Greatest Blashyrkh wait for me your deepest realms I'll find / With songs that sound eternally for you my call is ever so strong

Winter does not agree with my summer chooglin disposition; I require sun and sweat to function. So, in an effort to combat my seasonal glumness with grimness, I have spent many mornings with Immortal. This is Norwegian black metal that ravishes in frostbitten fantasy with a cartoonish energy. Immortal's photo shoots? Bare- and barrel-chested. Immortal's music videos? Silly poses, pointy hats, fire breathers. Immortal's riffs? A blaze of fire and ice, especially in the early years, but given to epic tales as the years wore on. 

Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism, Battles in the North and At the Heart of Winter, in particular, were my constant comrades during long stretches of 20-degree weather and gray skies that blot out the sun. I figured if Immortal can face the winterdemons of the Blashyrkh realm to wrestle the brutal isolation of Bergen, then I could blastbeat my way through the wet, bitter cold of Washington, D.C. And thanks be to Abbath, Demonaz and Horgh — or whatever the lineup when the band isn't bickering — I survived and thrived another winter.

Now as spring emerges, what heavy metal paladin shall campaign against the ravages of pollen? —Lars Gotrich

P.S.: Yes, I drew that picture of Abbath and Demonaz using my daughter's crayons.

Playlist: Viking's Tormenta

Stream the updated Viking's Choice playlist via BNDCMPR. Tracklist below: 

Scream + Dance, "In Rhythm (12" Mix)"
Joyce, "Feminina"
Parka Jiha, "A Day In…"
Thornato, "Rhinocerus (feat. Gappy Ranks)"
Gonemage, "Big Bang Attack Combo"
The Hated, "I Don't Like You"
Immortal, "At the Heart of Winter"
Gamut, "Goliath"
Cecil Taylor, "Spring of Two Blue-J's (Part 2)"
Plankton Wat, "Hidden Path"
Slang, "Wilder"
iKD Band, "Isolation"
The Reds, Pinks & Purples, "Slow Torture of an Hourly Wage"
Lucia Boffo, "La Tormenta"
The Afterglows, "Sea of Hate"
Nana Yamato, "Burning Desire"
The Lost Year, "Ghost (Bummer Summer Demo)"
claire rousay, "everything perfect is already here (extract)"
Anna Weber, "Forgotten Beast"
Etran de L'Aïr, "Tchingolene"
Congotronics International, "Banza Banza"
Black Dresses, "earth worm"
Serpent, "Drago contra Balboa"
Gavilán Rayna Russom, "Trans Feminist Symphonic Music"