First re-release of the third full-length studio album by legendary Ukrainian Pagan/Folk/Symphonic Black Metal band.
After the monument “Goat Horns”, Nokturnal Mortum struck again with their next opus in 1998. This masterpiece confirmed their status of Folk/Symphonic Black Metal masters and opened new gates to the band since they signed contract with US The End Records. It was a great achievement for the horde to sign at such mainstream label. And it’s interesting to notice that the album was sold by The End Records in the North American continent and released by Nuclear Blast in Europe. The Ukrainians were at the height of their popularity within the Underground Black Metal scene at that time, just one year before the release of the highly controversial “Nechrist”.
“To the Gates of Blasphemous Fire” was an instant success and sold out quickly. Following its successful reception, Nuclear Blast and other important labels were interested in welcoming Nokturnal Mortum to their roster, but Knjaz Varggoth declined the offers. This fourth Slavonic jewel also confirmed their brotherhood with Lucifugum (another pioneers of Ukrainian Black Metal) as it was dedicated to Igor Naumchuk, alias Khlyst, who was manager of Lucifugum and their close friend at that time.
Varggoth and his comrades clearly wrote their most bestial and powerful songs ever in this album. The production is far better than their previous releases, and Munruthel’s drums sound like a relentless steamroller. That’s definitely his best performance as a drummer within Nokturnal Mortum. Varggoth’s vocals have never been so much hateful than on this record. He also had the excellent idea to provide some solemn clean vocals that make the compositions even more epic and impressive.
Despite being ignored by the band for a long time (no re-release since 2004), “To the Gates of Blasphemous Fire” remains an incredible masterpiece of the genre. It was also a huge influence for lots of Ukrainian acts including Lucifugum for instance. There are indeed many similarities between this opus and Lucifugum’s monument “On The Sortilage Of Christianity” from 1999. That’s not surprising as Saturious provided some fabulous keyboards on this one as well.
Elegant Ukrainian Black Metal for fans of Emperor and Dimmu Borgir!!
Oriana Productions, 1998/2001 (ANTIGOD 2). Made in Ukraine.
Tracklist:
Side A
1. Bestial Summoning 05:59
2. To The Gates Of Blasphemous Fire 05:26
3. On The Moonlight Path 05:24
4. The Hands Of Chaos 05:09
5. Ластівка (Через Річку, Через Гай) / Swallow (Through the River, Through the Woods) (Hidden Track) 02:37
Side B
6. Под Знаменами Рогатого Князя / Under the Banners of the Horned Knjaz 05:57
7. The 13th Asbath Celebration 08:30
8. Черемош / Cheremosh 06:06
9. The Forgotten Ages Of Victories 06:54
Total playing time: 52:03 min.
Samples:
https://nokturnalmortum1.bandcamp.com