Resurrection

Friday, June 8, 2018

Oh wow feels good to be back here.

Meditated @ 10:59 AM

Thursday, June 15, 2017

Following the death of my iPod, I've decided to follow Shiva's recommendation to have a favourites playlist that I can refer to in the event that my laptop or subsequent portable media player dies. Note to self:

[Pop / Indie / Gay Shit]

Beach House - Norway
Beach House - Lover Of Mine
Beach House - 10 Mile Stereo
Beach House - Lazuli
The Beatles - All My Loving
The Beatles - Norwegian Wood
The Beatles - Michelle
The Beatles - Girl
The Beatles - In My Life
The Beatles - Taxman
The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby
The Beatles - For No One
The Beatles - Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps
The Beatles - Helter Skelter
Bee Gees - I Started A Joke
Bee Gees - Massachusetts
Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive
Bee Gees - Night Fever
Bee Gees - More Than A Woman
Bee Gees - Tragedy
Bilal - Restart
Bilal - Robots
Chromatics - Kill for Love
Coldplay - Talk (Alternative Ver.)
Coldplay - The Scientist
Coldplay - Clocks
Coldplay - Warning Sign
Coldplay - Daylight
Deerhunter - Desire Lines
Deerhunter - Revival
Deerhunter - He Would Have Laughed
Future Islands - Seasons (Waiting On You)
Future Islands - Spirit
George Harrison - My Sweet Lord
Ghost - Body And Blood
Ghost - Monstrance Clock
Gorillaz - Clint Eastwood
Gorillaz - 19-2000 (Soulchild Remix)
Gorillaz - Kids With Guns
Gorillaz - O Green World
Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc.
Gorillaz - Dare
Gorillaz - Kids With Guns (Hot Chip Remix)
Gorillaz - Stylo
Grimes - Zoal, Face Dancer
Grimes - avi
Grimes - Genesis
Grimes - Oblivion
Janelle Monáe - Many Moons
Janelle Monáe - Dance Or Die
Janelle Monáe - Faster
Janelle Monáe - Tightrope
Janelle Monáe - Cold War
Janelle Monáe - Wondaland
Janelle Monáe - Dance Apocalyptic
Lotus Plaza - Black Buzz
Korn - Blind
Korn - Ball Tongue
Korn - No Place To Hide
Korn - Freak On A Leash
Korn - Got The Life
Korn - Trash
Korn - Hey Daddy
Korn - Somebody Someone
Korn - Let's Get This Party Started
Korn - Here To Stay
Korn - Hollow Life
Korn - Thoughtless
Korn - Right Now
Korn - Twisted Transistor
Korn - Hypocrites
Korn - Starting Over
Korn - Hold On
Korn - Innocent Bystander
Korn - Killing
Korn - Pop A Pill
Korn - Narcissistic Cannibal (ft. Skrillex & Kill The Noise)
Korn - Love & Meth
Linkin Park - Papercut
Linkin Park - One Step Closer
Linkin Park - With You
Linkin Park - Runaway
Linkin Park - In The End
Linkin Park - Ppr:Kut (Cheapshot & Jubacca ft. Rasco & Planet Asia)
Linkin Park - Somewhere I Belong
Linkin Park - Breaking The Habit
Linkin Park - From The Inside
Linkin Park - What I've Done
Linkin Park - Burning In The Skies
Linkin Park - Robot Boy
Linkin Park - Blackout
Linkin Park - The Catalyst
Linkin Park - Victimized
Linkin Park - Keys To The Kingdom
Linkin Park - War
Lush - Breeze
Lush - Scarlet
Lush - Bitter
My Chemical Romance - Helena
My Chemical Romance - To The End
My Chemical Romance - The Ghost Of You
My Chemical Romance - It's Not A Fashion Statement, It's A Deathwish
My Chemical Romance - Cemetery Drive
My Chemical Romance - I Never Told You What I Do For A Living
My Chemical Romance - House Of Wolves
The Neighourhood - Sweater Weather
Nightwish - Wish I Had An Angel
Nightwish - Stargazers
Nightwish - Bless The Child
Opeth - Windowpane
Opeth - In My Time Of Need
Opeth - Closure
Opeth - To Rid The Disease
Opeth - Still Day Beneath The Sun
Opeth - Atonement
Opeth - Coil
Opeth - Mellotron Heart
Prince - When You Were Mine
Prince - When Doves Cry
Prince - Sign 'O' The Times
Radiohead - Creep
Radiohead - Planet Telex
Radiohead - Just
Radiohead - OK Computer (Whole Album)
Radiohead - Everything In Its Right Place
Radiohead - Kid A
Radiohead - The National Anthem
Radiohead - 2+2=5 (The Lukewarm)
Radiohead - Pyramid Song
Radiohead - You And Whose Army?
Radiohead - I Might Be Wrong
Radiohead - In Raibows (Whole Album)
Radiohead - The King Of Limbs (Whole Album)
Slipknot - Circle
Slipknot - Vermilion Pt. 2
The Smiths - How Soon Is Now
The Smiths - Handsome Devil
The Smiths - Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want
The Smiths - The Headmaster Ritual
The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead
The Smiths - Bigmouth Strikes Again
The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
Sólstafir - Ótta
The Strokes - One Way Trigger
The Strokes - Welcome To Japan
The Strokes - 50,50
The Strokes - Slow Animals
The Strokes - Partners In Crime
The Strokes - Call It Fate, Call It Karma
Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell (Whole Album)
Tame Impala - It Isn't Meant To Be
Tame Impala - Endors Toi
Tame Impala - Apocalypse Dreams
Tame Impala - Let It Happen
Tame Impala - Disciples
Thom Yorke - Black Swan
Thom Yorke - Interference
Thom Yorke - The Mother Lode
U2 - Miss Sarajevo (ft. Pavarotti)
Wild Nothing - Shadow
xx - Crystallized
xx - Islands
xx - Infinity

[Hip Hop]

Death Grips - Get Got
Death Grips - Hustle Bones
Death Grips - Punk Weight
Death Grips - Hacker
Death Grips - Come Up & Get Me
Death Grips - World Of Dogs
Death Grips - Whammy
Death Grips - Deep Web
Death Grips - You Might Think He Loves You For Your Money But I Know What He Really Loves You For It's Your Brand New Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat
Death Grips - Birds
Death Grips - Whatever I Want (Fuck Who's Watching)
Death Grips - Black Quarterback
Death Grips - I Break Mirrors With My Face In The United States
Death Grips - On GP
Eminem - My Name Is
Eminem - The Way I Am
Eminem - The Real Slim Shady
Eminem - White America
Eminem - Sing For The Moment
Eminem - Superman
Flying Lotus - Never Catch Me (ft. Kendrick Lamar)
Jay-Z & Kanye West - No Church In The Wild (ft. Frank Ocean & The-Dream)
Kanye West - Gold Digger (ft. Jamie Foxx)
Kanye West - Love Lockdown
Kanye West - Power
Kanye West - Who Will Survive In America
Kanye West - I Am A God (ft. Justin Vernon)
Kanye West - New Slaves (ft. Frank Ocean)
Kendrick Lamar - Wesley's Theory (ft. George Clinton & Thundercat)
N.W.A - Fuck Tha Police
Public Enemy - Bring The Noise
Public Enemy - She Watch Channel Zero!
Public Enemy - Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos
Public Enemy - Prophets Of Rage
Public Enemy - Brothers Gonna Work It Out

[Soundtracks]

Christopher Drake - See You In Hell
Geinoh Yamashirogumi - Kaneda
Geinoh Yamashirogumi - Battle Against Clown
Geinoh Yamashirogumi - Tetsuo
Geinoh Yamashirogumi - Doll's Polyphony
Geinoh Yamashirogumi - Mutation
Graeme Revell - Devil's Night
Hideki Taniuchi - Light's Theme
Hideki Taniuchi - Anticipation
Hideki Taniuchi - Black Light
Hideki Taniuchi - Misa's Theme B
Jeremy Soule - From Past To Present
Jeremy Soule - Ancient Stones
Jeremy Soule - The Streets Of Whiterun
Jocelyn Pook - Masked Ball
Jocelyn Pook - Migrations (ft. Manickam Yogeswaran)
Johnny Klimek - Sonmi-451 Meets Chang
Jonathan Davis - Forsaken (David Draiman)
Jonathan Davis - Forsaken (Sirius Radio Session)
Jonathan Davis - Not Meant for Me (Wayne Static)
Jonathan Davis - Not Meant For Me (Sirius Radio Session)
Michael Giacchino - Planet Of The End Credits
Motoi Sakuraba - Pinwheel (Dark Souls)
Motoi Sakuraba - Iron Golem
Motoi Sakuraba - Ornstein & Smough
Motoi Sakuraba - Gwynevere, Princess Of Sunlight
Motoi Sakuraba - Four Kings
Motoi Sakuraba - Gravelord Nito
Motoi Sakuraba - Dark Sun Gwyndolin
Ramin Djawadi - Game Of Thrones
Ramin Djawadi - Finale
Ramin Djawadi - What Is Dead May Never Die
Ramin Djawadi - Winterfell
Ramin Djawadi - I Am Hers, She Is Mine
Ramin Djawadi - A Lannister Always Pays His Debts
Ramin Djawadi - You Know Nothing
Ramin Djawadi - Mhysa
Ramin Djawadi - For The Realm
Ramin Djawadi - The Children
Ramin Djawadi - House Of Black And White
Ramin Djawadi - Dance Of Dragons
Ramin Djawadi - I Dreamt I Was Old
Ramin Djawadi - Forgive Me
Ramin Djawadi - Son Of The Harpy
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - In Motion
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - Intriguing Possibilities
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - Complication With Optimistic Outcome
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - Immigrant Song (with Karen O) [Led Zeppelin Cover]
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - What If We Could?
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - Sugar Storm
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - Technically, Missing
Toshiro Masuda - Orochimaru
Yann Tiersen - La Valse D'Amelie
Yann Tiersen - Comptine D'un Autre Ete
Yann Tiersen - La Noyee
Yann Tiersen - L'autre Valse D'amelie
Yann Tiersen - La Valse D'Amelie (Piano Version)
Yann Tiersen - La Valse Des Monstres
Yasuharu Takanashi - Heaven Shaking Event
Yasuharu Takanashi - Akatsuki
Yasuharu Takanashi - Loneliness
Yasuharu Takanashi - Crushing
Yasuharu Takanashi - Red Flames
Yasuharu Takanashi - Courtesy
Yoko Kanno - lolol
Yoko Kanno - fugl
Yoko Kanno - walt
Yoko Kanno - nc17
Yoko Kanno - seele
Yoko Kanno - crystalized
Yoko Kanno - cket
Yoko Kanno - velle
Yoko Kanno - future terror

