Nargaroth

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nargaroth
Nargaroth in Saint Petersburg, 2014. From left to right: Obscura, Ash, Beliath
Nargaroth @ Phoenix.jpg
Nargaroth in Saint Petersburg , 2014. From left to right: Obscura, Ash, Beliath
General information
Genre (s) Extreme metal , dark ambient
founding 1996
Website http://www.nargaroth.de/
Founding members
René Wagner (Kanwulf, Ash)
Current occupation
René Wagner (Kanwulf, Ash)
Guitar (live)
Beliath (since 2013)
Guest musician
guitar
Charoon (1996-2013)
Guitar, bass
Darken (1996-1999, 2004-2007)
Drums
L'Hiver (1998-1999, 2003)
Drums
Occulta Mors (2001-2002)
Drums
Asbath (2001-2005)
Drums
Honza Kapák (2001)
Drums
Erebor (2005-2010)
Guitar (live)
Unk (2007–2009, 2011)
Guitar (live)
Thorn (2010-2013)
Drums (live)
Threat (2013-2014)
Drums (live)
Remus (2011-2013)
Bass (live)
Akhenaten (2002)
Bass (live)
Vorst (2009-2010)
Guitar (live)
Bernth (2013)
Guitar (live)
Ira (2013)
Guitar (live)
Obscura (2014-2015)
Drums (live)
Bloodhammer (2014)
Drums (live)
Lycanthrope (2015-2017)

Nargaroth is a German metal band. The only member is René Wagner, who originally appeared under the pseudonym "Kanwulf" and is now called "Ash" after the main character from the horror film Dance the Devil . Kanwulf writes music and lyrics mostly himself, but is supported by guest musicians. These include, for example, Akhenaten (ex- Judas Iscariot , ex-world power), Occulta Mors (ex- Moonblood , Nachtfalke) and L'hiver (winter blood, ex-Seeds of Hate).

Band name

Kanwulf himself states that the band name is made up of the final syllables of the band's name Gorgoroth and the initial syllable Narg , which is supposed to express closeness to nature. However, it is often claimed and assumed the name originates from the Fantasy - Tabletop Warhammer . There exists a dark, icy continent under the very similar sounding name Naggaroth , which is inhabited by dark elves. Kanwulf himself, however, vehemently rejects these assumptions and describes tabletop games as a pointless pastime. The name is also reminiscent of Nargothrond from JRR Tolkien's work, which was widely used in Black Metal.

Band history

Nargaroth was formed according to Kanwulf's earlier statements in 1989, before he had played in no other bands. However, this year of foundation is very controversial due to Kanwulf's contradicting statements. Which says that it is already 1991, the Orke - Demo emerged that pure instrumental music contained. At this demo Kanwulf also used guitar and drums for the first time . Kanwulf's statements about this demo are also very contradicting, and a release of the demo before 1996 is considered unlikely, the actual time of the release is mostly dated to 1999. In fact, it is certain that the actual band was only founded in 1996. In this year at the earliest, the Herbstleyd demo, which Kanwulf himself dates to 1993, also falls . In an interview, Kanwulf also claimed that he killed a visitor to a Nargaroth concert and was imprisoned for a short time as a result. However, the pseudonym "Kanwulf" resembles the name of an "immortal" Viking warrior who appeared in the fourth season of the Franco-Canadian fantasy television series Highlander , which was first broadcast in 1995 .

Kanwulf now admitted on his homepage that he had only adopted this pseudonym and the name Nargaroth in 1996, which, in view of the appearance of the names on both Orke and the Herbstleyd demo, indirectly admits that these publications are falsifications and all of his earlier statements in this regard Are lies. However, he also claims to have not taken his pseudonym from the series, but "from a French book with old Scandinavian names". In the meantime Kanwulf claims to have founded a death metal band together with RS in 1991/1992 under the name Okkultis, which according to Kanwulf “never got beyond the quality of a teenage rehearsal room”. Together with another friend and the long-time guitarist of Nargaroth, Charoon, the band was completed by 1993 and renamed Exhuminenz. According to their own information, the band played the first joint demo called Vomit the Soul with this line-up . After the band's activity had been interrupted after Kanwulf's military service in 1994, the suicide RS meant the definitive end of Exhuminenz. In the spring of 1996 he met the future Nargaroth guitarist Darken, who was still on bass at the time. Together with Charoon, work on the debut album Herbstleyd began. During this time, Wagner claims to have adopted the name Kanwulf used on earlier publications. The band was given the name Nargaroth, which is made up of the initial syllable Narg , which according to Ash is supposed to express closeness to nature, and the final syllable of the band's name Gorgoroth .

