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Tangorodrim: Unholy metal way
21/10/11 || sly
By 2001, the second wave of underground black metal had become passé in the Western world, and metalcore was rising in its popularity. Black metal was becoming more associated with the likes of Cradle of Filth, whilst the nerds who’d been beaten up in high school were now getting tattoos and listening to ISIS.
Meanwhile in Eastern Europe, black metal was still being discovered and adored by a small subterranean following, some of whom were inspired to record their own interpretations. Tangorodrim are not just copycats. They took a well-versed formula of early ’90s BM, and modified it into something even more bestial and aggressive. They were able to create a filthier blend of the genre, maybe mobilized by their Slavic roots and harsher living conditions. No keyboards, clear female vocals, or stories of vampirical romance here. This is closer to the fundamental roots of traditional stripped-down BM, with discernible elements of Darkthrone and Hellhammer; a sound that hasn’t gone far beyond ’94.
Tangorodrim may not have the most impressive musical abilities, but there are no pretensions; they know what they are capable of, and utilize their minimal instrumental capacities to the fullest. In the spirit of many ’80s and ’90s bands, it is more important for them to create atmosphere rather than technical bewilderment. The album possesses that delicious sloppiness à la early Sodom and Celtic Frost. It has a sort of classic appeal, like preferring Mario Bava over James Cameron.
People seem to be allergic to dirt these days. Obsessed with precision guitars and ending up with bleached-out mall metal. Fucken posers Tangorodrim are not. They do it because they love it- in that nasty, sewer-dweller, let’s-not-please-anyone-but-ourselves kind of way. Their sound falls somewhere between Celtic Frost and Darkthrone; with the mid-tempo breaks of the former, and the heavy blasts and snarling vocals of the latter. (But they’re still a fraction more like Celtic Frost.)
As production goes, it’s like a deep, cavernous, homemade-in-a-cave type of thing. With vocals dubbed after. The lyrics tend to shift between Russian and English. (By the way, they are Russians who moved to Israel.) The length of the album is perfect at just over 26 minutes. The tracks flow nicely together in a more straight to the point punkish way, instead of songs that never seem to end. Every song is good, but the exemplary tracks are “Unholy metal way”, “Alcoholic desecration”, and “Bestial sleep”.
I’m not gonna say it’s the greatest album of all black metal time, but “Unholy Metal Way” stands out for it’s age and location. It’s definitely inspired by an Eastern European-style spirit of alcoholism to its extreme, but it’s as refreshing as an icey libation on a sweltering summer day in Ashdod. If it’s squalid, primordial, unvarnished black metal you want, Tangorodrim is straight from the cesspool. For as they state in their CD booklet, “Tangorodrim does not belong to any scene/race and plays UNHOLY BLACK METAL exclusively!”
- Information
- Released: 2001
- Label: Independent
- Website: Tangorodrim MySpace
- Band
- Mrakobes: vocals, guitar
- Tangor: guitar
- DarVeter: bass
- Alcogolik: drums
- Tracklist
- 01. Morgoth
- 02. Unholy Metal Way
- 03. Blind Aggression
- 04. Alcoholic Desecration
- 05. Palewoods
- 06. Bestial Sleep
