" target="_blank">Apple Music</a> and Spotify:<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-47090587107119906692016-09-14T20:09:00.001+02:002018-12-29T12:33:06.421+01:00'The Return Of The Horned One' released on vinylAlmost twenty-two years after its original release on CD by Nazgul's Eyrie Productions, our sophomore album 'The Return Of The Horned One' has now been released on vinyl in a joint effort by <a href="http://new-era-productions.nl/shop/a-e/2065-countess-the-return-of-the-horned-one-lp.html" target="_blank">New Era Productions</a> and <a href="http://heidenshart.nl/nieuws/2016-09.htm" target="_blank">Heidens Hart</a>. In commemoration of this occasion, Orlok wrote down some memories from the creation of this legendary record.<br />
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"In the summer of 1994, the line-up that had been in place for a while and recorded the demo 'The Wolves Awake' more or less ceased to exist. We never split up officially, but just kind of stopped rehearsing. I had still been writing new material throughout the year, though, so in September I decided to record a new album anyway.<br />
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<i>The vinyl version of the album</i></div>
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The recording of this album took place at SPOD in Delft, a place where most of my projects and bands have rehearsed at one time or another and where a lot of stuff I did in the early years was recorded. The main reason for this was that at the time they had an excellent Fostex 280 4-tracker available for rent in combination with a fine Alesis effects processor. Back then this was a good alternative for an actual studio, something we couldn't afford.<br />
The recording more or less started at home by programming all the drum parts in my Yamaha RY10 rhythm machine, which were subsequently recorded through a heavy old Peavy bass amp. Next I began putting down all the bass parts, playing my Aria Pro II, played through the same amp.<br />
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Since several songs I had picked for inclusion on the album had been played by our last line-up, I asked both guitarists to participate in the recordings. So the next day Othalaz showed up, bringing along his rare Fender Prodigy guitar as well as his ancient Boss DS-1 distortion, and while I was finishing the bass parts he went to get some hamburgers from a nearby junk food joint. After lunch we put down the first rhythm guitar parts, Othalaz playing the older songs like 'Aleidis' while I did the newer ones like 'Ritual Of The 7 Priests'. We played the guitar through the Peavy bass amp in an attempt to get a heavier sound, but looking back this did not work out too well.<br />
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Next I mixed the bass and first rhythm guitar to the fourth track together and we recorded the second rhythm guitar on the second track, then mixed it to the third track together with the drums from track one so we had tracks one and two left for vocals, keyboards and leads.<br />
When the basic tracks were laid down we took a break and a few days later Imogem showed up to play the lead guitar parts on 'Into Battle' and 'Deisidaimonia'. He brought his Yamaha guitar and Boss effects processor along but I don't remember what amp he played through. When he was done, however, I recorded some guitar leads myself and after that I did the keyboards on a Roland D50 and then, finally, the vocals.<br />
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When everything was laid down I mixed everything, adding the earlier-recorded 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' in the process, and a month later I took a train to Regensburg, Germany to personally deliver the master tape to Opyros, who would release the album on his fledgling label Nazgul's Eyrie Productions two months later.<br />
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I know some diehard Countess fans still consider this the band's finest album and though I certainly respect their opinion I do not share it. The sound and playing on this record are really below par, even when this is perhaps made up for by the sheer rawness of the recording.<br />
It is a very extreme and unique-sounding album; especially so because it is extreme in a way very different from the way most other bands were 'extreme' at the time. Many of the songs on this album have been played live through the years – in fact we still play quite a few live - and hearing these tunes live makes you think how much better this album could have been."<br />
