Darkthrone

Darkthrone is a Norwegian band from Kolbotn that formed in 1986. The group began as a death metal act, then shifted to black metal in 1991 and became a key name in that scene. Since 1993 the band has worked as a duo, Fenriz and Nocturno Culto, releasing a long run of raw, riff-first records that later pulled in classic heavy metal, punk, speed metal, and most recently doom metal elements.

How The Band Got Started

The story begins in late 1986 with a death metal group called Black Death, formed by Gylve Nagell, Ivar Enger, and Anders Risberget in Kolbotn, south of Oslo. In 1987 they adopted the name Darkthrone and added bassist Dag Nilsen. Ted Skjellum joined in 1988, replacing Risberget. Across 1988 and 1989 they issued four demos, building toward a record deal with Peaceville Records.

Death Metal Years, 1986-1991

Darkthrone recorded their debut album Soulside Journey in 1990 at Sunlight Studios, with help from contacts in Nihilist and Entombed. Released in 1991, it was a death metal record with hints of the cold atmosphere they would embrace later. The band continued to write and track material to tape. Those sessions would eventually surface as Goatlord, issued in 1996 with vocals overdubbed by Fenriz.

Early Black Metal Years, 1991-1994

In 1991 the group shifted to black metal aesthetics and adopted stage names. Nagell became Fenriz, Skjellum became Nocturno Culto, and Enger became Zephyrous. They recorded A Blaze in the Northern Sky in August 1991. Peaceville hesitated at the sharp turn from death metal, but the album arrived in early 1992. Bassist Dag Nilsen left shortly after and was credited only as session bass on the release.

Under a Funeral Moon followed in 1993, cementing a stark, minimal approach and closing the chapter with Zephyrous. In 1994 the duo issued Transilvanian Hunger, credited only to Fenriz and Nocturno Culto, with Fenriz handling the instruments and writing, and Nocturno Culto on vocals. Its raw sound, relentless riffing, and minimal melody became a touchstone. Half the lyrics came from Varg Vikernes. The booklet also printed the phrase “Norsk Arisk Black Metal,” which drew controversy at the time.

With Moonfog Records, 1995-2004

Darkthrone moved to Satyr’s Moonfog Productions for a run of albums that kept the core approach while adjusting textures. Panzerfaust arrived in 1995, again with Fenriz handling writing and instrumentation and Nocturno Culto on vocals, and included lyrics by Varg Vikernes on “Quintessence.” Total Death followed in 1996, notable for lyrics contributed by four different black metal musicians.

Alongside Darkthrone, Fenriz worked on side projects, including Neptune Towers, Isengard, Storm, Dødheimsgard, and Valhall. The band stopped playing live after an April 1996 set at Rockefeller in Oslo during “A Night of Unholy Black Metal.”

Ravishing Grimness (1999) and Plaguewielder (2001) leaned on material primarily written by Nocturno Culto and were tracked at Ronny Le Tekrø’s studio, yielding a clearer sound. Compilations and tributes arrived as well, including Preparing for War in 2000. Hate Them in 2003 and Sardonic Wrath in 2004 kept the ice-cold focus of their early 1990s work. Sardonic Wrath became their last Moonfog release and the final album that stayed entirely within that early template.

Punk-Tinged Return to Peaceville, 2005-2010

In 2005 Darkthrone returned to Peaceville and launched Tyrant Syndicate Productions. Peaceville reissued Preparing for War with bonus demos and a DVD, and re-released the first four albums with interview material.

The 2006 EP Too Old, Too Cold featured a guest appearance by Grutle Kjellson of Enslaved and included a Siouxsie and the Banshees cover. The title track earned the band its first charting single in Norway and Denmark. That same year The Cult Is Alive added crust punk grit and became their first Norwegian album chart entry. The 2007 EP NWOBHM teased F.O.A.D., which balanced the bite of punk with a bigger nod to classic heavy metal. Dark Thrones and Black Flags arrived in 2008 and Circle the Wagons in 2010, the latter favoring speed and traditional metal traits.

2010 to the Present

Peaceville secured rights to the Moonfog releases, reissuing Panzerfaust on vinyl and later Total Death. The duo then pivoted again. The Underground Resistance landed in 2013 with full-tilt classic metal and speed metal spirit. Arctic Thunder followed in 2016, raw and colder, while keeping the classic metal thread. That year the band issued The Wind of 666 Black Hearts, rehearsal takes from 1991 and 1992 for songs that later appeared on their early 1990s albums.

In 2019 Old Star brought stronger doom metal emphasis. In 2021 they unveiled the early-and-rare box set Shadows of Iconoclasm and released Eternal Hails……, steeped in traditional doom with clear nods to Candlemass, Trouble, and Black Sabbath. Astral Fortress arrived in 2022. In 2024 the band issued their twentieth studio album, It Beckons Us All……., tracked at Chaka Khan Studio in Oslo after sessions in April and May of 2023.

Outside the record cycle, Darkthrone has worked with the National Library of Norway on exhibitions about the country’s cultural history and black metal, a fitting placement for artifacts like A Blaze in the Northern Sky, which has been on permanent display since 2020.

Members

• Fenriz (Gylve Fenris Nagell) – drums, guitars, bass, keyboards, vocals, lyrics (1986-present)
• Nocturno Culto (Ted Skjellum) – vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, lyrics (1988-present)

Former members:

• Zephyrous (Ivar Enger) – guitars (1986-1993)
• Anders Risberget – guitars (1986-1988)
• Dag Nilsen – bass (1988-1991)

Discography

Studio albums:

• Soulside Journey (1991)
• A Blaze in the Northern Sky (1992)
• Under a Funeral Moon (1993)
• Transilvanian Hunger (1994)
• Panzerfaust (1995)
• Total Death (1996)
• Goatlord (1996)
• Ravishing Grimness (1999)
• Plaguewielder (2001)
• Hate Them (2003)
• Sardonic Wrath (2004)
• The Cult Is Alive (2006)
• F.O.A.D. (2007)
• Dark Thrones and Black Flags (2008)
• Circle the Wagons (2010)
• The Underground Resistance (2013)
• Arctic Thunder (2016)
• Old Star (2019)
• Eternal Hails…… (2021)
• Astral Fortress (2022)
• It Beckons Us All……. (2024)

Selected demos, EPs, singles, and notable compilations:

• Land of Frost (demo, 1988)
• A New Dimension (rehearsal demo, 1988)
• Thulcandra (demo, 1989)
• Cromlech (live demo, 1989)
• Too Old, Too Cold (EP, 2006)
• NWOBHM (EP, 2007)
• Preparing for War (compilation, 2000; expanded reissue 2005)
• Frostland Tapes (compilation of early material, 2008)
• The Wind of 666 Black Hearts (1991-1992 rehearsals, 2016)
• Shadows of Iconoclasm (box set, 2021)