Gorthaur’s Wrath
War for Heaven
Eternal Sound Records
2013
A lot of things have changed in this Croatian band which was formed back in 1998. The only remaining original member and the mastermind behind Gorthaur’s Wrath is Morbid (ex-Unholy Inquisition). I guess there was a time when the “evil nicknames” in the black metal scene were kinda “trendy”, but this Morbid has nothing to do with the member of Necromantia, Rotting Christ & Thou Art Lord who later became Magus Vampyr Daoloth. Moreover, with three out of five members being Germans, this band can easily be called a European one more than a Croatian one.
This is the first time that I come across this band and their style can be described like more of a blend between black & death metal, or more simply they can be tagged under the “extreme metal” genre even though that tag can sometimes be misleading for the fans. The band’s production is very prof, tight & “polished” for a black/death metal act. That’s where some of the extreme metal devotees will start having problems as they prefer their “music” more “raw & shitty”. For goodness sake, it ain’t bad to have a great production or have a strong musicianship when it comes to a black/death metal band, I’m just making a note here, that’s all.
What I like on “War for Heaven” is the band’s extreme heavy verve which is all over the album. Their themes, without being groundbreakin’, are solid & well-played. The sound is superb, but they do lack on the melody part in a way. I mean if they wanna have some memorable tracks then they gotta try more, but if what they aim is just generic black/death metal music, then they are on the right path. “Übermensch” is the finest track on the album and shows that the band has potential to do better than the average black/death (extreme) metal act of our time. A few more “sick black/death metalers” would complain that this album is a tad “soulless/characterless” compared to the ones which were released in the early 90s… but times now are different and I do not think that would be much of a concern for the younger generation of the extreme metal followers. Nevertheless, if you fancy this kind of music then do give this band a chance…
This is the first time that I come across this band and their style can be described like more of a blend between black & death metal, or more simply they can be tagged under the “extreme metal” genre even though that tag can sometimes be misleading for the fans. The band’s production is very prof, tight & “polished” for a black/death metal act. That’s where some of the extreme metal devotees will start having problems as they prefer their “music” more “raw & shitty”. For goodness sake, it ain’t bad to have a great production or have a strong musicianship when it comes to a black/death metal band, I’m just making a note here, that’s all.
What I like on “War for Heaven” is the band’s extreme heavy verve which is all over the album. Their themes, without being groundbreakin’, are solid & well-played. The sound is superb, but they do lack on the melody part in a way. I mean if they wanna have some memorable tracks then they gotta try more, but if what they aim is just generic black/death metal music, then they are on the right path. “Übermensch” is the finest track on the album and shows that the band has potential to do better than the average black/death (extreme) metal act of our time. A few more “sick black/death metalers” would complain that this album is a tad “soulless/characterless” compared to the ones which were released in the early 90s… but times now are different and I do not think that would be much of a concern for the younger generation of the extreme metal followers. Nevertheless, if you fancy this kind of music then do give this band a chance…