best Black Metal band from the US ?

This question gets more interesting if we disbar solo artists and consider which USBM band combines to greatest effect

Then less interesting when I consider how many USBM bands I've seen live (0)

Oh wait actually that isn't true haha

Liturgy by default then :D

Although it did prompt me to put on Dead As Dreams again and I’d almost forgotten how good that is.

I thought of keeping the solo artists from actual bands, and in that case it actually is Liturgy!

xp I really like that weakling record! Did any of them ever go on to other projects?

According to RYM, John Gossard and Sarah Weiner went on to form The Gault, a doom/gothic band that put out an album in 2005. I haven't heard it, but it looks intriguing.

Wolves in the Throne Room are great fun live. Lots of candles and smoke, as you'd imagine. And scythes, natch.

False is better than Liturgy
Minneapolis rules black metal

I like the Bindrune stuff a lot (Panopticon, Falls o Rauros and co.)

Not gonna touch their politics but Grand Belial’s Key is the obvious answer for me. They’re on the early side of USBM and notable for breaking with the Nordic sound. Gelal remains one of the most influential guitarists in black and death metal.

Cases could be made, too, for Demoncy, Inquisition, Krallice or Negative Plane. I’m not counting the one-man-bands in my assessment.

And yes, John Gossard of Weakling now fronts the Oakland band Dispirit.

Grand Belial’s Key are cancelled too? Or because of their antichristian views?

<googles> Ah it’s more than just antichristian stuff, yeah.

Their anti-Jesus stance is framed more through a virulent anti-semitism.

As far as scenes go, The various bands of the Black Twilight Circle are the most unique US manifestation yet.

+1 on Krallice

Aevangelist
Nightbringer/Akhlys/Bestia Arcana, that dude

Good shout on Panopticon. Kentucky (for all its idiosyncrasies) might be my single favourite USBM release.

John Gossard and Sarah Weiner went on to form The Gault, a doom/gothic band that put out an album in 2005. I haven't heard it, but it looks intriguing.

listening to it on youtube now, whoa this is really good!

thanks for the great reccs guys. this should be a fun day of depressive black metal lol

I have the gault album on vinyl and a few Dispirit tapes but Weakling is the correct answer for this thread

Yeah, I'd probably vote Weakling narrowly over WITTR with Nightbringer a close third.

Krallice were good early on but have done the same thing for too many albums in a row (I know, lol black metal).

Tombs were good live about a decade ago (saw them open for Marduk) but I don't know if they're "black" enough to count in this thread - their songs are actually heavy.

The Black Twilight Circle groups have some interesting ideas but the ratio of good to bad isn't super favorable and I feel like their moment has kind of passed.

Krallice were good early on but have done the same thing for too many albums in a row (I know, lol black metal).

krallice are barely even a black metal band anymore, this post is nonsensical

yeah Krallice are probably the best band mentioned itt but I don't associate them with BM. (nor Liturgy for that matter)

Skaphe, but good look on Aevangelist as well

I don't know a whole lot about USBM, I know some of the sort of post-BM bands mentioned like Liturgy or WITTR, but 2 USBM bands I've liked are Black Witchery and Bone Awl, and I had thought that USBM wasn't as tainted with nazis but I just googled and apparently both those bands have far right links. great

Revisited Judas Iscariot Thy Dying Light today as well and that still holds up, although it’s of course derivative as hell.

Also, the old Profanatica/Havohej albums are great & bring back good memories, although I have zero interest in what he’s done post-90s, it’s really something that had a time & place.

WITTR for me

xxp bone awl far-right links are like what? darkthrone-level? some stupid ass cover decades ago? i sure hope so

i don't listen to much bm, but i would say that in recent years panopticon are the most acomplished usbm. very low on that nihilism continuum, while very much engaged with the connection between nature and bm

*meant to say environment and bm

Botanist are pretty damn good too

bone awl has never issued any weird statements & is mainly guilt by assoc. afaik - they've done splits with bands who put the totenkopf on their records, they've done splits with bands who are questionable e.g. Horna who I think turned out to be actual bad news? which sucks, they're actually good, but whatever

yeah i'm aware of a certain split and that's it. they were great, imo

averse sefira was pretty good

Y’all I’m not a metalhead but it seems so easy to me to simply not collaborate (lol) with Nazis, if you really want to avoid any appearance being associated with Nazism, that’s kind of a circumstance where it’s okay to judge people by who their friends are, just my imo