Norsecore

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Norsecore is a derogatory term used to describe Scandinavian black metal. Althought the term seems to have been more widely popularized by Hartmuth "Blackgoat" Schindler of the German heavy metal label Barbarian Wrath (Schindler seems to use it as a jab at the often generic nature of repetitive and blasting black metal such as Marduk and Dark Funeral), he knowingly or unknowingly seems to have usurped the word and shifted it from the original meaning.

The earliest documented use of the term comes from a 1992 issue of the underground metal fanzine Genocide. It was used in essay/editorial lambasting the then-fledging Norwegian black metal scene, and was accompanied by a logo mocking the old NYHC acronym logo, accompanied by cut-and-pasted pictures of items stereotypically associated with Scandinavian culture and viking mythology (among these were the Swedish chef from the Muppets. In this context, Norsecore was used to describe and categorize the large numbers of Norwegian bands whose musicians had previously played death metal and switched to a black metal sound in the '91-'92 period, including Emperor, Immortal, Burzum, Satyricon, Enslaved, and Darkthrone.

This shift is often viewed as an act of bandwagon-jumping, and it is widely speculated that the sole reason for this shift was the influence of Euronymous of the band Mayhem upon local Oslo bands. The term is still widely used in its old context as a unflattering term for most Norwegian/Swedish post-'80s black metal, which is often Bathory-derived. Arguably, the term rightfully describes the somewhat generic and cookie-cutter aspects of the Norwegian black metal scene, which due to its popularity is often seen as the geographical area that birthed black metal, which is not necessarily so.

It is now somewhat differently used as a derogative term for blasting, high-speed black metal lacking of any real attitude and/or ideology. Norsecore, also known as "raw black metal", Black/Grind, and "kvlt black metal", has become somewhat of a valid description for bands and has developed more of a stable definition amongst heavy metal fans. Essentially, norsecore is grindcore influenced black metal. However, norsecore is not always fast, and usually has more of a musical direction than grindcore, sounds little like it, and is produced by bands that are not in fact musically influenced by grind. The roots of norsecore can be traced to the 1994 release of Transilvanian Hunger by the Norwegian band Darkthrone, although some norsecore elements were present in A Blaze in the Northern Sky.