[Atmosphere / Darkwave / Random Electronica]

Devin Townsend - The Death Of Music
Fuck Buttons - Year Of The Dog
Massive Attack - Teardrop
No-Man - Simple (ft. Lisa Gerrard)
Sunn O))) & Ulver - Eternal Return
Sunn O))) & Scott Walker - Bull
Swans - Lunacy
Ulver - Østenfor Sol Og Vestenfor Maane
Ulver - Høyfjeldsbilde
Ulver - Hiertets Vee
Ulver - Dressed In Black
Ulver - Eos
Yoko Kanno - von (ft. Arnór Dan)
Yoko Kanno - birden (ft. Arnór Dan)
Yoko Kanno - bless (ft. Arnór Dan)

[Classic Rock / Heavy Metal]

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath - War Pigs
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Black Sabbath - Electric Funeral
Black Sabbath - Sweet Leaf
Black Sabbath - Children Of The Grave
Black Sabbath - Wheels Of Confusion
Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Black Sabbath - Hole In The Sky
Black Sabbath - Symptom Of The Universe
Captain Beyond - Dancing Madly Backwards
Captain Beyond - Thousand Days of Yesterdays
Captain Beyond - I Cant Feel Nothin' (Part 1)
Captain Beyond - I Can't Feel Nothin' (Part 2)
Cloud Nothings - Wasted Days
Cloud Nothings - Fall In
Cloud Nothings - Separation
Deep Purple - Fireball
Deep Purple - Highway Star
Deep Purple - Space Truckin'
Deep Purple - When a Blind Man Cries
Deep Purple - Soldier Of Fortune
Dio - Holy Diver
Dio - Rainbow In The Dark
Hell - On Earth As It Is In Hell
Hell - Let Battle Commence
Hell - Save Us From Those Who Would Save Us
Hell - Darkhangel
Hell - Harbinger Of Death
Hell - End Ov Days
Hell - Something Wicked This Way Comes
Judas Priest - Rocka Rolla
Judas Priest - Electric Eye
Judas Priest - You've Got Another Thing Comin'
Judas Priest - Ram It Down
Judas Priest - Painkiller
Judas Priest - Metal Meltdown
Kverletak - Ulvetid
Kverletak - Mjød
Kverletak - Sjøhyenar (Havets Herrer)
Kverletak - Åpenbaring
Kverletak - Nekrokosmos
Led Zeppelin - Babe I'm Gonna Leave You
Led Zeppelin - Dazed And Confused
Led Zeppelin - Black Mountain Side
Led Zeppelin - Whole Lotta Love
Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker
Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song
Led Zeppelin - Friends
Led Zeppelin - Gallows Pole
Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven
Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks
Led Zeppelin - Over The Hills And Far Away
Led Zeppelin - Kashmir
Mercyful Fate - Evil
Mercyful Fate - Curse Of The Pharaohs
Mercyful Fate - Nightmare
Mercyful Fate - The Oath
Mercyful Fate - Gypsy
Nevermore - C.B.F.
Nevermore - Sea Of Possibilities
Nevermore - Next in Line
Nevermore - Passenger
Nevermore - Narcosynthesis
Nevermore - Inside Four Walls
Nevermore - Engines Of Hate
Nevermore - The Sound Of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel Cover)
Nevermore - Tomorrow Turned Into Yesterday
Nevermore - Final Product
Nevermore - Sentient 6
Nevermore - The Psalm Of Lydia
Nevermore - A Future Uncertain
Nevermore - The Termination Proclamation
Nevermore - Temptation (The Tea Party Cover)
Nevermore - Crystal Ship (The Doors Cover)
Sanctuary - Arise And Purify
Sanctuary - Exitium (Anthem Of The Living)
Sanctuary - Frozen
Warrel Dane - When We Pray
Warrel Dane - Brother

[Alternative Rock / Post Rock / Rock /Post Punk / Goth]

Deftones - Diamond Eyes
Deftones - Poltergeist
Deftones - My Own Summer (Shove It)
Deftones - Passenger
Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Mladic
Godspeed You! Black Emperor - We Drift Like Worried Fire
Joy Division - Digital
Joy Division - Transmission
Joy Division - She's Lost Control
Joy Division - Isolation
Joy Division - Decades
Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart
Marilyn Manson - The Beautiful People
Marilyn Manson - This Is The New Shit
Muse - Take A Bow
Nightingale - Nightfall Overture
Nine Inch Nails - Head Like A Hole
Nine Inch Nails - Terrible Lie
Nine Inch Nails - Wish
Nine Inch Nails - March Of The Pigs
Nine Inch Nails - Closer
Nine Inch Nails - Somewhat Damaged
Nine Inch Nails - The Day The Whole World Went Away
Nine Inch Nails - We're In This Together Now
Nine Inch Nails - The Hand That Feeds
Nine Inch Nails - Every Day Is Exactly The Same
Nine Inch Nails - Only
Nine Inch Nails - Beside You In Time
Nine Inch Nails - Right Where It Belongs
Nine Inch Nails - Discipline
Nine Inch Nails - Echoplex
Nine Inch Nails - Copy Of A
Rammstein - Du Riechst So Gut
Rammstein - Tier
Rammstein - Du Hast
Rammstein - Mein Herz Brennt
Rammstein - Sonne
Rammstein - Mutter
Rammstein - Amerika
Rammstein - Zerstören
Rammstein - Rammlied
Rammstein - Ich Tu Dir Weh
Rammstein - Haifisch
Russian Circles - Carpe
Russian Circles - Station
Russian Circles - Geneva
Russian Circles - 309
Russian Circles - Deficit
Russian Circles - Memorial (ft. Chelsea Wolfe)
Scars On Broadway - Serious
Scars On Broadway - Funny
Scars On Broadway - Exploding / Reloading
The Sisters Of Mercy - This Corrosion
Sonic Youth - Silver Rocket
Sonic Youth - Trilogy- Z) Eliminator Jr.
Type O Negative - Christian Woman
Type O Negative - Black No. 1 (Little Miss Scare-All)
Type O Negative - Summer Breeze
Type O Negative - Love You To Death
Type O Negative - My Girlfriend's Girlfriend
Type O Negative - Cinnamon Girl
Type O Negative - Everything Dies
Type O Negative - I Don't Wanna Be Me
Type O Negative - Life Is Killing Me
Type O Negative - Anesthesia
Type O Negative - September Sun

[Progressive Rock]

Bruce Soord With Jonas Renkse - Frozen North
Crippled Black Phoenix - We Forgotten Who We Are
Dream Theater - 6:00
Dream Theater - Erotomania
Dream Theater - Act II - Scene Seven- I. The Dance Of Eternity
Dream Theater - The Glass Prison
Dream Theater - The Great Debate
Dream Theater - As I Am
Dream Theater - This Dying Soul
Dream Theater - The Root Of All Evil
Dream Theater - Constant Motion
Dream Theater - A Nightmare To Remember
Dream Theater - The Shattered Fortress
Dream Theater - Enigma Machine
Flying Colors - Blue Ocean
Flying Colors - Shoulda Coulda Woulda
Gentle Giant - Free Hand
Gentle Giant - Proclamation
Gentle Giant - Peel The Paint
Haken - Portals
Haken - Atlas Stone
Haken - In Memoriam
King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man
King Crimson - Larks’ Tongues In Aspic Pt I
King Crimson - Larks’ Tongues In Aspic Pt II
King Crimson - Red
King Crimson - One More Red Nightmare
King Crimson - The Great Deceiver
King Crimson - Frame By Frame
King Crimson - Thela Hun Ginjeet
King Crimson - Level Five
King Crimson - Happy With What You Have To Be Happy With
Lunatic Soul - Cold
Opeth - The Devil's Orchard
Opeth - I Feel The Dark
Opeth - The Lines In My Hand
Opeth - The Throat Of Winter
Opeth - Eternal Rains Will Come
Opeth - Cusp Of Eternity
Opeth - Goblin
Opeth - River
Porcupine Tree - Fear Of A Blank Planet
Rush - Anthem
Rush - By Tor & The Snow Dog
Rush - Fly By Night
Rush - Xanadu
Rush - Circumstances
Rush - Tom Sawyer
Rush - YYZ
Rush - Clockwork Angels
Rush - Headlong Flight
Soen - Canvas
Soen - Tabula Rasa
Steven Wilson - Remainder The Black Dog
Steven Wilson - Luminol
Steven Wilson - Hand Cannot Erase
Steven Wilson - Perfect Life
Steven Wilson - Happy Returns / Ascendant Here On
Storm Corrosion - Drag Ropes
Storm Corrosion - Storm Corrosion
Storm Corrosion - Lock Howl
Storm Corrosion - Ljudet Innan
Tool - Forty Six & Two
Tool - Ænema
Tool - Lateralus (Whole Album)
Tool - Jambi
Tool - 10.000 Days (Wings Pt 2)
Tool - The Pot
Tool - Rosetta Stoned
Tool - Right In Two
Yes - Roundabout

[Jazz / Virtuoso]

