Showing posts with label Gorgoroth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gorgoroth. Show all posts

Thursday, October 16, 2025

Interview Night in Gales (english)

“And then we stood in front of all these unhappy, ultra-angry people, who were now even angrier because their heroes hadn't come and instead they were being served a complete untrue melodic death metal band.”

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Night in Gales, which the band will celebrate with an anniversary concert in November. The band's first release, the “Sylphlike” EP, will also be performed live in its entirety, as it has been completely re-recorded and will be released soon. So there are several good reasons to speak with guitarist and founding member Jens Basten. He has a lot to say, and in addition to the latest news, he also digs deep into the archives to tell old (tour) stories.  These include the band's old hometown of Voerde, the numerous side projects and other bands of Night in Gales, musicians, bad business decisions, and militant vegan metalcore. But read for yourself...

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Let's start the interview with an event that took place a long time ago: September 20, 1998, Live Music Hall Cologne. Dismember, Gorgoroth, Children of Bodom, Agathodaimon, and Raise Hell are scheduled to play there as part of a Nuclear Blast festival. Suddenly, a promoter steps onto the stage and tells the audience that Gorgoroth has canceled (I can't remember the reason; there were no internet announcements back then) and that Night in Gales will be stepping in as a last-minute replacement. The whole hall seems to be angry (including me, haha), everyone was waiting for the ultra-evil Gorgoroth and then you came along with your contrasting melodic death metal. Do you remember? How did you experience it as a band? Did you play again later instead of Gorgoroth? I think I read something about that.

Yes, it was actually a show on the Nuclear Blast Festival tour. Gorgoroth had canceled at short notice and we were booked in at the last minute to fill the slot for Nuclear Blast. But the fact that we were then announced as the replacement for Gorgoroth at the evening box office and by the promoters was, of course, kind of shitty. It was a bizarre situation overall, because they were totally cult in the black metal scene at the time due to the hype surrounding their image, but we couldn't take it seriously at all. And then we stood in front of all these unhappy, ultra-angry people, who were now even angrier because their heroes weren't coming and instead they were being served a complete untrue melodic death metal band. Well, as always, we still had fun, as far as I can remember. We took everything in stride. Shortly after the release of “Nailwork,” we went on a three-week European tour with Gorgoroth, haha. That was a really great time back then. In addition to us, the people and crews from Old Mans Child, Krisiun, Soulreaper, and Myrkskog were also romping around in two buses. Many of the Norwegians had the sunburn of their lives after a day off and a corresponding beach party in St. Tropez and wore cooling towels on their heads during the soundcheck the next day.

Sunday, October 12, 2025

Interview Night in Gales (deutsch)

"Und dann standen wir vor den ganzen unglücklichen ultrabösen Menschen, die jetzt noch böser waren weil ihre Helden nicht kamen und  sie stattdessen nun sogar eine komplette untrue Melodic Death Metal Band serviert bekamen."

Die Geburtsstunde von Night in Gales jährt sich dieses Jahr nun bereits zum 30. Mal, was die Band im November mit einem Jubiläumskonzert zelebrieren wird. Dort wird ebenso die erste Veröffentlichung der Band, die "Sylphlike" EP komplett live dargeboten, so wurde diese ja auch komplett neu aufgenommen und wird demnächst veröffentlicht. Es gibt also mehrere gute Gründe, Gitarrist und Gründungsmitglied Jens Basten auf den Zahn zu fühlen. Dieser hat einiges zu erzählen, und neben dem tagesaktuellen Geschehen kramt er auch ganz tief in der Kiste, um alte (Tour-) Geschichten zu erzählen.  Dabei geht es auch um die alte Heimatstadt der Band, Voerde, die zahlreichen Nebenprojekte und weitere Bands der Night in Gales - Musiker, falsche Businessentscheidungen und militant-veganen Metalcore. Doch lest selbst...

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Fangen wir doch mal das Interview mit einem lange zurückliegenden Ereignis an: 20.09.1998, Live Music Hall Köln. Dort spielen  bzw. sollen im Rahmen eines Nuclear Blast Festivals Dismember, Gorgoroth, Children of Bodom, Agathodaimon und Raise Hell spielen. Plötzlich tritt ein Promoter auf die Bühne, und berichtet dem Publikum, dass Gorgoroth ausfallen (der Grund ist mir entfallen; Internet-Ankündigungen gab es damals ja noch nicht) und dafür kurzzeitig Night in Gales als Ersatz einspringen. Die ganze Halle scheint wütend zu sein (inklusive mir, haha), alle warteten auf die ultrabösen Gorgoroth und dann kamt ihr mit eurem dazu im Kontrast  stehendem  Melo-Death. Erinnerst Du dich noch? Wie habt ihr als Band das erlebt? Habt ihr später auch noch mal mit anstelle von für Gorgoroth gespielt, ich meine entsprechendes gelesen zu haben?

