Emperor’s Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk is both a great gateway into the diabolical world of black metal and one of the genre’s daunting high watermarks. The furious, symphonic maelstrom the band unleash on this 1996 album is still something to behold. The combination of the Norwegians tremendous aggression and their formidable musical chops results in a record that gives an impression of imperious arrogance and almost ceremonial self-importance. Grandiose classics like The Loss And Curse Of Reverence and Ye Entrancemperium all more than live up to the album cover’s promise of “sophisticated black metal art” and Thus Spake The Nightspirit is right up there as one of my very favourite black metal tracks of all time.