Alex Skolnick Trio - Fade To Black [Metallica Cover]
Buckethead - Swomee Swan
Buckethead - Point Doom
Carlos Santana & John Mclaughlin - A Love Supreme
Carlos Santana & John Mclaughlin - The Life Divine
Evan Brewer - Actualize
Grant Green - My Favourite Things
Jeff Loomis - Shouting Fire At A Funeral
Jeff Loomis - Opulent Maelstrom
Jeff Loomis - Jato Unit (ft. Ron Jarzombek)
Jeff Loomis - Cashmere Shiv (ft. Neil Kernon & Michael Manring)
Jeff Loomis - Escape Velocity
Jeff Loomis - Tragedy And Harmony (ft. Christine Rhoades)
Jeff Loomis - Sibylline Origin
Jeff Hughell - Chaotic Implosion (ft. Alex Hernandez-Bent & Brian Wood)
Jeff Hughell - Chaos Labyrinth (ft. Alex Hernandez-Bent, Steve DiGiorgio, Sean Martinez, Alex Webster, Nick Avalonitas & Marc Gilson)
Jeff Hughell - Jagermeister Death Grind (ft. Kevin Talley & Matt Sotelo)
Joe Pass - Virtuoso (Whole Album)
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Meeting Of The Spirits
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Vital Transformation
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Birds Of Fire
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Miles Beyond
Mahavishnu Orchestra - One Word
Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog - Your Turn
Ocrilim - Absolve 1
Octis - Twelon
Origin - Continuum
Rez Abbasi's Invocation - Monuments
Rez Abbasi's Invocation - Nusrat
Rings Of Saturn - Fractal Intake
Rudresh Mahanthappa - We'll Make More
T.R.A.M. - Seven Ways Till Sunday
T.R.A.M. - Endeavor
Zach Hill - Necromancer

[Indian / Indian Fusion]

Ananda Shankar - Jumpin' Jack Flash
Ananda Shankar - Sagar (The Ocean)
Ananda Shankar - Streets Of Calcutta
Ananda Shankar - Betelnutters
Ananda Shankar - Pluck
Anoushka Shankar - Red Sun
Anoushka Shankar - Dancing In Madness
Anoushka Shankar - The Sun Won't Set (ft. Norah Jones)
Anoushka Shankar - Flight
Anoushka Shankar - Maya
Anoushka Shankar & Karsh Kale - Easy (ft. Norah Jones)
Shankar, Zakir Hussain & T.H. Vinayakram - Tanam Kiravani

Metal

[Black Metal: First Wave]

Bathory - Reaper
Bathory - Total Destruction
Bathory - Massacre
Bathory - A Fine Day To Die
Burzum - Dunkelheit

[Black Metal: Second Wave]

Behemoth - Chant Of The Eastern Lands
Behemoth - Ancient
Blut Aus Nord - Slaughterday
Blut Aus Nord - Fathers Of The Icy Age
Blut Aus Nord - Disciple's Libration
Blut Aus Nord - ...The Meditant
Blut Aus Nord - Paien
Blut Aus Nord - Henosis
Cradle Of Filth - The Principle of Evil Made Flesh
Cradle Of Filth - Funeral In Carpathia
Cradle Of Filth - Dusk And Her Embrace
Cradle Of Filth - Ebony Dressed For Sunset
Cradle Of Filth - The Forest Whispers My Name
Cradle Of Filth - Queen Of Winter, Throned
Cradle Of Filth - Thirteen Autumns And A Widow
Cradle Of Filth - Beneath The Howling Stars
Cradle Of Filth - Bathory Aria
Cradle Of Filth - Cradle Of Filth - From The Cradle To Enslave
Cradle Of Filth - Cthulhu Dawn
Cradle Of Filth - Her Ghost In The Fog
Dimmu Borgir - Mourning Palace
Dimmu Borgir - Tormentor Of Christian Souls
Dimmu Borgir - A Succubus In Rapture
Dimmu Borgir - Lepers Among Us
Dimmu Borgir - The Chosen Legacy
Dimmu Borgir - A Jewel Traced Through Coal
Dissection - Night's Blood
Emperor - Into The Infinity Of Thoughts
Emperor - Cosmic Keys To My Creations & Times
Emperor - I Am The Black Wizards
Emperor - Ye Entrancemperium
Emperor - Empty
Gris - La Dryade
Immortal - Withstand The Fall Of Time
Immortal - One By One
Immortal - All Shall Fall
Mayhem - Funeral Fog
Mayhem - Watchers
Ulver - Hymne I: Wolf And Fear
Ulver - Hymne II: Wolf And The Devil
Ulver - Hymne III: Wolf And Hatred
1349 - Atomic Chapel
1349 - When I Was Flesh
1349 - Psalm 7-77
1349 - Pandemonium War Bells
1349 - The Devil Of The Desert
1349 - Slaves
1349 - Golem

[Black Metal: Third, Fourth, Fifth, Whatever Wave]

Agalloch - Hallways Of Enchanted Ebony
Agalloch - The Melancholy Spirit
Agalloch - In The Shadow Of Our Pale Companion
Agalloch - Falling Snow
Agalloch - Into The Painted Grey
Agalloch - The Watcher's Monolith
Agalloch - Black Lake Nidstång
Agalloch - Ghosts Of The Midwinter Fires
Agalloch - Dark Matter Gods
Alcest - Printemps Emeraude
Alcest - Souvenirs d'un Autre Monde
Alcest - Les Iris
Alcest - Sur l'autre Rive je T'attendrai
Alcest - Écailles de Lune (Part 1)
Alcest - Écailles de Lune (Part 2)
Alcest - Percées de Lumière
Alcest - Solar Song
Alcest - Sur L'Océan Couleur de Fer
Alcest - Là Où Naissent Les Couleurs Nouvelles
Alcest - Beings Of Light
Alcest - Faiseurs De Mondes
Alraune - Simulacra
Altar Of Plagues - God Alone
Altar Of Plagues - Burnt Year
Altar Of Plagues - Reflection Pulse Remains
Avichi - Sermont On The Mount
Avichi - Under Satan's Sun
Avichi - Flames In My Eyes
Avichi - Lightweaver
Blut Aus Nord - The Choir Of The Dead
Blut Aus Nord - Procession Of The Dead Clowns
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome II
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome III
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome VI
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome VII
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome VIII
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome X
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome XII
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome XIII
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome XIV
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome XVI
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome XVII
Blut Aus Nord - Epitome XVIII
Blut Aus Nord - De Librio Arbitrio
Blut Aus Nord - Hubris
Blut Aus Nord - Nemeinn
Botanist - Stargazer
Castevet - Grey Matter
Cloak Of Altering - All I See Is Dead Stars
Cobalt - Gin
Cult Of Fire - Samhara Raktha Kali
Cult Of Fire - Kali Ma
Cult Of Fire - Burned By The Flame Of Divine Love
Deafhaven - Dream House
Deathspell Omega - Wings Of Predation
A Forest Of Stars - Prey Tell Of The Church Fate
A Forest Of Stars - A Prophet For A Pound Of Flesh
A Forest Of Stars - Gatherer Of The Pure
A Forest Of Stars - Drawing Down The Rain
The Great Old Ones - Antarctica
Inquisition - Astral Path To Supreme Majesties
Inquisition - Upon The Fire Winged Demon
Inquisition - Crepuscular Battle Hymn
Inquisition - Across The Abyss Ancient Horns Bray
Inquisition - Force Of The Floating Tomb
Inquisition - Darkness Flows Towards Unseen Horizons
Inquisition - Obscure Verses For The Multiverse
Liturgy - Mysterium
Liturgy - High Gold
Liturgy - Returner
Liturgy - Generation
Liturgy - Red Crown
Liturgy - Harmonia
Liturgy - Reign Array
Marduk - Nowhere, No-One, Nothing
The Meads Of Asphodel - Angelwhore
The Meads Of Asphodel - God Is Rome
The Meads Of Asphodel - Blood Blasted Holy War
The Meads Of Asphodel - Greed Of Abraham
The Meads Of Asphodel - Hollow Womb Of Suicide
The Meads Of Asphodel - My Psychotic Sand Deity
The Meads Of Asphodel - Apocalypse Of Lazarus
The Meads Of Asphodel - Addicted To God
The Meads Of Asphodel - Sonderkommando
The Meads Of Asphodel - Wishing Well Of Bones
The Meads Of Asphodel - Sins Of The Pharaohs
Nachtmystium - One Of These Nights
Nachtmystium - Assassins
Nachtmystium - Ghosts Of Grace
Nachtmystium - High On Hate
Nachtmystium - Nightfall
Nachtmystium - No Funeral
Nachtmystium - Addicts
Nachtmystium - Ruined Life Continuum
Nachtmystium - I Wait In Hell
Negură Bunget - Țesarul De Lumini
Negură Bunget - Cunoașterea Tăcută
Negură Bunget - Hora Soarelui
Numen - Ama Lurra
Numen - Ama Lurra (Acoustic)
Panopticon - The Echoes Of A Disharmonic Evensong
Rotting Christ - In Yumen / Xibalba
Rotting Christ - P'unchaw Kachun - Tuta Kachun
Rotting Christ - Κατά Τον Δαίμονα Εαυτού
Terra Tenebrosa - Black Pearl In A Crystalline Shell
Thantifaxath - The Bright White Nothing At The End Of The Tunnel
Thantifaxath - Where I End And The Hemlock Begins
Wolves In The Throne Room - Thuja Magus Imperium
Wolves In The Throne Room -Prayer Of Transformation

[Death Metal]