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'The Return Of The Horned One' is still available both digitally and physically from our Bandcamp store. It's also available on all major platforms such as <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/the-return-of-the-horned-one/1063074270" target="_blank">Apple Music</a> and Spotify:<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-58264326618365897422016-07-30T10:08:00.004+02:002020-10-04T08:10:38.672+02:00'Fires Of Destiny' review round-up<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">It's been one month since the release of our new album and so far the response has been great; both from fans and critics. We therefore decided to publish a collection of some cool quotes from several reviews (with links to the full reviews).</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">"Fires of Destiny truly is a legacy worth talking about and Countess have earned all the bragging rights with this album with it being the culmination of over two decades of hard work and devotion coming to the excellent fruition that this piece is."</span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">- <a href="http://metaladdicts.com/site/countess-fires-destiny/" target="_blank">Metal Addicts</a></span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">"They always deliver and they will always be Countess, firm, loyal and strong-willed. So yes, I will recommend this album. It's different, it's vintage, it's varied and it rocks. What else could you possibly want?"</span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">- <a href="http://www.merchantsofair.com/reviews/countess-fires-of-destiny" target="_blank">Merchants of Air</a></span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">"Fires Of Destiny is een lekker gevarieerd album geworden, bruut bij tijd en wijlen en ongekend melodieus."</span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">- <a href="http://rockmuzine.nl/2016/07/02/countess-fires-destiny/" target="_blank">Rockmuzine</a></span></div>
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">"Fires of Destiny is een lekkere pot ambachtelijke, rauwe midtempo oldskool black metal met prima gitaarwerk, af en toe Nederlandstalige teksten, en vooral heel veel respect voor het genre."</span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">- <a href="http://ragherrie.com/cd-recensie/2016/countess-fires-of-destiny/" target="_blank">Ragherrie</a></span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">
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<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">"To say that Fires Of Destiny is “Countess, but better” feels like an understated way of describing the album, but it’s also probably the most accurate description. The band aren’t really doing anything too different with their fifteenth album; but what they are doing is writing better quality, more varied, stirringly passionate songs in their own distinctive style."</span><br />
<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">- <a href="https://thesoundnottheword.wordpress.com/2016/07/18/countess-fires-of-destiny/" target="_blank">The Sound Not The Word</a></span><br />
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<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">"Iedere Nederlandse blackmetalliefhebber met een hang naar het verleden kan zijn hart ophalen aan Fires Of Destiny en/of ze op een podium gaan aanschouwen. Doen!"</span><br />
<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">- <a href="http://zwaremetalen.com/albumrecensies/countess-fires-of-destiny" target="_blank">Zware Metalen</a></span><br />
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<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">"Hört man Fires Of Destiny ganz durch, so eröffnet sich ein Gesamtkonzept, das nicht besser hätte sein können. Zudem verstehen es die stellenweise hymnenhaft klingenden Songs, sich durch einen wirklich genialen Gesang bestechend auf den Hörer auszuwirken."</span><br />
<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">- <a href="http://www.franconiametallum.de/cd-reviews/genreportal-cd-reviews/countess-fires-of-destiny" target="_blank">Franconia Metallum</a></span><br />
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<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">"The songs are simple and effective, showcasing the songwriting skills of the band. Countess know what they’re doing and clearly know how to do it very well indeed."</span><br />
<span face="Verdana, sans-serif">- <a href="https://wonderboxmetal.wordpress.com/2016/07/23/countess-fires-of-destiny-review/" target="_blank">Wonderbox Metal</a></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-43645352452591180782016-06-30T12:30:00.000+02:002018-02-28T10:55:15.027+01:00'Fires Of Destiny' out now!Our new album 'Fires Of Destiny' is out now and available from our official Bandcamp store. The album is also available digitally on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/fires-of-destiny/id1129148440" target="_blank">iTunes</a> and available for streaming on <a href="https://play.spotify.com/album/6vmFvcXp45Frm5Ctt4rNYp" target="_blank">Spotify</a>.<br />
<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3363834259/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=888888/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/fires-of-destiny">Fires Of Destiny by Countess</a></iframe>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-3378052969698245622016-06-03T15:00:00.000+02:002018-02-28T11:14:59.356+01:00New album 'Fires Of Destiny' out June 30On June 30 we will release our long-awaited new full-length album, entitled ‘Fires Of Destiny'.<br />
