Graveland

From their founding in Poland back in 1992, Graveland have drawn unusually intense outrage within black metal circles through their overt far-right politics that veer into Nazi sympathy. The project has centered on vocalist and guitarist Darken, whose real name is Robert Fudali, and it first channeled pagan misanthropy along with those political themes through early demos that preceded the 1994 release Carpathian Wolves. Bassist Karcharoth and drummer Capricornus helped shape the group's raw, low-fidelity sound, which echoed the primitive style of Bathory. Later albums issued on the No Colours label, including 1996's The Celtic Winter, 1998's Following the Voice of Blood, and 2001's Prawo Stali, encountered widespread mainstream-media boycotts. Darken's repeated admissions to mental institutions for treatment of his personal struggles added further obstacles. Such elements have done little to support either commercial achievement or balanced reception of the band's recordings.