Aborted - Necrotic Manifesto
Abysmal Dawn - In Service Of Time
Anata - A Problem Yet To Be Solved
Anata - Entropy Within
Anata - Any Kind Of Magic Or Miracle
Atheist - Piece Of Time
Atheist - Mother Man
Atheist - Mineral
Atheist - Second To Sun
Autopsy - Bonesaw
Autopsy - Spill My Blood
Autopsy - She Is A Funeral
Autopsy - Savagery
Autopsy - King Of Flesh Ripped
Behemoth - Ceremony Of Shiva
Behemoth - Antichristian Phenomenon
Behemoth - As Above So Below
Behemoth - Slaying The Prophets Ov Isa
Behemoth - Kriegsphilosophie
Behemoth - Arcana Hereticae
Behemoth - Daimonos
Behemoth - Ov Fire And The Void
Behemoth - Lucifer
Behemoth - Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel
Behemoth - Amen
Benighted - Prey
Benighted - Experience Your Flesh
Benighted - Du Riechst So Gut (Rammstein Cover)
Bloodbath - Breeding Death
Bloodbath - Eaten
Bloodbath - Unite In Pain (ft. Eric Cutler)
Cannibal Corpse - Shredded Humans
Cannibal Corpse - A Skull Full Of Maggots
Cannibal Corpse - Meat Hook Sodomy
Cannibal Corpse - Beyond The Cemetery
Cannibal Corpse - Stripped, Raped And Strangled
Cannibal Corpse - The Pick-Axe Murders
Cannibal Corpse - The Bleeding
Cannibal Corpse - Sentenced To Burn
Cannibal Corpse - Psychotic Precision
Cannibal Corpse - Decency Defied
Cannibal Corpse - Frantic Disembowelment
Cannibal Corpse - The Time To Kill Is Now
Cannibal Corpse - Make Them Suffer
Cannibal Corpse - Death Walking Terror
Cannibal Corpse - Carnivorous Swarm
Cannibal Corpse - Evisceration Plague
Cannibal Corpse - Sarcophagic Frenzy
Cannibal Corpse - As Deep As The Knife Will Go
Cannibal Corpse - Crucifier Avenged
Cannibal Corpse - High Velocity Impact Spatter
Cannibal Corpse - Kill Or Become
Cannibal Corpse - Icepick Lobotomy
Carcass - Exhume To Consume
Carcass - Inpropagation
Carcass - Corporal Jigsore Quandary
Carcass - Incarnated Solvent Abuse
Carcass - Buried Dreams
Carcass - Carnal Forge
Carcass - No Love Lost
Carcass - Heartwork
Carcass - Thrasher's Abattoir
Cattle Decapitation - The Carbon Stampede
Cattle Decapitation - Dead Set On Suicide
Cattle Decapitation - Kingdom Of Tyrants
Cattle Decapitation - Manufactured Extinct
Cattle Decapitation - The Prophets Of Loss
Cattle Decapitation - Mutual Assured Destruction
Death - Evil Dead
Death - Pull The Plug
Death - Primitive Ways
Death - Living Monstrosity
Death - Killing Spree
Death - Flattening Of Emotions
Death - See Through Dreams
Death - Cosmic Sea
Death - Overactive Imagination
Death - Trapped In A Corner
Death - Mentally Blind
Death - The Philosopher
Death - Symbolic
Death - Without Judgement
Death - Scavenger Of Human Sorrow
Death - Bite The Pain
Death - Voice Of The Soul
Death - To Forgive Is To Suffer
Death - A Moment Of Clarity
Death - Painkiller (Judas Priest Cover)
Decapitated - Sphere Of Madness
Decapitated - The Fury
Decapitated - Post(?)Organic
Decapitated - The Knife
Decapitated - Blindness
Decapitated - Moth Defect
Entombed - Left Hand Path
Hour Of Penance - Desecrated Souls
Immolation - No Forgiveness (Without Bloodshed)
Immolation - Burial Ground
Immolation - Father, You're Not A Father
Immolation - Close To A World Below
Immolation - Swarm Of Terror
Immolation - Our Savior Sleeps
Immolation - Majesty And Decay
Immolation - The Comfort Of Cowards
Immolation - Kingdom Of Conspiracy
Lykathea Aflame - Bringer Of Elvenefris Flame
Lykathea Aflame - On The Way Home
Lykathea Aflame - A Step Closer
Massacre - Dawn Of Eternity
Misery Index - We Never Come In Peace
Misery Index - Theocracy
Misery Index - Traitors
Misery Index - American Idolatry
Misery Index - Embracing Extinction
Misery Index - The Calling
Misery Index - Conjuring The Cull
Misery Index - Thieves (Ministry Cover)
Morbid Angel - Immortal Rites
Morbid Angel - Maze Of Torment
Morbid Angel - Chapel Of Ghouls
Morbid Angel - Unholy Blasphemies
Morbid Angel - Rapture
Morbid Angel - Angel Of Disease
Morbid Angel - Dominate
Morbid Angel - Where The Slime Live
Morbid Angel - Opening Of The Gates
Murder Construct - Compelled By Mediocrity
Napalm Death - If The Truth Be Known
Napalm Death - The Chains That Bind Us
Napalm Death - Suffer The Children
Napalm Death - I Abstain
Napalm Death - The World Keeps Turning
Napalm Death - Juidicial Slime
Napalm Death - Contemptuous
Napalm Death - Twist The Knife (Slowly)
Napalm Death - Hung
Napalm Death - Remain Nameless
Napalm Death - Plague Rages
Napalm Death - Greed Killing
Napalm Death - Glimpse Into Genocide
Napalm Death - Ripe For The Breaking
Napalm Death - Cursed To Crawl
Napalm Death - My Own Worst Enemy
Napalm Death - Breed To Breathe
Napalm Death - Birth In Regress
Napalm Death - Inside The Torn Apart
Napalm Death - Indispose
Napalm Death - Lowpoint
Napalm Death - The Infiltraitor
Napalm Death - Taste The Poison
Napalm Death - Constitutional Hell
Napalm Death - (The Public Get) What The Public Doesn't Want
Napalm Death - Silence Is Deafening
Napalm Death - Morale
Napalm Death - Sink Fast, Let Go
Napalm Death - Puritanical Punishment Beating
Napalm Death - When All Is Said And Done
Napalm Death - Eyes Right Out
Napalm Death - Deaf And Dumbstruck (Intelligent Design)
Napalm Death - Time Waits For No Slave
Napalm Death - The Wolf I Feed
Napalm Death - Think Tank Trials
Napalm Death - Leper Colony
Napalm Death - Analysis Paralysis
Napalm Death - Smash A Single Digit
Napalm Death - Metaphorically Screw You
Napalm Death - How The Years Condemn
Napalm Death - Stubborn Stains
Napalm Death - Dear Slum Landlord...
Napalm Death - Cesspits
Napalm Death - Bloodless Coup
Napalm Death - Hierarchies
Nile - Opening Of The Mouth
Nile - As He Creates So He Destroys
Nile - Ithyphallic
Nile - Kafir
Nile - Iskander Dhul Kharnon
Nile - Enduring The Eternal Molestation Of Flame
Nile - The Fiends Who Come To Steal The Magick Of The Deceased
Nile - The Gods Who Light Up The Sky At The Gate Of Sethu
Nile - Call To Destruction
Nocturnus - Lake Of Fire
Pestilence - TBA
Revocation - Dismantle The Dictator
Revocation - Cretin
Revocation - Chaos Of Forms
Revocation - Beloved Horrifier
Revocation - Invidious
Revocation - Dyers Eve (Metallica Cover)
Revocation - Madness Opus
Revocation - Apex
Revocation - Witch Trials
Septic Flesh - Sunlight Moonlight
Septic Flesh - Sangreal
Septic Flesh - Vampire From Nazareth
Septic Flesh - Oceans Of Grey
Septic Flesh - The Undead Keep Dreaming
Septic Flesh - Therianthropy
Septic Flesh - War In Heaven
Septic Flesh - The First Immortal
Six Feet Under - Reckless
Six Feet Under - Neuro Osmosis

[Djent ???]

Animals As Leaders - Tempting Time
Animals As Leaders - Behaving Badly
Animals As Leaders - CAFO
Animals As Leaders - Inamorata
Animals As Leaders - Song Of Solomon
Animals As Leaders - Wave Of Babies
Animals As Leaders - Odessa
Animals As Leaders - Espera
Animals As Leaders - Weightless
Animals As Leaders - David
Animals As Leaders - Ka$cade
Animals As Leaders - Lippincott
Animals As Leaders - Another Year
Animals As Leaders - Physical Education
Animals As Leaders - Crescent
Babymetal - Akumu no Rondo

[Doom Metal / Funeral Doom / Drone]

Anathema - Eternity (Part 1)
Anathema - Fragile Dreams
Celtic Frost - A Dying God Coming Into Human Flesh
Esoteric - Cipher
Katatonia - Brave
Katatonia - Murder
Katatonia - Dispossession
Katatonia - Teargas
Katatonia - Evidence
Novembers Doom - Shadows Of Light
Novembers Doom - Not The Strong
Novembers Doom - Swallowed By The Moon
Novembers Doom - Into Night's Requiem Infernal
Novembers Doom - The Dark Host
Novembers Doom - Harvest Scythe
Novembers Doom - Buried
Novembers Doom - Of Age And Origin Part 1: A Violent Day
Novembers Doom - Of Age And Origin Part 2: A Day Of Joy
Novembers Doom - Six Sides
Novembers Doom - Shadow Play
Sunn O))) - Orthodox Caveman
Sunn O))) - Big Church [Megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért]
Sunn O))) - Alice
Sunn O))) & Boris - Etna
Triptykon - Goetia
Triptykon - A Thousand Lies
Triptykon - Tree Of Suffering Souls
Triptykon - Aurorae
Woods Of Ypres - Lightning & Snow
Woods Of Ypres - Adora Vivos

[Grindcore]

Napalm Death - Multinational Corporations
Napalm Death - Instinct Of Survival
Napalm Death - The Kill
Napalm Death - Siege Of Power
Napalm Death - Life?
Napalm Death - C.S. (Conservative Shithead)
Napalm Death - Unchallenged Hate
Napalm Death - Cock-Rock Alienation
Napalm Death - From Enslavement To Obliteration
Napalm Death - Social Sterility
Pig Destroyer - Scarlet Hourglass
Pig Destroyer - Thumbsucker
Pig Destroyer - Gravedancer
Pig Destroyer - Lost Cause
Pig Destroyer - Sourheart
Pig Destroyer - Towering Flesh
Pig Destroyer - Carrion Fairy
Pig Destroyer - Dead Carnations
Pig Destroyer - Dress In Gasoline
Pig Destroyer - The Cutting Room
Pig Destroyer - Rotten Yellow
Pig Destroyer - Deathripper
Pig Destroyer - Thought Crime Spree
Pig Destroyer - Phantom Limb
Pig Destroyer - Loathsome
Pig Destroyer - Heathen Temple
Pig Destroyer - Alexandria
Pig Destroyer - Girl In The Slayer Jacket
Pig Destroyer - Waist Deep In Ash
Pig Destroyer - The Machete Twins
Pig Destroyer - The Underground Man
Pig Destroyer - Eve
Pig Destroyer - The Diplomat
Pig Destroyer - Baltimore Strangler
Pig Destroyer - The Bug
Pig Destroyer - Burning Palm
Pig Destroyer - Permanent Funeral
Terrorizer - World Downfall (Whole Album)

[Groove / Redneck Metal]

