Review by Sonny for Gorgoroth - Destroyer: Or About How to Philosophize With the Hammer (1998)

Firstly I've got to say, I don't feel that Gorgoroth ever get quite the credit they deserve, possibly with good reason in later years, but there was a time when they were a thrilling and devastating proposition and worthy of mention amongst any of the second wave. This, their fourth album, is the product of a band in transition, each track utilising a different lineup, four different vocalists being used for example - Gaahl providing vocals on the opener, Pest, the singer on the previous album singing on four of the remaining tracks, mainman Infernus on a couple more and Malignant Eternal's T-Reaper on The Devil, The Sinner and His Journey. Despite the variety in each track's performers, it doesn't result in a disjointed release as you may expect, rather it is an album that absolutely has an overarching theme and mood and that is one of blistering chaos and nerve-shredding antagonism that feels like the band were trying to produce the most evil-sounding record released up to that point. It sounds to me as if it was heavily influenced by Mayhem's EP of the previous year, Wolf's Lair Abyss, which was also a release that heralded a change in direction.

This time around Gorgoroth's songwriting utilises passages of sheer noise, occasional slowing of tempo and savage, soul-shredding shrieks for vocals in the most part. Despite the noise elements and the savagery on display, underneath there are actually some quite melodic riffs, but they are well-disguised among the intended cacophony yet they enable the tracks to remain in the memory rather than just becoming a dissonant blur. I actually think Destroyer is a great album in it's ability to make an undoubtedly intentionally chaotic-sounding album memorable and like the band that spawned it, it is mightily underrated and should be lauded amongst Nineties black metal afficianados.