- By way of introduction:
I was contacted a little while ago by somebody raising concerns about a couple of upcoming black metal gigs. Below is the text they sent.
So …
There’s this sketchy Dutch black metal band, Helleruin, playing in Melbourne at the Northcote Social Club on September 11 and in Sydney at Crowbar on September 12.
Most of Helleruin’s records have been released on New Era Productions, which has put out a number of releases by fash black metal bands and which is run by Jasper Velzel, a NSBM and RAC musician. In addition, another project of Helleruin’s Carchost — Orewoet — is on the label Heidens Hart, which — along with releasing some far-right stuff — is owned by a former live guitarist of prominent fash band Graveland.
Moreover, a number of the local supporting acts have sketchy connections.
Order of Orias, one of two supports in Melbourne along with Petrol (see below), are on World Terror Committee, which releases fashy stuff and is owned by Sven Zimper, a member of prominent NSBM group Absurd.
Of the bands playing Sydney with Helleruin (Krvna, Pestilential Shadows, Destruktor, Vicissitude, Gravgöt, Grotesque Bliss, Petrol, Blasfemancia and Akhoth) at the ‘Call from the Grave’ festival:
Pestilential Shadows have released music on the Chinese label, GoatowaRex, who are very friendly to NSBM acts. Additionally, PS is part of a collective called Ordo Ater Anguis/Order of the Black Serpent, which includes numerous far right acts. Michael W Ford of Black Funeral appears to be a former Order of Nine Angles (09A) member in the United States who — after distancing himself from O9A — attempted to formulate a social Darwinist version of the Satanic Temple (lol), which coalesce around the Australian fash-friendly label, Dark Adversary. Indeed, one of the members of PS is also a member of Varw, a band on Dark Adversary. Further, Akhoth released a demo, ‘Storm of Pagan Fury’, on CD on Dark Adversary this year.
Grotesque Bliss are on Iron Bonehead which, along with the suspect name, appears to be run by a (if only barely) crypto-fascist.
Destruktor is on a label, Hells Headbangers, which has previously released and re-released stuff by Satanic Warmaster and Deströyer 666, including re-releasing Deströyer 666’s debut album, ‘Unchain the Wolves’, on a few different mediums over the last few years. Additionally, Inquisition had a few releases on Hells Headbangers after their lead singer (who is also a Satanist pedo) released openly fash music on fash label Satanic Skinhead Propaganda (a label which the Iron Bonehead guy sold in his old fash-friendly record store).
The most recent (2024) EP of Krvna, formally of PS, was released on Zazen Sounds, run by Greek nazi black metaller Acherontass of Αχέροντας (Krvna played guest guitar on their most recent album). For what it’s also worth, Third Eye Temple — the Polish label on which Krvna’s 2022 album was released — have released one split and re-issued an EP by Voidhanger, a side project of Polish far right black metallers, Infernal War.
Finally, Petrol were previously on a cancelled bill with Gurn. They also played a gig with Japanese band Abigail, who are signed to Nuclear Now Productions, a fash-friendly label linked to Iron Bonehead (similarly exposed by the nsbmboneheads blog linked above). In addition, Petrol played at Crowbar Sydney last year with Bolzer (see nsbmboneheads blog), who released all but their last record on Iron Bonehead. The other headliner was Portal, who have released lots of records on Hells Headbangers including, recently, a split with Blood of Kingu — a side-project of the Ukrainian ultra-nationalists from Drudkh — on the label in 2014.
- So there you have it.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