Lamb Of God - Black Label
Lamb Of God - Vigil
Lamb Of God - Walk With Me In Hell
Lamb Of God - Redneck
Lamb Of God - Pathetic
Lamb Of God - Grace
Lamb Of God - Desolation
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Pantera - Primal Concrete Sledge
Pantera - Cemetery Gates
Pantera - Domination
Pantera - 5 Minutes Alone
Pantera - The Great Southern Trendkill
Pantera - Suicide Note Pt. I
Sepultura - Refuse, Resist

[Industrial]

Author & Punisher - Terrorbird
Fear Factory - Martyr
Fear Factory - Scapegoat
Fear Factory - Demanufacture
Fear Factory - Self Bias Resistor
Fear Factory - Mechanize
Fear Factory - Christploitation
Fear Factory - Final Exit
Fear Factory - Shock
Fear Factory - Recharger
Melt-Banana - Candy Gun
Melt-Banana - The Hive
Melt-Banana - Lie Lied Lies
Melt-Banana - Then Red Eyed
Ministry - Stigmata
Ministry - The Land Of Rape And Honey
Ministry - N.W.O
Ministry - Jesus Built My Hotrod
Ministry - No W
Ministry - Rio Grande Blood
Ministry - Let's Go
Ministry - The Last Sucker
Ministry - Die In A Crash
Ministry - End Of Days (Part 1)
Ministry - Double Tap
Ministry - Punch In The Face
Static-X - Bled For Days
Static-X - Love Dump
Static-X - Sweat Of The Bud
Static-X - Get To The Gone
Static-X - Shadow Zone
Static-X - Otsego Amigo
Static-X - No Submission
Static-X - Goat

[Jazz Metal / Mathcore]

The Dillinger Escape Plan - Sugar Coated Sour
The Dillinger Escape Plan - 43% Burnt
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Destro's Secret
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Hollywood Squares
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Pig Latin
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Come To Daddy
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Black Bubblegum
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Sick On Sunday
The Dillinger Escape Plan - When Acting As A Particle
The Dillinger Escape Plan - When Acting As A Wave
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Dead As History
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Widower
The Dillinger Escape Plan - When I Lost My Bet
Dysrhythmia - Festival Of Popular Delusions
Dysrhythmia - Triangular Stare
Dysrhythmia - Room Of Vertigo
Indricothere - VII
Shining - Goretex Weather Report
Shining - The Madness And The Damage Done Pt.1
Shining - Fisheye
Shining - Healter Skelter
Shining - The Madness And The Damage Done Pt.2
Shining - 21st Century Schizoid Man (King Crimson Cover)
Shining - I Won`t Forget
Shining - The One Inside
Shining - Blackjazz Rebels

[Melodic Death / Gothenburg Metal]

Arch Enemy - Blood On My Hands
At The Gates - Blinded By Fear
At The Gates - Slaughter Of The Soul
Dark Tranquility - Punish My Heaven
Dark Tranquility - Lethe
Dark Tranquility - Nothing To No One
Dark Tranquility - Terminus (Where Death Is Most Alive)
Dark Tranquility - Inside The Particle Storm
In Flames - Moonshield

[Metalcore / Deathcore / All The Other Cores]

Allegaeon - 1.618
Between The Buried And Me - Foam Born (B): The Decade Of Statues
Between The Buried And Me - Informal Gluttony
Between The Buried And Me - Extremophile Elite
Divine Heresy - Facebreaker
Into Eternity - Diagnosis Terminal
Into Eternity - Time Immemorial
Machine Head - Davidian
Machine Head - Ten Ton Hammer
Machine Head - Imperium
Machine Head - Clenching The Fists Of Dissent
Machine Head - Aesthetics Of Hate
Machine Head - Halo
Rings Of Saturn - Senseless Massacre
Rings Of Saturn - Natural Selection
Rings Of Saturn - Unsympathetic Intellect
Rings Of Saturn - The Heavens Have Fallen

[Nu-Metal]

Dir En Grey - Different Sense
Dir En Grey - Lotus
Dir En Grey - Cage
Dir En Grey - Saku
Dir En Grey - Spilled Milk
Machine Head - From This Day
??? Maximum The Hormone - A.L.I.E.N
Sepultura - Roots Bloody Roots
Sepultura - Ratamahatta
Sepultura - Lookaway
Slipknot - (Sic)
Slipknot - Eyeless
Slipknot - Wait And Bleed
Slipknot - Surfacing
Slipknot - People = Shit
Slipknot - Everything Ends
Slipknot - The Heretic Anthem
Slipknot - The Blister Exists
Slipknot - Pulse Of The Maggots
Slipknot - .execute.
Slipknot - Psychosocial
Slipknot - Gehenna
Slipknot - All Hope Is Gone
Slipknot - Custer

[NWOBHM aka Iron Maiden]

Iron Maiden - Remember Tomorrow
Iron Maiden - The Number Of The Beast
Iron Maiden - Run To The Hills
Iron Maiden - Hallowed Be Thy Name
Iron Maiden - The Trooper
Iron Maiden - Aces High
Iron Maiden - 2 Minutes To Midnight
Iron Maiden - Rime Of The Ancient Mariner
Iron Maiden - Wasted Years
Iron Maiden - The Wicker Man
Iron Maiden - Dance Of Death
Iron Maiden - Paschendale
Iron Maiden - Satellite 15... The Final Frontier

[Power Metal]

Blind Guardian - Valhalla
Blind Guardian - Imaginations From The Other Side
Blind Guardian - Mirror Mirror
Blind Guardian - This Will Never End
Blind Guardian - Another Stranger Me
Blind Guardian - Skalds & Shadows
Blind Guardian - A Voice In The Dark
Blind Guardian - The Ninth Wave
Demons & Wizards - Heaven Denies
Demons & Wizards - Fiddler On The Green
Demons & Wizards - Crimson King
Demons & Wizards - Beneath These Waves
Demons & Wizards - Terror Train
Demons & Wizards - Dorian
Dragonforce - Through The Fire And Flames
Dragonforce - Cry For Eternity
Dragonforce - The Flame Of Youth
Dragonforce - Give Me The Night
Dragonforce - Seasons (Acoustic)
Dragonforce - The Game (ft. Matt Heafy)
Iced Earth - Burnt Offerings
Iced Earth - Last December
Iced Earth - Dantes Inferno
Iced Earth - The Suffering: A Question Of Heaven
Iced Earth - Disciples Of The Lie
Iced Earth - Birth Of The Wicked
Iced Earth - The Coming Curse
Iced Earth - Wolf
Iced Earth - Damien
Iced Earth - Dracula
Iced Earth - The Reckoning (Don't Tread On Me)
Iced Earth - Framing Armageddon
Iced Earth - Behold The Wicked Child
Iced Earth - Dystopia
Iced Earth - Boiling Point
Iced Earth - Days Of Rage
Iced Earth - Tragedy And Triumph
Iced Earth - Plagues Of Babylon (ft. Hansi Kürsch)
Iced Earth - Among The Living Dead (ft. Hansi Kürsch)
Iced Earth - Highwayman (ft. Michael Poulsen & Russell Allen) [Jimmy Webb Cover]
Symphony X - Sea Of Lies
Symphony X - Domination
Symphony X - Iconoclast
Symphony X - The End Of Innocence
Symphony X - Electric Messiah
Symphony X - Nevermore

[Progressive Metal]

Behold The Arctopus - Some Mist
Blotted Science - Vermicular Asphyxiation
Blotted Science - Synaptic Plasticity
Blotted Science - R.E.M.
Blotted Science - E.E.G. Tracing
Cynic - Veil Of Maya
Cynic - Nunc Fluens
Cynic - The Space For This
Cynic - Adam's Murmur
Cynic - Evolutionary
Cynic - True Hallucination Speak
Cynic - Infinite Shapes
The Devin Townsend Band - Depth Charge
Devin Townsend Project - Praise The Lowered (ft. Paul Kuhr & Ryan Van Poederooyen)
Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction (ft. Oderus Urungus, Fredrik Thordendal & Dirk Verbeuren)
Devin Townsend Project - Save Our Now
Edge Of Sanity - Crimson (ft. Mikael Åkerfeldt)
Enslaved - Ethica Odini
Enslaved - Nightsight
Enslaved - Thoughts Like Hammers
Enslaved - Death In The Eyes Of Dawn
Enslaved - Roots Of The Mountain
Enslaved - One Thousand Years Of Rain
Gojira - Backbone
Gojira - Global Warming
Gojira - Oroborus
Gojira - The Art Of Dying
Gojira - The Way Of All Flesh
Gojira - Explosia
Gojira - L'Enfant Sauvage
Gojira - Pain Is A Master
Gojira - Born In Winter
Gordian Knot - Rivers Dancing
Hail Spirit Noir - Into the Gates of Time
Hail Spirit Noir - Haire Pneuma Skoteino
Hail Spirit Noir - Satan Is Time
Hail Spirit Noir - The Mermaid
Ihsahn - Misanthrope
Ihsahn - Unhealer(ft. Mikael Åkerfeldt)
Ihsahn - A Grave Inversed
Ihsahn - Frozen Lakes On Mars
Ihsahn - On The Shores
Ihsahn - Arrival (ft. Einar Solberg)
Ihsahn - The Paranoid
Ihsahn - Tacit
Krallice - Cnestorial
Krallice - Dimensional Bleedthrough
Krallice - Autochthon
Krallice - The Clearing
Krallice - Diotima
Krallice - Telluric Rings
Krallice - IIIIIII
Krallice - IIIIIIII
Krallice - IIIIIIIII
Krallice - IIIIIIIIII
Krallice - IIIIIIIIIII / IIIIIIIIIIII
Krallice - Wastes Of Ocean
Krallice - Over Spirit
Leprous - Forced Entry
Leprous - Foe
Leprous - Coal
Leprous - Third Law
Leprous - Rewind
Meshuggah - Future Breed Machine
Meshuggah - New Millenium Cyanide Christ
Meshuggah - The Mouth Licking What You've Bled
Meshuggah - Stengah
Meshuggah - Glints Collide
Meshuggah - Spasm
Meshuggah - War
Meshuggah - I
Meshuggah - Autonomy Lost
Meshuggah - The Paradoxical Spiral
Meshuggah - In Death - Is Life
Meshuggah - In Death - Is Death
Meshuggah - Combustion
Meshuggah - Bleed
Meshuggah - ObZen
Meshuggah - Pineal Gland Optics
Meshuggah - Pravus
Meshuggah - Dancers To A Discordant System
Meshuggah - I Am Colossus
Meshuggah - The Demon's Name Is Surveillance
Meshuggah - Marrow
Meshuggah - Swarm
Ne Obliviscaris - Of The Leper Butterflies
Opeth - In Mist She Was Standing
Opeth - The Apostle In Triumph
Opeth - Advent
Opeth - The Night And The Silent Water
Opeth - When
Opeth - Madrigal
Opeth - The Amen Corner
Opeth - Demon Of The Fall
Opeth - The Moor
Opeth - Face Of Melinda
Opeth - Serenity Painted Death
Opeth - White Cluster
Opeth - The Leper Affinity
Opeth - Bleak
Opeth - Harvest
Opeth - The Drapery Falls
Opeth - Dirge For November
Opeth - Patterns In The Ivy
Opeth - Blackwater Park
Opeth - Deliverance
Opeth - A Fair Judgement
Opeth - Ghost Of Perdition
Opeth - The Grand Conjuration
Opeth - Heir Apparent
Opeth - The Lotus Eater
Vektor - Tetrastructural Minds
Vektor - Venus Project
Vulture Industries - The Tower
Witherscape - Astrid Falls
Witherscape - Dead For A Day
Witherscape - A Cry For Everyone [Gentle Giant Cover]

