Beyond The Gates Festival in Bergen, Norway and the Nordic Embassies in Berlin, Germany, team up & curate the exhibition, Der harte Norden – Heavy Metal aus den Nordischen Ländern. The exhibition can be visited now until September 29.

The Nordic metal scene is known all over the world. What was once an underground phenomenon has become a gigantic industry. Extreme metal bands are now welcomed into the most respected cultural institutions and are awarded prizes by governments.

It has been an astonishing transformation. This is a scene that was created in the shadows, by teenagers for teenagers, with no ambition of reaching a wider audience. Young enthusiasts sending demo tapes across the world, making cut-and-paste fanzines. Building a community via handwritten letters, fueled by the pure joy of pushing boundaries, both sonic and aesthetic.

Extreme metal is not meant to be easy to digest. This is music created in opposition; a rebellion against a gray and forbidding society, the mundane and, in some cases, religion. It is an exploration of the darker side of humanity. It is meant to shake you to the core, to challenge you and give you strength. At times the line between provocation and action has been crossed, resulting in serious crimes.

This exhibition focuses on the extreme scenes that mainly evolved in the Nordics; death metal and black metal. The bands hail from different countries and backgrounds, but they are united by a strong passion that is expressed through music. Some were inspired by horror movies, others by Norse mythology or an interest in the occult and Satanism. Some just wanted to play impossibly fast.

This is how extreme metal looks, feels and sounds. Welcome to Der harte Norden!

Curated by Ika Johannesson and co-curators Silje Wergeland and Torgrim Øyre from Beyond the Gates Festival. Kindly supported by the Nordic Council of Ministers.

More information can be found here.