THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL / The Murder of Jesus the Jew (2010)

The Meads out-Meaded themselves on TMoJtJ. It’s a concept piece about the resurrected one with an accompanying 6000 word 'codex' written by Metatron explaining what each song is about and its place in the order of things (HERE).
Musically, it's experimental Black Metal that isn't afraid to embrace bat-shit crazy if it's what's needed to get the job done. The scope of what they attempted is immense. If they'd allowed a more commercially acceptable production, the album could've appealed to more people, but that would've compromised the vision.

Songs of Note: Apocalypse of Lazarus; Addicted to God

4 shits on the shoe of Lucifer out of 5

MAYHEM / Freezing Moon | THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL / Jihad (2002)

A split release between one of Oslo's finest, Mayhem, and the less exotic locales of Hertfordshire's oddest, The Meads of Asphodel. It's a peculiar mix of styles. I can't imagine how it ever came to be; Black Metal purists may hate the experimental nature of The Meads (especially their Hawkwind cover). It's also uneven. TMoA added six tracks, while Mayhem added only two, both of which are classic-era live rehearsals from '91 with Dead on vocals.

Songs of Note: TMoA: The Grisly Din of Killing Steel / Mayhem: Freezing Moon

3½ oddities out of 5

THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL / In the Name of God, Welcome to Planet Genocide (2006)

A lengthy E.P. from TMoA. The artwork gives the impression that it'll sound like CRASS, but it doesn't, it sounds like TMoA, which is to say it sounds like it was recorded in a cardboard box with a group of musicians that know the music speaks for itself and to hell with production. It's a concept E.P. about... well, you'll figure it out. It has a Black Metal-Eastern-Gothic-Jazz-Doom-Dance-Bitofeverything sound that takes many listens to appreciate fully. There's even a ballad; I shit you not.
They throw in a Discharge cover medley for the hell of it, even though it has nothing to do with the concept. The last track is a barrel of fun.

Songs of Note: The Man Who Killed for God; A Baptism in the Warm Piss of Slaughtered Children

3½ stories you won't hear in church out of 5

THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL / The Excommunication of Christ (2001)

TMoA are an experimental Black Metal band with a fascination for all things medieval. They're British, which is very obvious when you hear the music. They also have a sense of humour and a flair for the dramatic.
I followed the guys from their demo days and feel that, while their first major label release, The Excommunication of Christ, is a great album, it's the early songs (some included herein), that really define them. Expect keyboards, an eastern influence and some religiously esoteric allusions in the lyrics.

Songs of Note: Weeping Tears of Angel Light; Jezebel and the Philistines

3½ pitchforks and chain mail out of 5