Bathory "The Return..."

The Return…… (full title The Return of the Darkness and Evil) is the second studio album by Swedish extreme metal band Bathory. It was released on vinyl on 27 May 1985, through Combat Records.

Quorthon explained the album title as such:

We wanted people to just read out The Return…… – as in a second album or a follow-up – and then flip the album over to look for a tracking list. Not finding one, what they got was this apocalyptic poem with the song titles woven into it. Only after listening through the album to the end would you get the full title of the album, The Return of the Darkness and Evil.

In various interviews, Fenriz of Darkthrone praised the album and defined it as "the essence of black metal".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Quorthon.

Side 'Darkness'

1. "Revelation of Doom" 3:27
2. "Total Destruction" 3:50
3. "Born for Burning" 5:13
4. "The Wind of Mayhem" 3:13
5. "Bestial Lust (Bitch)" 2:41

Side 'Evil'

1. "Possessed" 2:42
2. "The Rite of Darkness" 2:05
3. "Reap of Evil" 3:28
4. "Son of the Damned" 2:48
5. "Sadist (Tormentor)" 3:00
6. "The Return of the Darkness and Evil" 3:49
7. "Outro" 0:25

Total length: 36:41

The 2003 remastered edition combines tracks 1 and 2, and tracks 7 and 8, as well as adds the final Outro track.

 

1st press with white text and logo. Released with printed inner sleeve.

Catalog# BMLP 666-2 on spine. 

Catalog# BMLP 666-II on back of sleeve.

Trivia:

"Born for Burning" was one of the very first original Bathory songs ever written, although initially its title was “Live in Sin” (a.k.a. “Live and Die in Sin”). It had different lyrics and was played at slower tempo in the early days.

In CD reissues beginning from 1991 the last 26 seconds of "The Return of Darkness and Evil" is made into a separate track, an untitled outro.

Recording information:

Recorded and mixed at Electra Studio, Stockholm, Sweden in February 1985.

All titles published on the Black Mark label. 

Direct metal mastered at Sonet Studio, Stockholm, Sweden.