'Fires Of Destiny' is our fifteenth full-length and features ten tracks of uncompromising metal music, blending first wave Black Metal and traditional Heavy Metal in a way only Countess can.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJXimOhaTAJt8TrIe91MJplKGUaN9k-zIOwbko3ftKWkafk3ye30BNHgtmROSylMFpkpuOjvv06eq3UlVWCd39mWjBdiopGOHeFqqY5r-kHwUh_dBh4SL5ebejcj_kxiQpwr_mxc23vTQ/s1600/Fires+Of+Destiny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJXimOhaTAJt8TrIe91MJplKGUaN9k-zIOwbko3ftKWkafk3ye30BNHgtmROSylMFpkpuOjvv06eq3UlVWCd39mWjBdiopGOHeFqqY5r-kHwUh_dBh4SL5ebejcj_kxiQpwr_mxc23vTQ/s400/Fires+Of+Destiny.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The title 'Fires Of Destiny' references the bonfires lit on the Kahlenberg by the troops who came to the relief of Vienna when the city was under siege in 1683; the subject of the title track.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The new album marks the first appearance on a Countess release of our new drummer Mortüüm alongside veterans Orlok (vocals, bass) and Zagan (guitars). It is also the first Countess record in a decade to feature several songs in Dutch.<br />
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The album's full track list:<br />
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1. Runenlied <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <br />
2. Fly The Battle Flag <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <br />
3. Fires Of Destiny <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <br />
4. Rise Of The Horned One <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <br />
5. Plague Upon The Pious <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <br />
6. Today Is A Good Day To Die <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
7. Choir Of The Valkyries <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
8. Treason Of Kings <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
9. See The Ravens Fly <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
10. Bard Van Het Verleden <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
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The album will be available physically as a 6-panel digi-CD from our official <a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> store. It will also be made available digitally (iTunes, Spotify, etcetera).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-43095487135560735282016-06-01T11:45:00.001+02:002020-09-07T20:56:52.202+02:00'The Book Of The Heretic' released twenty years agoTwo decades ago today, 'The Book Of The Heretic' was released, an album that is perhaps our most controversial record: our only concept album to date, marred by a bad sound and mix yet hailed by some as the best Countess album. Time for Orlok to take another trip down memory lane and recall how this record was created.<br />
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"After the recording of 'Ad Maiorem' I went back to writing and throughout 1995 I wrote quite a lot of songs and recorded them as demos. Then one day I got the idea for the story of the heretic in my head, so I got behind my computer and wrote the story down. I figured I could fit all the songs I had for the next album into this story, so I did. Because the story to connect the songs was written after the songs were written (which is a rather unusual way of writing a concept album, I realize that) the lyrics don’t really ‘tell’ the story very explicitly. The story of the heretic is actually quite a long one, which I wrote down in a very condensed way in only a handful of pages. If the story were written down more elaborately, like a novel, it might well comprise several books. The songs on the album all tell small parts of this long tale.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>When the time came to record this album my first idea was to go back to 'The Nick' where Ad Maiorem was recorded but it turned out Nick Hall had moved and since I had no idea where he was now living I had to look for another studio. Hammerheart recommended 'Tercel' in Voerendaal where the second Bifrost album was recorded so I decided to give it a go.
Opyros came over to witness the recordings and thanks to a larger budget we had five days this time. We went down to Voerendaal and met the engineer. He seemed like a nice guy, but though he had previous experience with somewhat similar music - he recorded the first Deinonychus album if I remember correctly - he didn't really seem to care. To make matters worse, proceedings were constantly interrupted by phone calls from the guy's kids.<br />
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We started with the drums of course, synchronizing trusty old 'Count Yamaha' to a computer where the engineer had some advanced software running so we would be able to do all the keyboards using a MIDI keyboard and thus save tracks as well as time. Because of the rhythm machine's limited memory we had to lay down a few tracks, then program 'Count Yamaha' again, then record again, etcetera. When we thought we had all the drum parts on tape it turned out the engineer hadn't thought of the fact there might be tempo changes in the songs so the computer had all the tempi wrong and we had to do it all over again. In the end all we had done in the first day were the drums and the bass on only a couple of tracks.
