Dissection were formed in 1989 by Jon Nodtveidt after becoming dissatisfied with his old band and wanting, both musically and lyrically, to explore a much more extreme and darker edge. Strongly influenced by both Black and Death Metal, Dissection created a huge buzz among Metal fans all over Scandinavia with both their live shows and demo recordings, and along with At The Gates (who they shared rehearsal space with) are credited with being one of the founders of the now extremely popular Gothenburg Metal sound. For anyone out there who has been missing out on their music, a short description would be that they mix Black, Death and Heavy Metal together in a way that was very innovative and original for the time - forming a dark, majestic sound that is crushing and heavy - but also equally catchy and melodic at the same time. They also do a nice line in short mellow, melodic and slightly melancholy acoustic interludes as well. I personally think that their music is absolutely, astonishingly great.

As is often the case with bands that are not generic and dull, they have been a fertile source of arguments about which genre they actually belong to. In particular, there has been much debate about whether or not they are a Melodic Death Metal band or a Melodic Black Metal band. They certainly have elements of both in their music, and both of their studio albums "The Somberlain" and "Storm of the Light's Bane" are regarded as classics by fans of both genres. In fact, if either of those genres are of interest to you then you simply have to hear this band, not only because they do both so well, but also because they were a big influence on many subsequent bands. Personally I hear more Death than Black influence in their music, but there are many people out there that would disagree with me.

There may be debate about which genre their music belongs to, but when it comes to the bands' beliefs, lyrics, imagery, attitude and everything else that you can think of, then there is no room for debate at all. This is a band that takes both Satanism and a hatred for organised religion (and Christianity in particular) very very seriously indeed. The quality of Dissection's music has often been overshadowed by the drama and controversy that surrounds Singer/guitarist/Main Creative Force Jon Nodtveidt. The band had already been split up due to internal difficulties - and Jon was in the process of forming a new line up to record the 3rd Dissection album - when his arrest and subsequent conviction for murder meant that those plans had to be put on hold until he was released from prison (which he was in 2004).

On his release from prison Jon Nodtveidt briefly reunited with his old friend Faust (formerly of Emperor) to reform the band, but that lasted only 2 months because Faust did not feel that he could handle the demands of Dissection's satanic concept. Since then, Jon has recruited a new line up; they have a new single out now called "Maha Kali"; and they have several live dates and festival appearances scheduled for the summer of 2005. They are recording the long awaited 3rd Dissection album which should be released by the end of the year. There has been more controversy, with Dave Mustaine insisting that Dissection be removed from the bill of the Metalist Festival in Israel (that Megadeth are headlining) but the big news is that after a long absence from the Metal scene, Dissection are back!

My recommendations for anyone interested in Dissection - a good place to start would be to get their 2 existing studio albums - "The Somberlain" and "Storm of The Light's Bane". Both are classics, with “Storm” being slightly superior. Their new single "Maha Kali" should also be of interest as it gives a chance to hear newer Dissection material. In my opinion "Where Dead Angels Lie" is their greatest ever song, but the EP that is named after it more likely just a point of interest. As well as the title track it contains demo tracks and a cover of Slayer's "The Antichrist". The compilation "The Past is Alive" seems totally avoidable to me, being a collection of demo versions of songs, most of which can already be heard sounding much better on their full releases. These extras are really for die-hards only.