If you guys are aware of any bands that play music in this particular style, I would really appreciate some suggestions. From my experience, it's really difficult to find bands of this style that really stand out (a lot of bands try, but few pull it off well). So far, I really enjoy bands like Coldworld, Fen, Negura Bunget, Shining, Wodensthrone, Altar of Plagues, and new Blut Aus Nord. Basically what I'm looking for are melancholic/depressive/epic riffs, beautiful acoustic/clean passages, or just a general sense of beauty in the music--something that evokes beautiful imagery in your mind.

Don't limit yourself to just black metal - I just listed it as a guideline, because most of the bands that I listed fall under that specific categorization. If you know of any really beautiful music in general, feel free to suggest something. Instrumental post rock, classical music, doom metal, or anything else.

Oh, this new black metal/shoegaze thing that's going on lately should interest you. Try bands like Alcest, Amesoeurs, Lifelover, Shyy, Dopamine - all of these bands play very melancholic music.

Verdunkeln, The Ruins of Beverast, Lunar Aurora, Winterfylleth, Lantlos, Nae'blis, Krohm, Liam, Heretoir, Black Lotus, Feos...

This:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NntKY0kiXU
That whole fucking demo is amazing, though it is of very boor sound quality.

Though this may not be of the new style your talking about, here is some black metal I find utterly beautiful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yu2DMdsSsU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HpMl1C2S4w + http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8zbzd4q8_4

And non black metal:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAYjcJ2B4es
This band is a masterwork of beauty in metal.

Ne Obliviscaris would probably be the obvious answer to this request.

I second Lantlos, Hertoir, Nae'Blis,and Dopamine... Dernier Martyr, Be Persecuted, Inferi, Pensees Nocturnes, Austere, Lo-Ruhamah, Smorzando, Agathothodion.

I checked out Wodensthrone, beautiful. Cant believe i havent heard of them.

You must check out Horn.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLUa022xBzc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dp7vkw2v8JA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiSlvqRSY1M

This. I came in to recommend Horn, but Braltika beat me to it.

Veil.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtT-1M4WfeU

Nyktalgia comes to mind, especially Peisithanatos.

maybe SVARTI LOGHIN is your cup of tea. Their album "Empty World" is pure bleak beauty!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zNidSM0lg4

And on their myspace page they have some tracks from the upcoming album, which are even more "beautiful" with clean vocals and calm parts:
http://www.myspace.com/svartiloghin

oh, and I highly second AUSTERE and LANTLOS (the previews from the upc. album sound awesome!!!!!)

Skagos is worth a try

Forest of Fog mght also take your fancy, semi-raw but very melodic black metal. You may also like Forteresse (hmm, not sure of the spelling there) and Sorgeldom...

I recommend bands like Canis Dirus, Dråpsnatt, Sogeldom (as Acidgobblin pointed out) and Waldgeflüster. All play the sort of style you're looking for, but with more variation, adding elements of post-rock and other genres along the way. I love all 4 bands, personally.

I also recommend Tragediens Trone - very similar to Shining's mid-era albums, like 'The Eerie Cold'.

Ov all thee recomendations, I would heartily advocate Lantlos; easily some of the best black metal around atm.


October Falls (http://www.metal-archives.com/band.php?id=87100) are also excellent; I like the Marras album (all acoustic) as well as The Womb of Primordial Nature, which is BM.......OP might also like Walknut and Fanisk (if you can nignore the overt NAZIsm of Fanisk, the album Noontide http://www.metal-archives.com/release.php?id=84423 is fucking great, especially the second track, creatively named II...)

Thy Serpent is also an option, as is Altorių Šešėliai; http://www.metal-archives.com/band.php? ... 8....album Margi Sakalai is very beautiful.

Edit: and Evilfeast may take your fancy

Agalloch obviously.

True, but I wouldn't really call it black metal.
Maybe "From Which Of This Oak".

How about Folkvang (Belarus)? You might already be aware of his music, after his split with Wodensthrone, but he's been quietly making some great music over the years. The new album, "Atmospheric Black" (a terrible name for an album, but a good description of how it sounds), is very good and will probably appeal to you. The previous album is great as well.

seconding Dråpsnatt and adding:
ALLVATERS ZORN album "Geburt", esp. the song "Der Sturm" is wonderful!
http://www.myspace.com/allvaterszorn

Another AZ rec! That's great. Though I still like the Erbe Verpflictet demo the most.

thanks to a new review from today I just discovered WINDBRUCH. They are amazing and I guess they will fit your research! (btw - their album can be dl for free, the link is on their myspace page)

Mm. I had been waiting to hear this album for a few months. I've only heard it the once, but I must say I was disappointed. I'll have to listen to it again to get a better grasp on it though.

I really like Hyadningar's 'Weak Creation'. Probably my favorite metal album from 2009; it's melodic, varied, with epic passages.

http://www.myspace.com/hyadningar

i visited the myspace and liked them very much, but i could not find the link for the free dl.

Try Darkestrah, in particular their album Epos. Great epic black metal that will transfer you to Kyrgyz steppes.
Also Martolea a project of one of Negura Bunget's members is surely worth checking out. Quite unusual vocal style combined with nice folksy and a bit creepy atmosphere.
And last but not the least on my list come Sear Bliss a good example of how sympho black ought to look like.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA07Sm1djdk
austrere has clean singing,good screams ect good music

I don't know if Black Lotus has been mentioned, but their music is beautful

EDIT: they have been mentioned, so I second the motion.

I dont think they match the same type of sound and feel as Cold World, but They do bring something very different to the table.

I have their album uploaded to youtube OP, if you'd like to hear.


http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p ... C737112393