In the end, it took two more days to do the rest of the bass parts (using my Aria Pro II, plugged straight into the mixing desk) and all the rhythm guitar parts (using my Ibanez RX350-BK, plugged straight into the mixing desk as well, through a Boss HM-3 distortion and some advanced effects processor). I did the rhythm parts three times in an attempt to get a really full sound.<br />
The fourth day we did all the keyboards which left the fifth day for guitar leads, vocals and mix. The guitar leads were improvised as usual and the vocals went smoothly as always, but then we still had to do all the mixing which proved to be a lot of work, we are talking about some 65 minutes of music here after all! The mix went surprisingly quick and everything sounded pretty good in the studio so Opyros and I left the studio satisfied. We grabbed some Italian food somewhere in the area and then went on to see a Bifrost gig.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzY-36a1JpWQbmRCdU4XRfrqHl4OWId4yqOZeaL9F8H-rcdT6sXWvj0o21ZoKgxPvnf6oRpDesT9C_bqZyA_yDzGHgchr3UWPatbu6Xc2inEH-9p-kuuLyuVqGxT64-K8YoRE4YaxzDXM/s1600/IMG_20140429_0005.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzY-36a1JpWQbmRCdU4XRfrqHl4OWId4yqOZeaL9F8H-rcdT6sXWvj0o21ZoKgxPvnf6oRpDesT9C_bqZyA_yDzGHgchr3UWPatbu6Xc2inEH-9p-kuuLyuVqGxT64-K8YoRE4YaxzDXM/s320/IMG_20140429_0005.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>The iconic album cover</i></div>
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As good as this album had sounded in the studio over really expensive studio speakers, it sounded really bad when I played it at home on a normal stereo. So I called the studio a few weeks later to see if we could do a remix, but they had already re-used the tapes so doing a remix wasn’t possible. It’s ironic that this album is probably the worst-sounding Countess album, since it is the one that was by far the most expensive to record. I think it was almost twice as expensive as 'Ad Maiorem', an album that sounds far better.
Before the release, we added 'De Gift Der Goden' as a bonus track. This song was recorded in 1995, live on four tracks and it sounds a lot better than the expensive digital 16-track recordings.<br />
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<iframe style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3042634858/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=ffffff/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=1816948158/transparent=true/" seamless><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/sermons-of-the-infidel">Sermons Of The Infidel by Countess</a></iframe>
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<i>The new version of 'Chapel Of Doom' released in 2014</i></div>
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There a probably several reasons why this album sounds as crappy as it does. The bass tone didn’t help; it was mainly inspired by the bass tone on the Hellhammer demo’s but looking back, I think that tone doesn’t fit the songs on this album too well. Nevertheless, with a better guitar tone and a better mix that would have been much less of a problem. The engineer really fucked up with the EQ’s. Everything just sounds way too thin. The problem was, I think, that the engineer just didn’t give a fuck. He just recorded everything, without putting any effort in it on his part, to say the least.<br />
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I have to admit I don't really like this album. Sure, there are some great songs on it but the sound utterly sucks. With a better sound and especially a better mix this could have been an amazing album. This is clearly illustrated by the new version of 'Chapel Of Doom' that we recorded for the 'Sermons Of The Infidel' compilation. This is how the album should have sounded."<br />
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'The Book Of The Heretic' is still available both digitally and physically from our <a href="https://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/the-book-of-the-heretic" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a> store. It's also available on all major platforms such as <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/album/the-book-of-the-heretic/1086053054" target="_blank">Apple Music</a> and Spotify:<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-16060234008630258912016-05-15T11:45:00.001+02:002020-09-07T21:01:49.489+02:00Classic tracks: Bloed In De Sneeuw<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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'Bloed In De Sneeuw' is generally acknowledged as the first Black Metal song with lyrics in Dutch. In this post, Orlok recalls the song's history.</div>
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"The song 'Bloed In De Sneeuw" was written in early 1994. At the time, we listened a lot to bands like Master's Hammer and Masacre, who sang in their own languages, which inspired us to also try that.</div>
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<a name='more'></a>I came up with the title 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' and wrote a lyric for it. At the same time, Othalaz showed me a riff he had that I liked and we began constructing the song. Othalaz' riff became the verse riff and I came up with the chorus. However, the lyrics didn't fit very well so I changed those (as far as I remember, the original lyrics were much longer, but these have long since been lost). When the song was finished, we decided to record it. Since we weren't sure how this would turn out, we decided to record it as a 13 Candles project track and put it on the 'Hymns Of Winter' compilation.<br />
