Forhekset: Living Dead Men

(Note: This is a new monthly column that will appear on the 13th which will focus mainly on metal music and issues related to it)



It strikes fear into you just by looking but at the same time revel in it and even sport the look yourself be it at a concert or with your band. For others, it has become nothing than a running joke that has inspired numerous gags such as the Call Of Wintermoon video. But the corpse paint has been around for years and has become synonymous with black metal music, even if its origins were derived from one Alice Cooper who used it as part of his shock rock theatrics before King Diamond came along and evolved it into something that strikes true horror in tandem with the music played. Thrash metal titans Slayers even put on corpse paint in its early years and shock rocker Marilyn Manson blending it in with his music. But has the corpse paint lost its meaning and being relegated to the annals of the past or becoming a joke or does it still hold reverence in music today?


(Pioneers Celtic Frost in the 80s. Note the look on Tom G Warrior (aka Thomas Gabriel Fischer on the extreme left) and how it has taken to extreme levels by subsequent bands that appeared soon after)

Swiss metal merchants Celtic Frost not only influenced the black metal scene with its music, the painted faces of Tom G Warrior and his bandmates inspired aspiring bands to toy with the idea of putting on a two tone death mask that will complement their fearsome aural assault into the music that they breath on a daily basis but the roots of corpse paint go further than music itself. According to one time Mayhem member and Burzum frontman Varg Vikernes, the idea of corpse paint comes from Norse mythology in honour of the Oskorei who were pagan warriors that flew in fire eyed horses and terrorising Christians while Necrobutcher from Mayhem begged to differ by referring to former lead singer Dead (Per Yngve Ohlin) as part of his stage getup to appear corpse like and to the extent of burying clothes prior to wearing them so as to achieve the scent of graves. But despite the differences in ideology, it did not deter black metal bands from slapping on corpse and became de rigueur for them during the Nineties as it complemented the visual elements of fear into their music that often sings about Paganism and Satanist beliefs. No longer was the idea of having a painted face being regarded as a facade to arena rock and parental friendly armies, it became a blastbeat to extreme music and the legions that bands such as Mayhem and Carpathian Forest have amassed in following by playing music that would send the PRMC into bed and especially in countries such as Norway where black metal CDs are the norm in record stores and an oppressive history plagued by being forced into Christianity centuries ago. To these bands that wear the mask of death, it is a symbol of retaliation and at the same time a warpaint that represents their steadfastness towards their beliefs be it the inverted cross to showcase their Satanic beliefs or the Valknut in honour of their Pagan roots. But with the advent of the 21st century, the colours soon wore off as things took a different turn and the corpse paint meant something else


(One such site encouraging users to upload photos of their corpse painted glory)

As it became an object of derision not only by the mainstream media who slaughtered the idea and turned it into a form of an internet sensation via a rating webiste and featuring a corpse painted singer indulging in a bucket of fried chicken by a fast food chain, the metal circle began distancing themselves from adorning corpse paint either by putting it on sporadically or abandoning the idea altogether and growing a beard instead. Traditional stalwarts of the corpse paint either became inactive or broke up while newer bands such as Goatwhore did not put on corpse paint but retaining other visual elements associated with black metal such as spiked gauntlets and bullet belts instead. To some, the need to put on corpse paint became irrelevant when emerging bands appeared into the scene and smeared it onto their faces just for the sake of it while overlooking the true meaning behind the death mask for the sake of looking kvlt just like their predecessors. It got to a point where the idea has become an overkill and the heritage behind the designs have been compromised into just symbols of rebellion. For others, it was simply the case of outgrowing the look and deciding to focus on making music instead seeing that they reached a point where onstage visuals meant little to them or that their music has gone to a new direction by infusing punk or rock elements into black music. But this does spell death for corpse paint? Far from it


(Keeping the fear alive: Oslo black metallers
1349)

Not all corpse paint have to come from Paganist roots and this fact bodes strongly with Taiwanese black metal band CthoniC whose designs are inspired by the ancient Taiwanese tribe The Seediq and not only have the band managed to convince naysayers that they nothing by just an image, CthoniC has rampaged through the whole of Asia and even in countries such as the United Kingdom by merging black metal with symphony consisting of Chinese instruments as a testament to their Eastern roots and other bands from that region have opted for designs that honour their respect ancient heritage while at the same time preserving the image of wearing corpse paint. Bands such as Marduk and Gorgoroth are still holding on the visage of corpse paint while staying true to their black metal roots and unleashing infernal hell onstage with great success whereas new and upcoming bands maintain the legacy of the corpse paint and striking mayhem into the eyes of the uninitiated while receiving adulation of the horns from the crowd at the same time. Even if the likes of Dimmu Borgir actually use professional make-up and video sharing websites continue making fun of face painted bands, the corpse paint has become a force to be reckoned with made its mark into the chapters of the neverending black metal legacy. Irregardless of time and opinion, nothing beats the ferocity of a living dead man marching onstage and unleash his growls through the microphone with a face that says it all that needs to be said about the genre