Chinese metal band taps ancient poets, occult to ride nationalist wave
You’d need a dictionary to decipher the lyrics of Bloodfire, frontman of Zuriaake, or Lake of Buried Corpses, with their references to nobility, virtue and horror, but that doesn’t faze Chinese fans of the black metal veterans
Screaming lyrics inspired by Chinese poetry like a demon bursting from the depths of hell, the black-clad singer raises a white chalice above his bamboo hat as fog envelops the stage.
Powered by cacophonous guitars and drums, the black metal band Zuriaake dips into the tenebrous depths of ancient Chinese culture to produce a unique blend of East and West.
Though the breed of occult darkness their music celebrates is unwelcome by authorities, the group are enjoying a new surge of popularity among listeners in China seeking music that reflects their growing national pride.
“Out in the land of bones, the hellfire lingers with shimmering luminance,” the singer known as “Bloodfire” howls at a crowd of hundreds in Beijing, silhouetted against a projected backdrop of an eerie black-and-white forest.
His shrieking lyrics are written in a dense style of ancient poetry that even those able to make out the words of his throat-raking rasp would need a dictionary to decipher.
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Zuriaake, formed in 1998, are one of China’s longest-running metal bands. Their name is an invented Chinglish portmanteau meaning “lake of buried corpses”. Songs such as Desolated Mountain and Whispering Woods get audiences headbanging to subtle verses packed with dark nature imagery.