[Sludge]

Baroness - Rays On Pinion
Baroness - Wanderlust
Baroness - A Horse Called Golgotha
Baroness - O'er Hell And Hide
Baroness - The Gnashing
Baroness - Yellow Theme
Baroness - Take My Bones Away
Baroness - Little Things
Intronaut - Reptilian Brain
Intronaut - Miasma
Intronaut - Valley Of Smoke
Intronaut - The Welding
Kylesa - Scapegoat
Kylesa - Only One
Kylesa - Tired Climb
Kylesa - Cheating Synergy
Kylesa - Crowded Road
Kylesa - Don't Look Back
Kylesa - Spiral Shadow
Mastodon - Crusher Destroyer
Mastodon - March Of The Fire Ants
Mastodon - Blood and Thunder
Mastodon - Aqua Dementia
Mastodon - Crystal Skull
Mastodon - Circle Of Cysquatch
Mastodon - Capillarian Crest
Mastodon - Divinations
Mastodon - The Last Baron
Mastodon - Black Tongue
Mastodon - The Motherload
Subrosa - Borrowed Time, Borrowed Eyes
Subrosa - Beneath The Crown
Subrosa - The Usher

[Technical Death Metal]

Archspire - Lucid Collective Somnambulation
Archspire - The Plague Of Am (Cogito Ergo Sum)
Beyond Creation - L'exorde
Christian Muenzner - Mountains Of Madness
Conquering Dystopia - Tethys
Decrepit Birth - The Living Doorway
Decrepit Birth - (A Departure Of The Sun) Ignite The Tesla Coil
Decrepit Birth - Polarity
Decrepit Birth - Solar Impulse
Desecravity - Enthralled In Decimation
Desecravity - Bloody Terpsichorean Art
The Faceless - Autotheist Movement II: Emancipate
Fallujah - Sapphire
Gorguts - Le Toit Du Monde
Gorguts - Forgotten Arrows
Gorguts - Enemies Of Compassion
Gorguts - Reduced To Silence
Necrophagist - Mutilate The Stillborn
Necrophagist - Fermented Offal Discharge
Necrophagist - Stabwound
Origin - Lethal Manipulation (The Bonecrusher Chronicles)
Origin - Portal
Origin - Reciprocal
Origin - Staring From The Abyss
Origin - The Aftermath
Origin - Algorithm
Origin - Wrath Of Vishnu
Origin - Finite
Origin - Expulsion Of Fury
Origin - Swarm
Origin - Saliga
Origin - Evolution Of Extinction
Origin - The Absurdity Of What I Am
Origin - The Indiscriminate
Perdition Temple - Extinction Synagogue
Psycroptic - Carriers Of The Plague
Psycroptic - Forward To Submission
Psycroptic - The Throne Of Kings
Psycroptic - From Scribe To Ashes
Sophicide - Within Darkness
Sophicide - Perdition of the Sublime
Sophicide - The Essence of Warfare
Soreption - Engineering The Void (Whole Album)
Spawn Of Possession - The Evangelist

[Thrash Metal]

Annihilator - W.T.Y.D.
Dark Angel - Cauterization
Exmortus - Moonlight Sonata (Beethoven)
Exodus - Deathamphetamine
Exodus - Now Thy Death Day Come
Exodus - Riot Act
Exodus - Iconoclasm
Exodus - The Ballad Of Leonard And Charles
Exodus - Class Dismissed (A Hate Primer)
Exodus - Burn, Hollywood, Burn
Exodus - Black 13 (ft. Dan The Automator)
Havok - Prepare For Attack
Havok - No Amnesty
Havok - Scumbag In Disguise
Kreator - Blind Faith
Kreator - Terrible Certainty
Kreator - Extreme Aggression
Kreator - People Of The Lie
Kreator - Cause For Conflict (Whole Album)
Kreator - Enemy Of God
Kreator - Civilization Collapse
Lost Society - Braindead Metalhead
Lost Society - Lethal Pleasure
Megadeth - Loved To Death
Megadeth - Devil's Island
Megadeth - My Last Words
Megadeth - Holy Wars... And The Punishment Due
Megadeth - Hangar 18
Metallica - Ride The Lightning
Metallica - For Whom The Bell Tolls
Metallica - The Call Of Ktulu
Metallica - Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
Metallica - Blackened
Metallica - Dyers Eve
Metallica - That Was Just Your Life
Morbid Saint - Assassin
Morbid Saint - Scars
Sepultura - Beneath The Remains
Sepultura - Inner Self
Skeletonwitch - Baptized In Flame
Skeletonwitch - Within My Blood
Skeletonwitch - Submit To The Suffering
Skeletonwitch - Crushed Beyond Dust
Skeletonwitch - Repulsive Salvation
Skeletonwitch - This Horrifying Force (The Desire To Kill)
Skeletonwitch - Reduced To The Failure Of Prayer
Skeletonwitch - Of Ash And Torment
Skeletonwitch - The Infernal Resurrection
Skeletonwitch - Serpents Unleashed
Skeletonwitch - I Am Of Death (Hell Has Arrived)
Slayer - The Antichrist
Slayer - Hell Awaits
Slayer - Reign In Blood (Whole Album)
Slayer - South Of Heaven
Slayer - Mandatory Suicide
Slayer - Spirit In Black
Slayer - Expendable Youth
Slayer - Dead Skin Mask
Slayer - Seasons In The Abyss
Slayer - Sex. Murder. Art.
Slayer - Supremist
Slayer - Public Display Of Dismemberment
Testament - Over The Wall
Testament - Burnt Offerings
Testament - The New Order
Testament - Sins Of Omission
Testament - Electric Crown
Testament - D.N.R. (Do Not Resuscitate)
Testament - Fall Of Sipledome
Testament - True American Hate

[Vedic / Oriental Metal]

Melechesh - Genies, Sorcerers And Mesopotamian Nights
Melechesh - Of Mercury And Mercury
Melechesh - Triangular Tattvic Fire
Melechesh - Caravans To Ur
Melechesh - Rebirth Of The Nemesis
Melechesh - Ladders To Sumeria
Melechesh - Ghouls Of Nineveh
Melechesh - Grand Gathas Of Baal Sin
Melechesh - Sacred Geometry
Melechesh - Tempest Temper Enlil Enraged
Melechesh - Multiple Truths
Melechesh - Enki - Divine Nature Awoken (ft. Sakis Tolis)
Orphaned Land - Sapari
Rudra - The Ancient One
Rudra - Aryaputra
Rudra - Burnt At The Stakes
Rudra - Rudrapatni
Rudra - Homage To The Seers
Rudra - Justified Aggression
Rudra - Asura Mardhini
Rudra - Brahmavidya: Primordial I (Whole Album)
Rudra - Brahmavidya: Transcendental I (Whole Album)
Rudra - Now, Therefore…
Rudra - Ravenous Theories of Deception
Rudra - Hymns of the Immortal Self
Rudra - Advaita Samrajya

Edit: 8th June- wow this list is outdated as fuck

Meditated @ 11:31 AM

Friday, December 11, 2015

Was Shankara a crypto-Buddhist?

It has been recorded that Adi Shankara was vilified for his Advaita ideology by the Hindus of his time. He was labelled a crypto-Buddhist. I would like to compare and contrast Shankara’s Advaita with Buddhism, focussing on Nagarjuna’s Mahayana for the latter, and investigate the notion of Adi Shankara being a crypto-Buddhist.

Adi Shankara is the Indian philosopher most commonly associated with the teachings of Advaita, one of the three orthodox schools of thought in Hindu philosophy. Many of his works build upon the ideas of the Upanishads, a collection of important literature in Hinduism. There is uncertainty as to when he was actually alive, but many scholars point to the early portion of the eighth century as the time when Adi Shankara was alive. By this time, Buddhism was already thriving, with Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism already establishing schools in India. Shankara was exposed to an education in religious teachings from an early age, by his teacher Govinda, who was in turn supposed to have been taught by Gaudapada[1], the author of the Karikas, a commentary on the Mandukya Upanishad.

Herein, we get our first connection between Shankara’s Advaita and Nagarjuna’s Buddhism; albeit an indirect one. Many of the critiques of the Upanishad in the Karikas are influenced by Nagarjuna’s own methodology and imagery. One example of Gaudapada borrowing from Nagarjuna is the distinction between two orders of truth; ‘paramartha satya’ and ‘samvritti satya’. The concept of maya, which is quintessential to Advaita, is also borrowed from Mahayana. Another very important concept is introduced here; ‘ajativada’ or the concept of non-origination. While not exactly the same as Nagarjuna’s concept of dependent origination, this is also one of the many elements of Advaita that separate it from the other two orthodox schools of Hindu thought; Visistadvaita and Dvaita. ‘Ajativada’ is an important concept in Shankara’s Advaita, and it posits that reality is non-dual, and that nothing truly exists but Brahman. This is the concept that separates Advaita from the other orthodox schools of thought, and it leans closer to Buddhist teachings than it does to Vedantic practices of that time.

