### Gorgoroth: Ad majorem sathanas gloriam

#### 23/07/08 || theProphet

The wind is howling in the snow-clad mountains. The gathering clouds are coloured dark gray, almost black. They darken the skies, giving the impression of midnight though ‘tis barely noon. Braving this freezing tempest is a solitary wanderer, clad in a blood stained armor, with a black cloak billowing majestically, engulfing him. One might believe that one is fooled by one’s eyes, for at times, as the storm is particularly fierce, the cloak seems to transform, assuming the shape of two huge, blackened wings. Suddenly there is a lightning flash, followed by an instant thunderclap, and the figures face is briefly illuminated. He is Gaahl, loather of men, the black hermit.

Out of the thick mist, another man is appearing. Leather-clad and covered in ornamental spikes, an enormous, brazen war horn slung across his shoulder. His stature noble yet terrifying, he carries himself like some monarch of the underworld. His face, dominated by his unholy cheekbones, is contorted in a grimace of purest hate. His name is King, the infernal minstrel.

A third man has now joined the group, carrying a battle standard, the “Sign of an Open Eye” engraved upon it. However, attention is drawn to the immense axe strapped to his back, the blood with which it is encrusted dripping towards the ground, tainting the white snow with smears of crimson. This abomination goes by the name of Infernus, the distorter, the axe-wielder.

The sound of war drums echo between the mountain tops as a fourth man-devil is making his presence felt. His pale complexion makes his face hard to distinguish in the falling snow, yet in the darkness his eyes, burning with all the fires of hell itself, can be seen a mile away. He answers to the name of Frost, as if were he created by the very elements that surround him. He is the captain of the chthonic artillery, the vengeful hammer of Satan.

When the group has almost completed its ascent towards the summit they stop. At the mountain’s peak stands a church, reaching towards the heavens like a last, defiant middle-finger of God. The one called King reaches for his war horn, puts it to his lips, and sounds it, its notes containing immense “Prosperity and Beauty” but at the same time also striking the enemy with paralyzing horror. As the sound dies out, Gaahl lets loose a bestial warcry, and the warband storms towards the christian temple, torches blazing in their hands.

As the church is set ablaze, flames licking the ashen heavens, the panicking christians starts piling out through the main gate in a futile attempt at escaping. This is, however, cut brutally short as the band of hellish marauders release their “Untamed Forces” upon them. The one known as Infernus is rabidly hacking at his foes with his axe, as if were he “Carving a Giant” and the others equal him in savagery and bloodlust, inflicting “Wound Upon Wound” on the whimpering christian dogs.

As the fire rages on, flames reaching higher, the steeple suddenly topples and the large crucifix, formerly at its top, crashes down and is now upside down, blocking the “Exit”. With everyone who attempted to escape through the temple’s entrance dead, the group silently watches as the church burns to the ground, the tormented screams of those trapped inside growing fewer with each minute, the dying pyre illuminating their daemonic faces.

When the fire has finally died out, the group plants a “White Seed” among the ashes in reverence of nature, from which we have all come into being, and also as a final, symbolic victory over the “God Seed”, a “Twilight of the Idols”. When the ritual is complete, they all raise their heads towards heaven in defiance towards whomever may reside there, and let a mighty roar of victory be heard:

“AD MAJOREM SATHANAS GLORIAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

And, just like the wind, they are gone…

8 out of 10.

- Information
- Released: 2006
- Label: Regain Records
- Website: www.gorgoroth.org
- Band
- Gaahl: vocals
- Infernus: guitars
- King: bass
- Frost: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Wound Upon Wound
- 02. Carving a Giant
- 03. God Seed (Twilight of the Idols)
- 04. Sign of an Open Eye
- 05. White Seed
- 06. Exit
- 07. Untamed Forces
- 08. Prosperity and Beauty