Black metal is an often misunderstood genre. For fans of pop music it may be decried as too harsh; and for those concerned about its fascistic leanings it can come across as bordering on offensive. What this book does then is destroys those stereotypes,

A really interesting thought-experiment. While a life-long metal fan, I was never drawn to Black Metal. I am, however, quite familiar with the personalities who birthed the genre, and the various scandals and issues attached to it. Peel's book offers an intriguing perspective on the genre and also economics/capitalism. There are well-written and engaging examinations of various bands and sub-genres within the Black Metal milieu, as well as some very good examinations of the themes that dominate the genre's content. The connections with socialist activism and thought are often well-composed, but sometimes they felt a little shaky.

Nevertheless, an interesting book that is well worth reading.

This book reads like the best infodump on black metal and how its tropes can be thought of through anti-capitalist lens you didn't really know you wanted, in other words I loved it and I didn't want it to end. With a mix of passion and carefully thought-out analyses, Peel lays out ideas that sometimes come across as a little bit of a stretch but it's never boring.

I particularly enjoyed the segment where the author talked about the aesthetics of heresy, I think a lot of people are familiar with the idea of representants of the status quo, especially its most aggressive champions, positioning themselves as part of the counterculture while violently reinforcing the dominant culture and ideas when it pertains to "news" media and it was interesting, if somewhat to be expected, to visit the notion in regard to such a niche musical genre.

You don't need to know much if anything at all about the black metal genre to read and understand this book (Peel does a phenomenal job explaining the key elements of the genre and introducing some of the "important" players), but I'd say you need at least a passing familiarity with perspectives that are critical of capitalism to be comfortable with it. That being said, it's a pretty approachable books and generally free of needless jargon.

Bill Peel’s passion for Black Metal and disdain for capitalism shine in Tonight It’s a World We Bury. Utilizing five of the genres most common tropes, Peel shows how the political slant applied to the genre can be subverted and used as a critique of the modern capitalist deity. While some of these are surely reaches, Peel’s love and knowledge for the genre and its endless permutations shine, as he references standard bearers like Darkthrone, Paysage d’Hiver, and Mayhem alongside new blood such as Afsky and Ethereal Shroud to drive his message home.

This is surely one of the most levelheaded, researched, and thoughtful books on Black Metal out there. Recommended to fans of the genre and those curious what all the tremolo is all about.

**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Repeater Books and Netgalley*