11 Bands Who Started Out as Black Metal But Aren’t Anymore

Here are 11 bands who started out as black metal but aren’t anymore!

Although it would be amusing to strip certain groups of their black metal badges for compromising their integrity, today, we will be focusing on artists who were excellent while part of the movement and have remained so after venturing out into new territories.

As Vicotnik of the mind-blowingly innovative Dødheimsgard has expressed, he is one of the genre’s pioneers and thus will always be black metal. The same can be stated of a large portion of his peers, whether literally or figuratively: Fleurety, Arcturus, Darkthrone, In the Woods…, Trelldom, etc.

Also from Norway, the now extremely progressive Enslaved have served as one of black metal’s second-wave architects while always differentiating themselves thematically. Telemark’s defunct Ildjarn, Finland’s Beherit and Switzerland’s Samael have all released non-black metal titles without permanently abandoning the art form.

READ MORE: How Ofdrykkja’s David Jansson Became the ‘Nordic Nomad’

Sweden’s influential Katatonia dropped the black metal threads that they wove into their early sound without sacrificing their dark essence. Nearby, Tiamat, formerly Treblinka, similarly left behind the black metal elements they initially displayed. Not only did their countrymen Swordmaster undergo a fascinating transformation, but their members would later define deathglam in Deathstars.

Many first-wave black metal, and “proto-black metal,” outfits such as Sodom eventually shifted away from the style. The defunct Bathory would move on to essentially create Viking metal. Celtic Frost would likewise surprise fans with experiments, though their final album, Monotheist (2006), contains black components. Tormentor shocked listeners with the avant-garde Recipe Ferrum! (2000), but their live releases demonstrate that they also remain devoted to celebrating True Hungarian Black Metal.

Now, onto the promised 11 acts whose beginnings are certifiably black metal, but they now reach further corners.

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