Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam

The infamous Norwegian black-metal torch-bearers Gorgoroth inflicted Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam on the world in 2006, two years after a highly publicized incident in Krakow, Poland, in which a way over-the-top stage show brought them some unwanted attention. Rather than deterring the band, the subsequent furor from the show not only brought Gorgoroth a massive new audience, it seemingly galvanized them as Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam won them the Norwegian equivalent of a GRAMMY®, and yet remains a landmark release in modern black metal. In spite of the fact that the salad days of the Norwegian black metal scene were in the early to mid-'90s, Gorgoroth has continued to release relevant black metal, with exponentially better recording techniques than the wall of white noise the representative groups had always been known for. The result on this seventh album is eight tracks of pure brutality, with the shimmering flutter of rapidly picked guitars, inhumanly pounded double-bass drumming and the frighteningly shrieked vocals of controversial fronthman Gaahl.