Ja, das war tatsächlich eine Show der Nuclear Blast Festival - Tour. Gorgoroth waren kurzfristig ausgefallen und wir zum Füllen des Slots von Nuclear Blast kurzerhand draufgebucht worden. Dass wir dann aber als Ersatz für Gorgoroth auch an der Abendkasse und durch Ansagen der Promoter angekündigt wurden, war natürlich  irgendwie Kacke. Das war insgesamt schon eine skurrile Situation, denn die waren durch den Image-Hype damals total Kult in der BM-Szene, wir konnten das jedoch überhaupt nicht ernst nehmen. Und dann standen wir vor den ganzen unglücklichen ultrabösen Menschen, die jetzt noch böser waren weil ihre Helden nicht kamen und  sie stattdessen nun sogar eine komplette untrue Melodic Death Metal Band serviert bekamen. Naja, wir hatten wie immer trotzdem Spaß, meine ich mich zu erinnern. Wir haben alles mitgenommen. Zur Veröffentlichung von "Nailwork" waren wir dann wenig später mit Gorgoroth auch noch drei Wochen auf gemeinsamer Europatour, haha. Das war echt eine super Sause damals. In zwei Bussen tummelten sich außer uns noch die Leute und Crews von Old Mans Child, Krisiun, Soulreaper und Myrkskog. Viele der Norweger hatten den Sonnenbrand ihres Lebens nach einem Day Off und entsprechender Beach-Party bei St. Tropez und trugen beim Soundcheck am nächsten Tag kühlende Handtücher auf den Köpfen.

Tuesday, February 11, 2025

REVIEW TOTAL HATE "FORTHCOMING AGE OF THE REAPER"


Total Hate from the beautiful city of Nuremberg - which, among others, have personal overlaps with the "predecessor band" Seeds of Hate (maybe not quite right, I always felt that way), the awesome Deathronation (if something came along again, that would be great...) and the now also quite well-known Goath -  honored us at the end of last year with their already sixth album called "Forthcoming Age of the Reaper" via War Anthem Records, after the predecessor "Marching towards Humanicide" was released just 21 months before the current work. In this case, quality is definitely not at the expense of quality, friends of traditional black metal sounds will hardly find anything better at the moment. The usual suspects can be mentioned here as name droppers, so anyone who counts bands like Gorgoroth, Carpathian Forest, Urgehal, Armagedda, Craft, Graven, Horna or old Darkthrone among their favorites will be perfectly served here.

Thursday, September 1, 2022

INTERVIEW TRINITAS

"Black metal at that time was simply pure rebellion and an attitude towards life. And this fire, which was still burning in the respective protagonists back then, was also reflected on their albums." 

Recently I got the information that black metal trio Trinitas will be releasing their first album via Ván Records, having already released a first sign of life (or better sign of death?) in 2019 in the form of an EP. The band, which consists of veterans of the German and Swedish scene, let's mention former and current bands like Dark Fortress, Gràb, Desaster, Sodom, Asphyx, Naglfar, Bewitched or Throne of Ahaz, is completely dedicated to traditional black metal. Vocalist Azathoth answered my questions.

Thursday, April 28, 2022

REVIEW MORTUUS INFRADAEMONI "INMORTUOS SUM"

These days I more or less got to know that Mortuus Infradaemoni have released a new, third album. Honestly, after the two previous albums from 2007 and 2009, I had long suspected the band in the eternal hunting grounds, so I was all the more pleased that the band still exists.

The new album called "Inmortuos sum" is released by Iron Bonehead Productions, after the two predecessors were released by Cold Dimensions, the label of former Lunar Aurora musician Andreas "Whyrd" Bauer. And there we are already at the right keyword, namely Lunar Aurora . The two protagonists behind Mortuus Infradaemoni, Nathaniel and Profanatitas are both ex- members of the legendary Lunar Aurora.   

Saturday, February 29, 2020

REVIEW HOR "EXITIUM"





After the great return of some legendary Greek black metal musicians with YOTH IRIA, this review is about another Greek black metal band called HOR. To be honest, I haven't heard the name of this band before Vangelis, the label manager from Sanit Mils Records contacted me and introduced this band to me. If this hadn't happened, this really astonishing band would have passed me and maybe I would never have taken notice of their masterpiece called "Exitium". HOR was founded in 2017 by two musicians which use the pseudonyms Ophion and Throne and "Exitium" is their first official release.