In 1998, the No Colors Records label released Nargaroth's debut album, Herbstleyd . 2000 appeared the EP Amarok which older recordings such as Burzum - cover Black Spell of Destruction contained, and the demo Fuck Off Nowadays Black Metal ; With this it should be noted that the stated limitations ( cassette 333 pieces, LP 100 pieces) probably do not correspond to the truth, but that far more units were pressed or recorded.

In 2001 the album Black Metal ist Krieg - A Dedication Monument was released, which, according to Wagner, should be understood as a kind of "tribute" to Black Metal , and which, in addition to various cover versions of well-known bands, also contains songs that deal with events in Black -Metal history, for example The Day Burzum Killed Mayhem , which relates to the murder of Øystein “Euronymous” Aarseth by Varg Vikernes , or Erik, May You Rape the Angels , which is a tribute to the late musician Erik “Grim” Brødreskift represents. The musician played among others Immortal , Borknagar and Gorgoroth drums and committed on 4 October 1999 suicide .

A year later, in 2002, the second part of the Rasluka recordings was released. This mini-CD, like the first part, is dedicated to a friend of Kanwulf who allegedly died in 1995. Kanwulf originally announced Rasluka as a trilogy, the second part of which will be released as a split CD with Moonblood and the last part of which will be the end of Nargaroth.

A year later another full album was released with Geliebte des Regens , then the album Prosatanica Shooting Angels was released in 2004 , which was seen as a stylistic change of Nargaroth both musically and lyrically. Kanwulf claims, however, that these are recordings that were originally intended as a side project called Prosatanica, which should have appeared under the publication title Shooting Angels . However, he sees his work according to his slogan, Kanwulf is Nargaroth, which is often chanted ; Nargaroth is Kanwulf. No compromise! "Inextricably linked to Nargaroth" and have therefore decided to publish it under the project name Nargaroth.

In 2007 the album Semper Fidelis was released , for which a box limited to 99 pieces was also released. The box included private items, among other things.

In 2009 the album Jahreszeiten was released . In 2011, Spectral Visions of Mental Warfare followed , which has little metal influences, but mainly contains ambient pieces in the style of Burzum's Filosofem or for Nargaroth unusual titles reminiscent of techno or electro .

Music style and relationship to the black metal scene

Kanwulf's music was initially based on the style of European black metal bands. The music is very simple, the song Black Metal ist Krieg only consists of two different guitar riffs. The tempo varies between fast songs with blastbeats and slow, epic works of up to twenty minutes in length, on later albums the music became slower and less varied. Most of the recordings are typical of the genre in rough rehearsal room quality and the vocals are largely incomprehensible. Kanwulf himself describes his music as German Hateful and Misanthropic Metal and not as Black Metal; This is primarily due to the fact that Black Metal is satanistically shaped in the classic sense , which is not the case with Nargaroth. According to Kanwulf, Orke and Herbstleyd are concept albums. The Rasluka EPs make loud Kanwulf "the attempt of the processing of a [sic] of the worst experiences of my life. Among other things, the death of the only people I have named as a friend, to date."

Especially the debut Herbstleyd was received positively; The “fascinating and engaging atmosphere” of the album, created by the sounds of nature, among other things, was praised. The following albums were partly heavily criticized. It should be noted that on the album Black Metal is War "were damn few of their own ideas with the professional re-enactment of traditional Hörmustern [...] spiced up" and Wagner in the self-written songs style riffs of established bands like Immortal , Darkthrone and Strid without further mention takes over.

