Assessing a work of art in any medium can be difficult; moreover, not all good artists are good people and the same goes for the reverse. There can be no denying the controversy that Nachtmystium founder Blake Judd’s actions have raised (Google it) but it also should be noted that Judd’s music -especially during the band’s “Black Meddle” phase- was haunting, evocative, and damned good. I will not further denigrate Judd here, and with that said, wherever he is, I hope genuinely that he can recover from the dire complications he has found himself in if he has not already done so. With that said I am a massive fan of Nachtmystium, especially “Addicts: Black Meddle Part II”. I bought Addicts as soon as it was released and I can still feel what it inspired in me. I myself was not yet addicted to drugs at the time of it’s 2010 release, and I had almost no way of relating to that topic and the experiences which inspired its creation; it was not until seven years later when I too fell to IV drug use and became addicted to cocaine and crack that I really understood what was being expressed.
Looking back (before I myself fully learned what addiction truly meant and held in store) the album and the way it made me feel painted a picture that was not only horrifyingly accurate, but relatable to a non-addict. I felt immediately upon hearing tracks like “Ruined Life Continuum” and “Every Last Drop” what it meant to be hopelessly consumed by forces that, once evoked, far extend beyond what we can initially envision, and the feelings of inevitability and finality that come with making such choices. The sonic landscapes that the band wove were so effectively dismal and grimy, it truthfully was exactly like what I later experienced, but condensed into a single piece of art. Addicts didn’t just describe addiction, it made me feel it. When I did make those awful choices, I returned to Addicts and frequently shot up with it blaring in the background, punctuated with bell-ringers, tears, and blood.
Addicts was largely experimental rather than straightforward black metal. Nightfall is almost upbeat sounding at times (in spite of its grim subject matter) and No Funeral is more of a dancy electronic track, like what you might hear in a goth club; the groaning synths on “Every Last Drop” accompanied by Judd’s cigarette-scorched rasp all come together to illustrate one of the most damaging burdens humans come to bear. In a world of Darkthrone clones and Cookie Monster carbon copies, Nachtmystium dared to break the mold in very big ways with this one. Never before or since have I heard anything quite like it.
I always thought when I was using that I had (as the lyrics go) “used up my chances, ruined my life”. I was fortunate. I lived to tell the tale, and I got out. Many don’t. You can hate Blake Judd all you want, but it won’t change the fact that he did offer what is in my opinion one of the most poignant and accurate musical and lyrical depictions of addiction since Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”. Like it’s creator (and like me) this album is not perfect, but it is unique in many ways, and well worth listening to.
Listen to Ruined Life Continuum Here:
Towers of Rust 