Let us first examine the main similarity between Advaita and Mahayana, the rejection of duality. From Shankara’s point of view, Brahman is an entity without any qualities or essences. The world of phenomena as we experience is enshrouded by maya, and thus the idea of duality, or separateness from Brahman is erroneous. In essence, Shankara argues that there is no distinction between subject and object, wherein the former is Atman and the latter is Brahman. For Shankara, we achieve moksha, or liberation (nirvana to most Buddhists) when we realise this non-duality. Shankara demonstrates the concept of maya with his example of the rope and the snake. In a gist, a rope may appear like a snake to an unaware man, which would then cause him anxiety and fear. Upon closer inspection, the rope is revealed in its true form to the scared viewer. This example how a false awareness of reality is immediately dissipated into true consciousness upon attaining knowledge. This means that true knowledge is the knowledge that there is no difference between Atman and Brahman, and knowing this immediately invokes bliss, or satchinananda.

On the other hand, Buddha completely rejects the notion of Atman and Brahman. Instead of a duality, we are shown a concept of emptiness, or sunyata, a concept developed by Nagarjuna. In his book, Mulamadhyamakakarika, he strives to show that there is no substantiality in the perceived world of phenomena. Nagarjuna claims that all things are devoid of substance, or svabhava. In this case, substance is seen defined as a long term or permanent essence. While this may seem irrelevant to Advaita, one may also infer from such a teaching that the observable world is itself an illusion, obscuring us from the truth of sunyata. Both Shankara and Nagarjuna are convinced that there is no distinction between our world and the ultimate truth; one believes that the ultimate truth is a higher reality called Brahman, the other believes that the ultimate truth is emptiness, a quality that is itself empty. This brings to another similarity; nirguna Brahman.

While I have already mentioned that Buddhism rejects the notion of Brahman, it is curious that Brahman is quite differently defined in Shankara’s Advaita. To Shankara, Brahman is nirguna; that is, Brahman is without qualities, or, without essences, if you will. The mainstream definition of Brahman is otherwise saguna Brahman, or qualified Brahman. This is not to say that Shankara rejects saguna Brahman, but he argues that nirguna Brahman is a higher reality than saguna Brahman, by means of sublation. To Shankara, reality has a transitive hierarchy, whereby a higher level of reality sublates a lower level of reality. On this ladder of reality, unqualified Brahman sublates qualified Brahman. In other words, Shankara defines the ultimate reality as unqualified Brahman, which is not very different from Nagarjuna’s sunyata. Both are without essences, only Shankara is more forgiving of the idea of a qualified Brahman. So although the terminology may be different, both philosophers have really agreed on a common idea, that the ultimate reality is without qualities, essences or guna. To Nagarjuna and many Buddhists, this was emptiness. To Shankara, this was everything. Despite being diametrically opposed to each other on the surface, they are essentially describing the same thing. This is the fundamental reason for allegations of Shankara being a crypto-Buddhist.

To further illustrate how similar both ideas are, one can further compare Advaita with Visistadvaita and Dvaita. I have taken the liberty to demonstrate the main similarities and differences in a table:

Mahayana	Advaita	Visistadvaita	Dvaita
No duality	No duality	Duality	Duality
Reality without svabhava	Reality without qualities	Reality with qualities	Reality with qualities
No Brahman	Nirguna Brahman	Saguna Brahman	Saguna Brahman
No Atman	Atman = Brahman	Atman = Brahman	Atman ≠ Brahman

In the first two rows, it’s easy to see that Advaita has more in common with Mahayana than it does with Visistadvaita and Dvaita. Differences occur with the concept of Brahman and Atman, not just between Advaita and Mahayana, but also between Advaita and the other two orthodox schools of Hindu thought. However this stems from the Buddha’s rejection of Atman and Brahman, so discounting those two concepts (or just one, if you are an Advaitin), Advaita really has more in common with Buddhism. Moreover, the absence of duality is the main focus of both religious philosophies. I would argue that the difference, of no Brahman versus the idea of nirguna Brahman, is a problem of perspective rather than philosophical difference. In Nagarjuna’s case, reality is empty and unqualifiable. However, Shankara has tried to view reality objectively; from an outside perspective, and has chosen to see it as one whole rather than one void of emptiness [2]. This is like the classic example of whether one sees the glass as half-full or half empty. In this case, the Mahayanists see a glass that is empty, Shankara sees the glass itself. This also conflates the second difference in relation to Atman with Brahman, where to Nagarjuna there is nothing, while to Shankara it is the same thing.

Now, this isn’t to say that Shankara himself agrees with the allegations of himself being a crypto-Buddhist. Shankara has, in fact, had his own critiques of Buddhism. For one, Shankara is adamant about the existence of Atman, for which he cites the Upanishads. This is a difference between the two whole religions, as illustrated above. Specifically against the Mahayanists, he also argues that the entire world cannot be contradicted except by a principle or content of consciousness which is qualitatively different from it.[3] To further complicate things, Nagarjuna has refused to give a concrete idea of what he sees in the metaphysical nature of the world, in part because he adheres to the Buddha’s silence. His only stance is that such views, answerable or not, do no matter in the grand scheme of things, because a person may attain nirvana without support from such a philosophy.

Yet, the two philosophies are identical in essence to non-dualism, to the point that differences are a matter of linguistic discrepancies and minor variations in ideology. The end of the line is the same for Shankara and Nagarjuna, and despite the differences, Advaita is heavily influenced by Mahayana. As such, I would agree that Shankara was, in fact, a crypto-Buddhist, although I would not go so far as to say that Advaita and Mahayana Buddhism are the same thing.

Citations:
[1] Deutsch, Dalvi (2004) The Essential Vedanta, Chapter 7
[2] Loy, (1982) Enlightenment in Buddhism and Advaita Vedanta: Are Nirvana and Moksha the Same?
[3] Deutsch, Dalvi (2004) The Essential Vedanta, Chapter 6

I wrote this for my GEK2027 module last semester. Got a B, wasn't very satisfied with the grade, but the philosophy students in my class were light years ahead of me and I hadn't written en essay in quite a while. Still, one of my favourite modules in school, even if I felt that it wasn't as religious as I expected.

Meditated @ 11:53 PM

Friday, November 20, 2015

What is Weber’s response to Marx? Discuss the ways in which Weber endeavors to build upon Marx’s work both in his methodological approach and in his critique of capitalist modernity. Of the two, which model of social thought are you more inclined to follow, and why?

The German philosopher Karl Löwith famously remarked that “Marx proposes a therapy while Weber has only a ‘diagnosis’ to offer”. This is a crude but succinct summary of the two men’s ideas- both had different reactions to modern capitalism, even if both had the same underlying belief that modern capitalism undermines individual freedom. For Marx, the industrial world brought about a worrying trend of segregation and inequality, whilst for Weber, this was the inevitable result of rationalization in society. Weber had a diametrically opposite view with Marx on how this capitalism started, and how Marx posited his value judgement as an objective account of the world. Weber also comes to the same negative conclusion about this modernity, because of the iron cage that results.

Weber would have disagreed with the way Marx arrived at the conclusion of capitalism being a product of the bourgeoisie’s exploitation of the proletariat. Weber argues that culture influences the economy- which led to capitalism, the exact opposite of Marx’s ideology (that economy affects culture). Marx suggests that industrialization radically changed the economy with the introduction of machines and factories, thereby changing the perception of the labourer- an individual without the means of production who is forced into a social contract with the bourgeoisie, by trading his wage-hours for survival. Thus, for Marx, the relationship between the bourgeoisie and proletariat is a product of the changes to individual’s economic status brought about by the introduction of machinery, or other means to production. Marx did not see a link between religion and capitalism, even remarking that “religion is the opium of the people”, or a man-made construct to alleviate the difficulties faced by the proletariat in this world. This is diametrically opposite for Weber, who saw the changes of the economy as products of changes in religious thinking, or shifts towards Calvinism. In Weber’s thought process, differences in economic status were due to differences in the individuals’ cultural beliefs. Raised by a Calvinist mother himself, Weber separated European society into Catholicism and Calvinism, saying that the former “places more value on a life which is as secure as possible, even if this should be on a smaller income.” On the other hand, “business leaders and owners of capital… tend to be predominantly Protestant”. This is the basis of his argument in The Protestant Ethic, insisting that divergences from Catholicism brought about a religious link with between Calvinism and economic prosperity by inculcating values of economic efficiency and rationality into their life; the Calvinists constantly live in fear of being accepted by God, and tirelessly work as efficiently as possible as a token of esteem to Him. This led to accumulation of capital among the Calvinists, who continued to find ways to be more productive, and brought their ideas around the world during Reformation and discovery of the Americas. For Weber, this is how capitalist modernism began. Thus, Weber’s theory that cultural differences affected the economy stands in direct contrast with Marx’s theory of capitalism.

Another issue Weber had with Marx was his empathy and his method of sociology. Weber insisted that the sociology (or science, as he refers to in Science As A Vocation) should be bereft of value judgements. This can also be observed from the differing ideas the two men had on the start of capitalist modernity. As one may have already inferred from Marx’s works, Marx has started off from the assumption that capitalism is a negative economic force. Marx immediately antagonizes the upper class, or the bourgeoisie, without being neutral to either party to inquire on the beginnings of capitalist modernity. Weber argues that Marxism is not objective, even if Marx presented his ideas as such (interestingly Marx rejected Hegel’s theory of idealism, imposing his own materialist views on Hegel’s idea of dialectic history). Going further into his argument, Weber sets the limitations of science, saying that it cannot dictate values for individuals, and that the individual sets out his own values. This links back to the previous point on Weber’s fundamental difference of opinion with Marx, as it explains why Weber chose to empathize with the individuals and see their values, not imposing his own value judgement as Marx did with communism. As such, Weber said that Marx’s science is prejudiced and imposing the wrong value judgement on capitalism because it is subjective in its origin.

