The Black Metallers CIRITH GORGOR have been around for 26 years. Guitarist Marchosias (M.) and singer Satanael (S.) about the Dutch Black Metal scene, the curse of the Tolkien band name, hiking in the Alps and of course their new album: „Sovereign“.
How would you describe the Dutch black metal scene?
M: You have definitely done some great research prior to this interview. Of course we hail from the Netherlands, not from Belgium. Indeed, the banner of Cirith Gorgor was raised in late 1993 so we have been around for quite some time now. The Dutch black metal scene is (and always has been) a very active scene having a vast underground network with countless bands, and a couple of more well-known bands. The bands are highly interconnected with musicians rarely playing in a single band so especially within certain regions, it can be considered a black metal circle. Most of the bands around are extreme, skilled and highly determined!
Besides established acts like you, are there also many newcomers, among them recommendable ones?
S: There are actually so many newcomers that I stopped keeping track. As it happens I saw Hellewijt last weekend and I was really impressed with their fist-in-your-face dirtiness. Also I am a big fan of Standvast. But there might be many more of which I am not aware.
Many Black Metal bands, including CIRITH GORGOR, have borrowed their names from Lord of the Rings. How do you explain this enthusiasm in the scene for Tolkien’s world?
S: Honestly, I have no idea. Tolkien created a beautiful universe in which he created forces of evil and darkness inspiring awe in the hearts of many people.
Have you at any time regretted naming yourself after a term from the book?
M: There are two sides to this story. The name Cirith Gorgor used to be an obscure expression (even in the book the term is hardly used) but after the appearance of the movies (in which it prominently features) everything Tolkien-related rose to prominence and this has all changed. So there definitely have been times when we have considered changing the name of the band to avoid being considered a gang of larping elves by some ignorant retards. On the other hand, the name of the band represents our complete history and legacy, which is not something you throw away easily. On the demo and the first album there were some lyrics that have been inspired by the Lord of the Rings. But it’s now been twenty years since the debut album and since that time there has been no relation whatsoever between the black art we create and the book you mention (aside from the band name). And still we get Lord of the Rings questions in almost every single interview which is annoying, to say the least.
Your new album is called „Sovereign“ – what is the idea behind the title?
M: It was distilled out of the lyrics of the title track that mention “Spirit of evil and sovereign of shadows and unclean powers”. Reducing this to the bare essence yields the succinct and powerful “Sovereign”, which may be both an expression for the Devil as well as a description of how we feel about the album. With the creation of this piece of monumental black metal art we rule supreme while dominating all those beneath us. We are sovereign!
How would you describe the album in one sentence?
S: The soundtrack to the obliteration of established society.
Where do you see the central differences to the previous album?
M: “Visions of Exalted Lucifer” really was an album of a band in the middle of a transition. Whereas I used to be responsible for all songwriting in the past this was the first album on which we used three main composers (with Valtyr and Valefor contributing as well). This has resulted in a very interesting album, at least in my opinion, albeit a somewhat hectic album with different writing styles mixed together. This was a consequence of the fact that we had to get used to each other’s writing skills and the fact that I already had my song contributions ready for some years. On “Sovereign” we have tried to improve on this point by writing most of the material together from the start, in this way integrating each other’s ideas into more solid tracks. Overall we have kept the songs shorter and more to the point. Moreover, there is much more diversity as opposed to all our earlier works. Instead of continuously blasting away at full speed we have finally attained a much better balance between fast parts and slower atmospheric parts.
What’s the idea behind the more traditional artwork of the new album, where’s the context to the songs?
S: A constant recurring theme on this album is death. The song title which was at the back of my mind when we commissioned Valnoir of Metastazis to design the artwork, was “Luciferian Deathsquad”. Like we did with the previous full-length album, we expressed our vision to Valnoir which he translated into a marvelous piece of visual art.
The album starts with „Music For The Funeral Of Queen Mary“ by Henry Purcell. What was the idea behind this album entry?
S: When we were preparing for the recording of the album, Valefor played us the original piece by Purcell. We were so impressed by its bombastic feeling that we decided to record our own interpretation. This powerful and solemn introduction turned out to be the perfect prelude to our soundtrack to the obliteration of established society.
„Deathcult“ has a German text part, „Blood And Iron“ finishes the album with the (German) soldier song „Ich hatt‘ einen Kameraden“. What’s it all about, why German lyrics?
M: This is not something to expect from a Dutch guy, but I have had a lifelong interest in German history and the German language. Each year I visit my favorite mountainous regions located around the German/Austrian border for mountaineering and historical visits, and a large portion of the books that I read are in German. So to me, German language and history are an important part of my life. Every now and then I integrate some of that passion into the art of Cirith Gorgor, especially since German is such a powerful language. “Deathcult” is centered on an old German poem which together with my English and Dutch translations makes up the lyrics. „Blood and Iron“ deals with the hunt for and the sinking of the battleship Bismarck in WWII. The solemnity of „Ich hatt‘ einen Kameraden“ recalls that of the introductory Purcell theme and again deals with the topic of death, thus completing the circle.
Do you plan to go on tour with the album?
M: With our busy everyday schedules, it has proven to be exceptionally difficult to arrange a decent European tour. However, this is certainly something we would like to achieve in the near future. So far we have one show planned in Germany but that is not public yet. Venues and promotors that are interested are invited to contact us directly via our website and Facebook. Cirith Gorgor is armed and ready to do battle!
Thanks for taking time for this interview! At Metal1.info we usually end our interviews with a short brainstorming. What do you think about the following terms?
Notre-Dame: M: Previously a very pleasant architecture
Black Metal: M: Essence of Life and Death
The Hobbit (the film): M: Great movies
Lords of Chaos (the film): M: Commercial crap
Social media: M: A necessary evil
Politics in music: M: Not my cup of tea
CIRITH GORGOR in 10 years: M: Still strong as Hell
Thanks again for your answers. If you’d like to say a few last words to the readers, you’re welcome to do so now:
M: Check out our new album “Sovereign”, you will not be disappointed! But keep an open mind… Our origin and roots go deep back in time but the appearance of the demon has significantly evolved.
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24. Mai 2019 Moritz Grütz
Dieses Interview wurde per E-Mail geführt.
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