Exotic Black Metal - BM gone too far?

[scourge]

I'm convinced. Tolerance and inclusiveness is hip. It's all just individual taste. Since everyone is equal, who is anyone to try to impose value?

[Cargést]

My reason for bringing up Rudra was one of unifying "European" and "Vedic" art.  Probably implausible, but certainly not impossible.

Generally, though, there isn't anything of worth outside of Europe when it comes to Black Metal, especially of the more refined style.

[Humanicide]

I don't find that exotic/novelty is necessarily bad, Sigh had a few hits before their continuity of misses, Xibalba had exotic undertones. I would go as far as to call Emperor - ITNE and forward as novelty. 

You're right. Novelty isn't a bad thing, so long as it does not wholly consume the project it is a part of. When it does, you have stuff like nu-metal and Dimmu Borgir.

[Conservationist]

My reason for bringing up Rudra was one of unifying "European" and "Vedic" art.

Rudra doesn't strike me as a novelty band. They're straight down the middle regarding songwriting and their topics aren't that far from what Nile, Suffocation, or even Morbid Angel picked up on. The Vedic filter has shown up before without people whining, most notably on Cynic's first album. So even though they're from Singapore (I think that's next to France) they're not really exotic.

If anything, the most exotic music is coming from North America these days:

• True trailer park black metal
• Occult methamphetamine black grind
• Dipsomaniac eccentricist doom
• Post-op transsexual power metal
• Ghetto bangin' death metal

[aquarius]

Remember, art must speak simultaneously about and to a given cultural audience; therein is its value as a means of transmission of heritage maintained. Without such cultural context, it ceases to have meaning.

Yes. A healthy culture can be influenced by other cultures, but when it tries to emulate the other culture its sense of context has become corrupt. That's why non-european bands playing in the northern european style will never surpass novelty; the artform cannot have the same meaning for those who haven't inherited the last couple of centuries of european history.

[Conservationist]

That's why non-european bands playing in the northern european style will never surpass novelty; the artform cannot have the same meaning for those who haven't inherited the last couple of centuries of european history.

I feel the same way about rock music. I'm not a hippie, so I can't partake in it.