Here is a phrase you will never hear in connection with
Gorgoroth
: symphonic black metal. While symphonic black metal bands have used keyboards extensively and offered a more melodic, intricate, and elaborate vision of black metal,
has always thrived on toughness and rawness. They favored that approach in the late '90s, and they certainly favored that approach when they recorded their first official full-length album,
Pentagram
, back in early 1994. Originally released by
Embassy Productions
in 1994,
has been reissued by
Malicious
in 1996,
Century Black
in 1999,
Season of Mist
and
Agonia
in 2005,
Back on Black
in 2006, and
Regain
in 2007 -- and every time
gets reissued, people are reminded of how stubbornly uncompromising
has been. There have been many different
lineups along the way, but regardless of who was on board,
's intensity has not been compromised. On
, one hears an early
lineup consisting of
Hat
on lead vocals,
Infernus
on guitar,
Tomas Thormodsaeter Haugen
, aka
Samoth
(of
Emperor
Zyklon
fame), on bass, and
Goat Pervertor
on drums. That was not
's very first lineup (
Kjettar
played bass on
's 1993 demo
A Sorcery Written in Blood
), but it was definitely an early lineup -- and it was a lineup that really identified with the raw, primal, bare-bones nature of old-school punk. In fact, it is impossible to listen to
and not be reminded of black metal's punk, hardcore, and thrash metal roots. Many of
's subsequent albums were better produced than
, but even so, this was an exciting debut for the Norwegian black metal combo. ~ Alex Henderson