Search - Gorgoroth :: Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam

(4.5 stars) The real deal

A. Stutheit | Denver, CO USA | 01/14/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"How many times have you - an extreme metal fan - bought a new C.D. and listened to it with anticipation only to discover you've already heard the album a countless number of times before? Considering how much really unoriginal music there is in the world today, it's safe to say that that has probably happened to you at least a few times. However, you may have also noticed that some unoriginal albums are better than others, and you can even have so much fun listening to an album that you forget how many times you've already heard it. The reason for this is simple: Musical delivery counts for almost everything.



Case in point: Norwegian black metal quartet Gorgoroth. Their seventh full length, last year's "Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam," breaks absolutely no new ground for the band or the genre, but the fact is it rocks incredibly hard, energetically, and convincingly, so it's nearly impossible for one to care if it isn't particularly unique.



These eight compositions are the real deal, folks: evil black metal through and through. And even though there are more than a few bands playing this type of music nowadays, Gorgoroth can definitely still do it better than most. Almost nobody even comes close to these masters for successfully combining crushing heaviness, quality songwriting, impeccable musicianship, and steadfast consistency. Plus, "Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam" features some nice, meticulous textures and dynamics, so it is substantially hookier and easier to digest, and less predictable and one-dimensional than the typical black metal release.



Frost (A.K.A. Kjetil-Vidar Haraldstad), the seminal black metal skinsman who is world-renowned for his godly talent, appears here on his first Gorgoroth album since he left the band in 1996. He makes his presence known right away, too, by launching into a barrage of persistent, smashing, octo-limbed, carnage-inducing blast beats on the fierce set opener "Wound Upon Wound." Most of the rest of these songs are equally as brutal, but they're interspersed with restrained, more melodic numbers so the disc doesn't become monotonous. For instance, after the next track, "Carving a Giant," grinds to a close, "God Seed (Twilight of the Idols)," storms onto the scene with breakneck speed, and Gaahl's hideous, retching vocals go to battle against Frost's walloping trapkit and Infernus' scalding, revved-up guitar leads. Other highlights include the crunching, ultra-doomy guitars and melodic (almost choral) backing vocals on the bone-chilling "Sign of an Open Eyes," Frost's bottom-heavy, jackhammer double bass kicks that anchor "White Seed," the ridiculously fast blasts, machine gun riffs, and softly strummed outro of "Exit," and "Untamed Forces," which contrasts almost grindcore-worthy brutality (i.e. great, massive riffs, smoking leads, busy, slamming drums, bludgeoning rhythms, attack-the-jugular tempos, and robotic vocals) with an astonishingly slow part where (what sounds like) acoustic guitars enter the picture!



If the record loses any points for anything, it's for being so short (since it's only 31 minutes long, and the listener feels like they need another song or two.) That aside, though, all black/extreme metal fans who don't need innovation in music to enjoy it will find it extremely hard not to be very satisfied with "Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam.""

Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam

Amy | outer space | 05/16/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"For this release, the line-up consisted of Gaahl, Infernus, King, and Frost. After some of the weird, experimental songs on Incipit Satan and the not-entirely consistent songwriting quality on Twilight of the Idols, this feels like a real return to form, despite the band's lineup changes. You can't expect another Pentagram or Under the Sign of Hell with mostly different members, but what this proves is that they can write some very good Black Metal and keep the same sort of majestic Gorgoroth atmosphere. I liked parts of Incipit Satan, but there were moments on that album that didn't exactly feel like a Gorgoroth album. That's not the case here.



"Wound upon Wound" starts off the CD at a breakneck speed and never lets up, giving us a taste of things to come. "Carving a Giant" has some nice tempo changes and Gaahl is sounding good here, this is probably one of the catchier and more memorable Gorgoroth songs ever. "God Seed (Twilight of the Idols)" is probably my favorite track on this album, it has some great guitar parts and despite slower sections, the sense of urgency and adrenaline never really lets up, due in no small part to Frost's drumming. "Sign of an Open Eye" slows things down a bit and the words are spoken,it has a nice a creepy atmosphere and breaks up the pace of the album a bit. "Prosperity and Beauty" is another of the album's highlights and a good way to end the album.



I like albums I can listen to from beginning to end without skipping anything, and this is one such album. The musicianship and songwriting quality is consistent. The tempo of the song is varied enough to add interest without them doing anything too strange or experimental here, they keep things heavy and suitably evil-sounding throughout, it's just quality Gorgoroth material the whole way through. The main problem is that, at just over half an hour, it feels too short."