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I HAD TO RE-EDIT AND RE-RELEASE DUE TO VARIOUS REASONS, FULL VERSION FREE ON MY PATREON.

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Gatekeeping is necessary to keep something from becoming sloppified.

I’m so glad that more people each day are understanding that gatekeeping isn’t some kind of evil thing at all times. It’s very much necessary to keep the things you love from being destroyed by over-commercialization and cultural exploitation

I'm sitting on my couch again and slapping my fat belly with happiness... Again

Dungeon synth is actually amazing.

Black metal is weird. It has some of the most beautifully emotional music and some of the most heinous sounds ever recorded within it's borders.
Then we have some of the most artistic and nice people, while at the same time also some of the most racist and debased individuals in the scene. It's an utter hodgepodge of chaos honestly.

the most important thing are not the unending reddit threats, it's actually showing up to a gig and supporting the band in person. You dont have to wear merch or have corpse paint. Show up, pay the entry, maybe buy a shirt, just give the underground some props, no matter the genre

I have found that old head black metal fans are more open to new takes on the genre then edgy 14 year olds who just found out about black metal and want to gatekeep it.

It's...Just....fucking....music....holy shit

I think more of the honest critiques “elitists” have made is that bands like Deafheaven and Myrkur don’t themselves necessarily claim to speak for the genre but journalists and non-fans act like they do. They have often said that these bands represent the future of black metal and are representative of what black metal should be or are an “elevation” of black metal when really they have no real commitment to the genre and instead simply draw influence from it while not truly being black metal.

I once got into a fist fight at my minimum wage factory job with the only other metal head just because I said I disliked Varg’s politics
EDIT: want to clarify I didn’t incite the fight. I just defended myself after the coworker threw hands

Gatekeeping is quality control. Works for death metal at least. As far as black metal goes, Imperial Triumphant is as true as it can be.

Black Metal can incorporate elements of whatever the musician wants as long it's genuine, look at Diapsiquir or Blut Aus Nord and at the same time the genre as a whole holds it's grounds with keeping the core elements alive and that's what I love about it.

YOOOOO TWO OF MY FAV METAL YOUTUBERS COLLABING
this is peak

if your band sells over 10 cassettes you are a poser

Agalloch mentioned. Immediate feeling of superiority.

My cousins just got back from Norway after a decade they're actually pretty chill. That's all.

Black metal should feel dangerous and terrifying, it's not like any other sub-culture thats welcoming and fuzzy for the lack of a better word with some cookie cutter safe lyrics. They make it feel like a plastic knife, while it should feel like an actual knife.

"Elitism" is the insult used to describe what would normally be thought of as 'integrity' in more conventional cultures.

What the extreme metal genre about death, sa, and murder isn’t my heckin wholesome all inclusive all accepting music scene 😢