Band: Gorgon
Album: For Those Who Stay
Genre: Black Metal
Country: France
Label: Osmose Productions
Released: November 29th, 2024
Introduction
Gorgon is a band that shouldn’t need an introduction if you ask me (That goes for a lot of the older bands, so apologies if I use this line every so often in other reviews ;)) This band delivered one of my all-time favorite black metal albums, The Lady Rides a Black Horse. This gem was brought out in 1995 (and yes, that makes me sound old, I am aware). But to this day, this album still holds strong as it’s one of the most influential black metal albums ever made. At least, I think it is.
This will be their seventh full album, and I must admit somewhere in the early 00s I lost track of the band. But they reappeared on my radar when they released their latest album, Traditio Satanae.
I did like that album, but for me personally it never reached the same level as The Lady Rides a Black Horse. That, of course, doesn’t mean it is or was a bad album. It all comes down to personal taste. However, they are back with a new album, so let’s dive in and see what they conjured up from the abyss this time.
For Those Who Stay
Tracklist:
- For Those Who Stay
- Tod. Mort. Death.
- Next to the Mill
- Hypnotic Fire
- Vatican’s Fall
- The Art of Dying
- Despicable Beggars
- Shelter
- When It Rains in Hell
- Troops of the Fallen
- Deserters as Prey
The new album features 11 brand-new songs and has a run time of 41 minutes, which is a decent amount of time in11 tracks. It’s not too short that it feels like a hardcore album (20 tracks in 15 minutes), and not too long as in that I keep checking my watch because of a feeling that 2 hours have passed since I’ve started to listen to the album. This length is just right.
On the first track, you hear that Gorgon still means business, it starts off with an organ and then the drums kick in. Those things just keep going and make the song a great start of the album. This sets the tone for the rest of the album.
The nest few songs, Tod. Mort. Death, Next to the Mill and Hypnotic Fire are all fast-paced no nonsense black metal songs. Especially the second track is one of my favourites, it’s very aggressive with a no surrender attitude, and it’s that attitude that made me fall in love with Gorgon many moons ago.
Also worth mentioning are the drums, those are taken care of by Hellesylt, and he really delivers. They just keep going off, relentlessly. Together with the great vocal work of Chris, it makes for a great package.
I could keep going on about every track, but to be honest, you need to give this album a try (or a few) and decide for yourself. I’m pretty sure if you will like it. Does it top the first album? No it does not, does that matter? No, it does not. It’s a good album and a big step up from the previous album.
Conclusion
Gorgon delivered a great album, and it’s on my album of the year list, it won’t top it, but that’s okay. I liked it and others should give this a spin as well. I’m glad to see that a band from my youth still keeps going strong, and I hope this will remain for a while.
If you haven’t heard of Gorgon before, give this album a spin and let us know on our socials what you like or don’t like about it? And since you don’t know the band, give the first album The Lady Rides a Black Horse a try, that’s an order!
BMZ Rating: 8,5 – Very Good: An impressive album that rises above many others. It features innovative ideas, captivating lyrics, or excellent musicianship that makes it stand out.
Your thoughts on For Those Who Stay by Gorgon
You can support the band here: https://gorgonblackmetal.bandcamp.com/album/for-those-who-stay
Do you like it or hate it? You can share your opinion on our social media channels, or join us on discord, where we discuss all things black metal! Make sure to follow our Facebook page, Black Metal Zine, to receive notifications when we publish articles. Also check out our Instagram at @blackmetal.zine for concert pictures and more!