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<i> </i><iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="100" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/track/0oYVyYw4j6qHp8gqdQl4K3" width="512"></iframe> </div>
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<i>The original version released on 'The Return Of The Horned One'</i></div>
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When the compilation was released, reactions to the song were very enthusiastic. Besides being a really cool song musically, admittedly heavily inspired by 'Viking era' Bathory, the Dutch lyrics gave the song something 'extra' that was apparently more than just the novelty factor. So we started rehearsing the song with Countess and we even played it live once (in May 1994). However, for reasons I cannot remember - if any - we didn't include it on the next Countess album, 'The Return Of The Horned One' when we record that later in 1994. Then when we were signed to N.E.P. and we were preparing the album's release, Opyros insisted we add 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' to the album because he really liked that song. We didn't have time to record it again, though, so we just did a remix of the original 13 Candles version and tacked that onto the album as the final track (admittedly, there is hardly any difference between the remix and the original mix).<br />
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When the album was released, again the response to 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' was really good. So when, in March 1995, we had another Countess line-up together and began rehearsing, we decided to include the song in our live set. We did change the song a little: we moved the lead section from the end to after the second chorus, before the break in the middle. We felt that made the song 'flow' better. As far as I remember, we played 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' live at every gig we did from then on. It was also recorded for the live album in 1996. While the full live album was never released, the live version<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNT7Ebi3VaU&list=UU9SMB1Md_ZIip5jGRK8wPoA" target="_blank"></a> of 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' was eventually released as a bonus track on 'Heilig Vuur' in 2004. 'Heilig Vuur', of course, was an album entirely in Dutch.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3496681543/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=999999/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=2443178399/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 512px;"><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/blazing-flames-of-war">Blazing Flames Of War by Countess</a></iframe>
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<i>The 2007 version, released as a bonus track on 'Blazing Flames Of War'</i></div>
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">A few years later, we recorded a new studio version that was released as a bonus track on 'Blazing Flames Of War' in 2007 and when, in 2014, we started rehearsing an playing live again, there could of course be no question that 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' would be included in the set. Similarly, it was obvious that the song also had to be included on the '<a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/sermons-of-the-infidel" target="_blank">Sermons Of The Infidel</a>' CD as this was a compilation of new versions of some of our personal favourite tracks from the band's long history. So in 2014 'Bloed In De Sneeuw' was recorded yet again. We like to think of this version as the definitive rendition of this classic track."</div>
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<iframe allow="encrypted-media" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="100" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/track/0frEeb8o7euQ9vnGPnXLdk" width="512"></iframe> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The 2014 version, released on 'Sermons Of The Infidel'</i></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-27564909513734849002016-05-08T20:10:00.000+02:002018-03-01T12:28:01.515+01:00Classic tracks: Hell's Rock & Roll'Hell's Rock & Roll' has been a popular song among Countess fans ever since it was written - especially live. In this post, Orlok takes a look at the creation of this anthemic track.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=530462500/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=999999/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=911023204/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 512px;"><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/hells-rock-roll">Hell's Rock & Roll by Countess</a></iframe>
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<i>The original version released in 1997</i></div>
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"We were rehearsing some time in June 1996 and Zagan showed us a couple of riffs he had. We all liked them so we set about to make a song out of them. While playing the parts, we quickly came up with a song structure. The next step was, of course, writing lyrics. I thought about that for a while until the rather rocking nature of the song inspired me to name the track 'Hell's Rock & Roll'. The lyrics quickly followed: a rather cartoonish tale about the devil inspiring men to create metal. It was meant as a sarcastic response to those people who always claim that heavy metal is the devil's music: yes, of course it is! The devil made us do it!<br />
