Septicflesh vs. Immortal - Extreme Metal Olympics

Greece and Norway are two meccas for extreme metal, churning out some of the genre's most timeless records. Septicflesh (Greece) have dominated after reuniting, releasing the awe-inspiring The Great Mass. It will be doing battle with the coldest of all black metal acts, Norway's Immortal and their Sons of Northern Darkness album.

Greek metal is held in high regard as the Hellenic scene has churned out some of the best, albeit underrated, gems in the expansive genre. Septicflesh re-upped the country’s status in 2011, delivering the nightmarish The Great Mass. Guitarist and principle songwriter Christos Antoniou composed the orchestral elements which were performed by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. These arrangements were woven in and out, over and under Septicflesh’s crushing, downtuned rhythms and Seth Siro Anton’s purely demonic bellowing.

Fans are divided on Immortal’s catalog, some preferring the daunting speed and bleak offerings in the early incarnation of the band. Others tout Sons of Northern Darkness as arguably the Norwegians’ best, boasting anthemic songs with traditional structure and ever-catchy riffs from croaking frontman Abbath. “Tyrants,” “In My Kingdom Cold” the title track and riveting opener “One By One” are hard to best.

Which album will move on to the Quarterfinals of the Extreme Metal Olympics? Vote for either Septicflesh's The Great Mass or Immortal's Sons of Northern Darkness in the poll below and check out a song from each album beneath the poll if you're unfamiliar.

(This poll will end on Thursday, Aug. 11, at 9AM ET. Fans are able to vote once per hour, so keep coming back to make sure your favorite song wins!)

Next: Death vs. Psycroptic

Septicflesh, "The Vampire From Nazareth"

Immortal, "One By One"

Extreme Metal Olympics Matchups