From Hell: Cradle of Filth & Satyricon

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THE STANDARD IMAGE of black-metal musicians is one of misanthropic loners, hateful humans and Satan-and-noise-worshiping miscreants.

So, when Cradle of Filth singer Dani Filth signed off the phone with a peppy, "Cheerio, bye!" it merely solidified what the previous 25 minutes indicated: The charismatic rocker is a well-adjusted lad from Suffolk, England — and a happily married father of a 10-year-old daughter — who traffics in the darker side of the arts in the same way Clive Barker does when crafting a horror novel.

Cradle of Filth's latest album, "Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder" (Roadrunner), is a concept record based on the life of Gilles de Rais: 15th-century distinguished nobleman, wealthy benefactor, companion-in-arms with Joan of Arc, war hero and prolific serial killer.

"He was kind of an entrepreneur and playboy of his time," Filth said, "and after Joan's death he felt like he had gone as close to God as he could go. He venerated her by taking a massive tour production around a lot of France, paying for the food and drink and hospitality for the whole township."

But like a junkie chasing the next perfect fix, de Rais could never attain the spiritual heights that Saint Joan of Arc inspired in him, so he turned away from the light in hopes of finding a new high in the dark.

"After being basically the richest man in Western Europe at the time, his fortunes decreased rather rapidly," Filth said. "He was conned by beautiful alchemists, who kind of fleeced him. Then he sought the philosopher's stone to try and replenish his coffers by the transmutation of base metals into gold, and through that he started trafficking in demons. ... All sorts of horrors went on."

"Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder" is Cradle of Filth's second full-on concept record, and it's a format that suits the group's all-encompassing vision.

"Theatrically hasn't overwritten any other sensibilities," Filth said, "it's just that we try to pursue every facet of our art. We try to give 100 percent to lyricism, the artwork, videos. There's only about eight or nine strings that bands can actually pull, so we try to pull all of them to the best of our abilities."

Musically, "Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder" is one of Cradle of Filth's most sprawling and intense, filled with ominous voice-overs (courtesy of Doug Bradley, aka Pinhead from the "Hellraiser" movies) and rich with heavy guitar riffs, pulverizing blast beats, spooky atmospherics and Filth's seething style of singing. But it's also strikingly accessible for being so extreme.

The same can be said of Satyricon's latest, "The Age of Nero" (Koch). As with Cradle of Filth, this Oslo, Norway-based band has been around since the early 1990s tabloid days of black metal — when church burnings and murders were de rigueur — but the core duo of singer-guitarist Satyr and drummer Frost have persevered to develop an artistic vision that is as mature and refined as it is intense.

"I feel that Satyricon has been taking a very different turn than a lot of bands that have been around [since the birth of black metal]," Frost said. "Obviously, on the later albums we've brought some rock 'n' roll spirit and some rock 'n' roll structures to our music — not necessarily to all the music, but to substantial portions of it."

In fact, "Black Crow on a Tombstone," the first single from "Nero," is Satyricon's catchiest song to date — a swaggering, brooding blend of black-metal power and rock 'n' roll swing that's stripped down like a skeleton and as tight as a casket.

"Behind every song is a specific idea that we try to cultivate and purify to the largest extent possible," Frost said. "No matter how good we feel a theme might be, if it doesn't really belong in a song or have a good function in a song, we'll just take it out. We've been extremely strict on this album as far as structure goes."

While Satyricon and Cradle of Filth approach black metal from very different angles, as does the classically leaning Greek group Septic Flesh, combining the trio for a package tour makes perfect sense because of a common denominator: a professional dedication to black metal as an art form, not a juvenile diversion dedicated to cheap shocks.

"I give 100 percent every single night, no exceptions," Frost said. "All three bands have a strong musical integrity. In one night you can see three very different but also very strong takes on extreme metal music."

And with that, Frost said goodbye: "You have a pleasant day now."

» Ram's Head Live, 20 Market Place, Baltimore, Md.; Cradle of Filth, Satyricon, Septic Flesh, Thu., Feb. 26, 8 p.m., $20; 410-244-8854.
» Jaxx, 6355 Rolling Rd., Springfield, Va.; Satyricon with 1349, Apothys, Cult of Dischordia, Inverted Trifixiion, Sun., March 1, 5:30 p.m., $20; 703-569-5940.

» Read our full interview with Cradle of Filth's Dani Filth here.

» Read our full interview with Satyricon's Frost here.