Grand Declaration of War (25th Anniversary Edition)

No band embodies the spirit of black metal like Mayhem. In the wake of violence and scandal, the Norwegians set the standard for the subgenre with their canonical 1994 debut. Other influential acts would quickly follow in their footsteps, but after six years of mounting controversy, these iconoclasts returned with an album that trvly defies convention.     On Grand Declaration of War, the pioneers of Norwegian black metal continued to bow down for no one – even themselves.  The band were coldblooded as ever on merciless cuts like “A Time to Die”, but their arsenal of blast beats and tremolo picking was strengthened by an increase in command. Written in collaboration between newly appointed guitarist Blasphemer and vocalist Maniac, the album didn’t expand so much as it invaded territory that was then believed off-limits: spoken word (“View from Nihil”), trip-hop (“A Bloodsword and a Colder Sun”), soundscapes of doom (“Completion in Science of Agony”). No matter how they chose to impose their will, there was nowhere that Mayhem feared to tread.  Salute the 25th anniversary of Mayhem’s groundbreaking second album with this special edition of Grand Declaration of War, which includes the original master on a sunburst colored LP + new silver hot foil packaging, a double-sided poster and an embroidered leather patch.     

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