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When a few people outside of the band heard the song, they were quite surprised because it sounded somewhat different from most of our other songs (this was before 'black & roll' really was a thing, as far as I am aware). They did like it, though. So we decided to include it in our set for the recording of the live album in November 1996. The audience response to the song was great and we all realized that this could become a real live favourite. Since then, it has been played at almost every Countess show.</div>
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<i>The live version recorded in 1996</i></div>
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Early in 1997 we decided to record an EP. Since 'Hell's Rock & Roll' hadn't been released yet, it was obvious it was going to be on this EP. In fact, we made it the title track. I don't really recall why we did that, probably because we thought it was a cool title.<br />
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When we returned to playing live in 2014, it was a given that 'Hell's Rock & Roll' would be included in the set. Unlike in the nineties, however, when we usually played the song somewhere in the middle of the set (except once in Hillegom, where we opened with it) we decided to make it the closing song, immediately following another classic, 'Bloed In De Sneeuw'. This proved to be a good idea: these two songs turned out to be perfect closers for a Countess show.<br />
Of course, 'Hell's Rock & Roll' also had to be included on the compilation of new versions of our personal favourite songs we released in 2014. Since 'Hell's Rock & Roll' has proven to work best as a live song, we opted against recording a new studio version and instead included the version we played at 'Metal Magic' earlier in 2014."<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3042634858/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=999999/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=876550336/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 512px;"><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/sermons-of-the-infidel">Sermons Of The Infidel by Countess</a></iframe>
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<i>The live version recorded in 2014
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522200122099397482.post-37448363438498298622016-05-01T20:45:00.000+02:002018-03-01T12:35:00.232+01:00Classic tracks: AleidisIn this post in our 'classic tracks' series, Orlok shares his recollections of the history of 'Aleidis':<br />
"The creation of 'Aleidis' goes back to September 1993. At the time, I used to hang out with Hammerheart a lot and one time when I was at his place he showed me a book and said there was a cool short story in there that I should read. It was a story about a man who encounters a female vampire named Aleidis and it was indeed a cool story. The story got stuck in my head for a while and I decided to write a song about it.<br />
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We had just gotten a new line-up together at the time and with this line-up, we started playing 'Aleidis'. We played the song at at our first gig and in January 1994 it was released on the demo 'The Wolves Awake'.<br />
<a name='more'></a>When the time came to record the second Countess album, it was obvious that 'Aleidis' would be included. In fact, we made it the first 'real' song on the album, straight after the intro. We did make a few changes compared to the demo version: we left off the guitar leads at the beginning and the end, increased the tempo a little and added keyboards to enhance the 'campy old school horror' atmosphere we were going for with this track.<br />
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<i>The original version released on 'The Return Of The Horned One'</i></div>
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Reactions to the song were very positive, both to the album version and when we played it live. We noticed that it seemed especially popular in Germany, for whatever reason.We weren't too pleased with the song ourselves, though, and we eventually dropped it from the live set. Therefore it also wasn't part of the set when we recorded the live album in November 1996. Looking back, I think the main reason we weren't satisfied with the way the song sounded live is because we didn't have live keyboards at the time and this song really doesn't work well without them. This can also clearly be heard on the new studio version we recorded years later, without keyboards, and released as a bonus track on 'Blazing Flames Of War' (the reason there are no keyboards here is because there are no keyboards on this album at all).<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3496681543/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=999999/tracklist=false/artwork=none/track=918638149/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 512px;"><a href="http://countessmetal.bandcamp.com/album/blazing-flames-of-war">Blazing Flames Of War by Countess</a></iframe>
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<i>The new studio version from 2007</i></div>
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Of course, when we assembled a new line-up in 2014, we did include a keyboard player and we eventually decided to give 'Aleidis' another go. We were pleased with the way it sounded when we rehearsed it so we included it in the live set. It has been played live again at most of our shows since."<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0