The irony in this differences of opinions on the inception of capitalist modernity is that Weber does reach the same negative conclusion on capitalism. To understand this, one can compare Weber’s iron cage with Marx’s perception of power in the capitalist modernity. The iron cage is a paradox inherent in Weber’s account of rationalism and depicts the entrapment of individuals into a rigid, bureaucratic system in which the individual is a cog on the wheel, and has no option of leaving the system. This is caused by the irrationality of capitalism- to make more money for the sake of making money. This is paradoxical in nature because capitalism started out on rational ideas; to make money to secure one’s standard of living (or entry to heaven) is considered rational; it was a means towards a religious end. As society rationalizes itself, a bureaucracy is the natural outcome, because the bureaucracy is completely rational and works towards set goals. The stronger the bureaucracy and its influence on the state, the more efficient the state becomes in improving the welfare of its people. However, this is exactly what Marx predicts; that political and economic power would be concentrated in a shrinking group of elite who have the means to exploit the proletariat. Weber also has the same sentiments of such a bureaucracy, referring to it as the iron cage because anyone born into this system must adhere to the rules set by a bureaucracy as per social contract, or be punished by the laws of the state. This leads to a system bereft of individuality, where “specialists [are] without spirit, sensualists [are] without heart; this nullity imagines that it has attained a level of civilization never before achieved.” This would also build upon the idea of alienation in Marxism, which entails that the “worker does not affirm himself in his work but denies himself, feels miserable and unhappy” Weber uses the idea of rationality to explain how we have come to this state of capitalism today, and reaches the same conclusion as Marx did with alienation. The individual thus loses his freedom to an irrational system, and Weber characteristically offers no solution to that.

As mentioned at the start of the essay, Marx offers a solution to the ills of the modern capitalist world- albeit one that hasn’t been successfully acted out, whilst Weber only laments the loss of freedom for the individual in an irrational modernity. I would personally lean towards Marx’s conception of capitalist modernity. The main reason for this is that Marx’s idea of a segregation of two distinct classes is a universal concept that can be constantly reinterpreted to fit different cultures and societies across the world, as shown in world systems theory, which suggests that whole countries now take the title of proletariat against bigger, richer countries that resemble the bourgeoisie. In contrast, Weber’s segregation of Catholics and Protestants is far too narrow and ethnocentric, ignoring factors such as literacy rates and geopolitics. As with Durkheim, Weber uses a static point in history as his evidence, while Marx, while acknowledging the Industrial Revolution as a point of critical juncture in the history of capitalism, bases his ideas on the evolution of history, an idea he borrowed from Hegel. In other words, Marx’s theory is dynamic in its nature, and does not confine itself to a certain country or specific era. This is because Marx bases his theory on economy, or power, as the cause, and its impact on culture, as the effect. Unlike culture, the dynamics of power and economics are universal and hard to find fault with. Weber’s basis on culture, ironically leads to many questions regarding how he defined culture and how he could prove that all Protestants adhered to the same doctrine. Perhaps this is why Marx has an entire school of thought ascribed to his philosophy, while Weber’s most significant contribution to the world is his concept of the iron cage.

The last of my short essays for SC3101. Got an A- even though I spent a lot less time on this. It's been a strangely pleasant journey on this module, with me getting some of my best grades in essays for a discipline I generally disagree with. I did, however, learn about Marx for the first time and he's been such a huge influence on the way I currently think about the world and politics. And at least the teachers for this module are clear on their rubrics for essays, unlike the flimsy, whimsical grades I get for EU1101E. Fuck you, History department.

Meditated @ 11:11 AM

Thursday, October 29, 2015

2. Compare Durkheim’s understanding of the human individual to Marx’s. In what ways do they conflict, and in what ways might they complement each other? Whose approach do you find more compelling, and why?

Durkheim and Marx are both similar in that they view the individual as part of a larger, single collective; society. Both of them adopted a structuralist approach to analyse society and its individuals. However, the similarities end there; while Durkheim saw the individual as a mere cell in an organism (mechanical or organic), Marx placed a lot of emphasis on the individual. Where Durkheim saw individuals acquiescing to social norms and society moving progressively as a collective whole, Marx saw a regression in humanity as society moves towards its inevitable class war. Thus, both sociologists came to very different conclusions despite starting off on relatively similar footing.

To understand the similarities in both thinkers, it would be easier to see what they stood against; the Cartesian self. Before the Industrial Revolution, French philosopher René Descartes saw the individual as a completely rational, transcendental figure that is not circumspect to external factors, a rhetoric he summarized in his line, “I think, therefore I am”. This was a sentiment that gained popularity in the age of Enlightenment and continued to influence people during the Industrial Revolution. On this front, both Marx and Durkheim are in complete agreement that the individual is not an autonomous figure, but rather a product of his society. Where Descartes saw introspection as a way of understanding the individual (though he would consequently conclude that self-understanding is impossible), Marx and Durkheim saw a way to understand the individual, by understanding the external environment around him. This approach is a structuralist one, and both see individuals a component of society, instead of a group of individuals bound together with little to no connection of each other’s consciousness. Durkheim saw the individual’s consciousness as part of the collective, and that social norms shape the individual’s thoughts. In fact, he saw the individual as a reflection of society’s progress. Similarly, Marx saw the individual as a “social being” in his natural state. Both studied the cumulative impact of society rather than individualistic theories to explore the individual’s role. This however, leads to their main differences.

Durkheim viewed the individual with a hint of negativity, and was pessimistic about individualistic notions. This can be seen in his book, ‘Suicide’, where he insinuates that deviance from the norm is harmful for the individual. Durkheim thinks an individual is incapable of controlling his own desires, arguing that “our capacity for feeling is in itself an insatiable and bottomless abyss” and that “the more one has, the more one wants, since satisfactions received only stimulate instead of filling needs”. Durkheim insists that such desires are unhealthy and that an external force is required to step in to regulate this individual’s desires. In this case, the external force is society, as it is “the only moral power superior to the individual”. A lack of regulation from society may lead to ‘anomie’ or deviance from the norm, and Durkheim attributed this to one of the four types of suicide in his book. Durkheim places the society before the interests of the individual, and suggests that an individual will be selfish and greedy in the absence of a regulatory figure.

On the other hand, Marx saw the positivity in an individual shaped by his desire. Marx opined that human individuals are different from animals in that they “produce their [own] means of subsistence” and “indirectly producing their actual material life”. In other words, Marx, while acknowledging that the individual is not confined to his abstract self, insists that mankind is in the process of evolving, that he is ‘human becoming’. It is important to note that Marx saw individuals in two different parts; one as the architect of his existence, and one as part of a collective. Again, this is in contrast with Durkheim, because he suggested that the individual is built by the social collective alone. Marx asserts that “the nature of individuals thus depends on the material conditions determining their production”. He focuses on the tangible, material objects around the individual, instead of the ideals that Durkheim saw in the form of religion, laws and beliefs. In the language of Durkheim’s ‘Suicide’, Marx would have seen no issue in a society with little regulation or integration, as long as these are not needed for the individual to provide for his own subsistence. On the other side of the fence, Durkheim would think that an individual simply making his own material mark on the world without agreeing to collective thought was unhealthy for both the individual and the society. Marx saw the social collective as the root of the crisis in modern society, while Durkheim would argue that it’s the lack of integration or regulation, or a society with less than healthy relations that leads to general unhappiness in the modern world. To put it shortly, Marx believed that society would move towards conflict, whilst Durkheim believed that society would move towards consensus. This is why their views of the individual are polar opposites of each other despite agreeing that the individual is shaped by external factors.

Ironically, individualism has its place in Durkheim’s division of labour; as society moves towards a more complex division of labour, Durkheim is convinced that there will be increased interdependence and hence better integration within society. This would mean that more individuals are inspired to make their own mark on the world with their own products that are unique to them. The individual is hence integral to society even if he does not play a similar role to other members of society, because he is not easily replaceable. However, there exists a form of labour that is based on an individual’s economic or power status. This is an anomic division of labour, which he describes as “although very highly developed, result[s] in a very imperfect integration”, where workers are forced to do repetitive work without knowing or understanding their significance to the rest of society, thus separating them from society and reducing solidarity. This would also tie in to Marx’s concept of alienation, and Marx would also want for individuals to be able to make their own specialized products as opposed to homogenous products for multi-national corporations. When an individual is forced to do repetitive work, the “worker does not affirm himself in his work but denies himself, feels miserable and unhappy”. It can be said that Durkheim is directly referring to Marx himself on this front, and we see the marriage of both men’s ideologies briefly in anomic division of labour in relation to alienation. However, this isn’t necessarily a reconciliation, as Durkheim feels that in his ideal society, useless jobs would be abolished and if jobs still feel repetitive to the individual, the employer would simply have to tell the employee about his place in society, and why he is important. Marx would have seen this as suppression of class consciousness on the individual.

In any case, I find Marx’s view of the individual far more compelling than Durkheim’s. Marx’s interpretation of the individual transcends time and space and continues to stay relevant even in the post-modern world. This is because Marx saw the individual in relation to the material world as opposed to abstract ideals. Marx acknowledged the continued evolution of humanity through different periods, while Durkheim could only base his theories on a limited scope of historical data. Marx did not negate the consciousness of the individual, and correctly predicted the growing unhappiness and resentment in individuals as capitalism grew and supressed his desires and needs.

In contrast, Durkheim’s view of the individual was unrealistic, as seen in his assumption that “the division of labour produces solidarity only if it is spontaneous and in proportion as it is spontaneous”. His argument about individuals willing to work towards the collective good is flawed because he ignores the lack of means to subsistence on the workers’ end. In the real world, individuals have to do a job because they are forced into it and they would starve without the money. Durkheim incorrectly sees integration as a factor of social solidarity instead of economic predisposition. Durkheim’s dismissal of deviant behaviour as anomic is also tragically myopic, since ideals can change over time. Slavery and racism were seen as social norms in the past, but they are outlawed in the modern world, without necessarily tearing apart the solidarity of the country. It makes even less sense today, with the rise of the internet and social media drawing separate individuals from different countries and different time zones who may experience solidarity in their online presence. A group of homosexuals can experience this on an online chat group even if it’s deviant behaviour in their country or social setting. In comparing societies with one another, as opposed to intra-social classes as Marx did, Durkheim severely underestimates the importance of the individuals’ desires and needs and incorrectly assumes that society as a whole can bring about progress and positive change to the individual.

Not too bad. Got an A- for this without much effort.

Meditated @ 10:26 PM