In seasons Kanwulf made a radical change of style. The music is more atmospheric, technical and, especially in autumn, it is accompanied by keyboards and natural samples. There are also solos and sometimes clear vocals. After the spoken intro, spring begins with a Bessarabian folk melody reminiscent of a children's song . Ash said:

“As expected, the opening melody of 'Spring' caused the greatest controversy, because it is an anti-statement against all the neo-BM-kids who have no idea of ​​the old nature of Black Metal and terrorize it with their adolescent short-term ideologies! "

- René "Ash" Wagner :

Wagner also attracted attention through verbal attacks against individual bands and musicians, in particular Mystic Circle , Impending Doom and Agathodaimon , as well as some of his fans. Wagner accused the bands and musicians of being “not close to the spirit of music”.

Wolf-Rüdiger Mühlmann from Rock Hard described Herbstleyd around 1998 as "the ideal soundtrack for an epic about our pagan ancestors" and as the "best German record of the past two years in this area" alongside Nagelfar's debut album Hünengrab in autumn . In 2009 he wrote that “another footnote from the German scene” was “the one-man project Nargaroth”, which offered “one of the strongest domestic releases with its debut album Herbstleyd , whose protagonist Rene 'Kanwulf' Wagner, however, found himself in a web of contradictions, political ghosts and entangled senseless actionism ”. In the scene itself, Kanwulf's remarks on Black Metal are viewed differently. Some dismiss it as "crazy" and see Black Metal as a music form, but others feel particularly attracted by Kanwulf's views of Nargaroth. They also see the essence of Black Metal in the emotion and have a similar understanding of Black Metal. Another part of the scene doubts Kanwulf's credibility and meets Nargaroth with strong dislike. Kanwulf is also often ridiculed for his appearance on Sonja Zietlow's talk show , and his saying “Black Metal is war” is a frequent target of parodies both inside and outside the scene.

Right-wing extremism allegations

Nargaroth is considered National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) by some critics . Although clearly anti-Semitic , racist or neo-Nazi texts cannot be identified, Kanwulf was noticed by statements such as the following (to be found in the supplement to the first press of the Herbstleyd CD, spelling left in the original):

"For the greater glory of deutchen [sic] soldiers of the Wehrmacht in 1933 - 1945. The denial of those benefits and the eyes closing before their sacrifice, especially in the last year of the war, is the shame of our nation!"

"German hateful and misanthropic Black Metal, made from [sic] White man for White man."

" Absurd , good to know yeah [sic] out of jail !!!."

Kanwulf commented on these allegations in an interview with the Magacinum ab ovo . He stated that in the specific case he was concerned with war grave care and that he generally perceived National Socialism as a mental limitation. Kanwulf claims that he supports war grave care and the MIA - an organization that locates missing persons from the Vietnam War . However, this distancing from National Socialism is felt by some critics to be too half-hearted. He did not distance himself from the statement “made from White man for White man”, but in the new editions of the album the sentence was replaced by the words “a celtae hominis pro celtae homninis” [sic!]. In a 2014 interview with the Pest Webzine , Ash stated that based on his own experience, he actually believed that cultural issues in extreme music could only be understood by people of the same culture. However, he expressed this so provocatively that his statement had to be misunderstood. Because of the misunderstandings, he removed the critical parts and stopped selling the first edition, so that around 200 CDs with the original booklet were sold and the others destroyed. Nargaroth was never an NSBM band.

"Sieg Heil" calls suspected by critics have not yet been clearly identified, but during the recording of a concert in Erlangen, which can be found on the double LP version of the Herbstleyd album, there were indignant interjections from the audience. Kanwulf was also noticed live by greetings from Hitler and Kühnen.

Equally ambiguous is the fact that the song Amarok - Zorn des Lammes III in the booklet on Black Metal ist Krieg contains pictures of Kanwulf's great-uncles and his great-grandfather who, according to his own statements, all fell in wars. There is also a critical text by Kanwulf on today's German national consciousness. Furthermore, in the same booklet Moonblood is referred to as the “only black metal band in Germany, which besides Absurd is also worth mentioning”, which puts the previous denial of its affection for Absurd into perspective.

Kanwulf also played in the late 1990s for a concert and a few rehearsals with the NSBM band Totenburg from Thuringia .

In addition, fellow musicians Kanwulfs and their projects are also close to right-wing extremism: Akhenaten, for example, participated with his band Weltmacht in the compilation The Night and the Fog. A Tribute to the National Socialist Black Metal Underground , and Occulta Mors, who, like Kanwulf, helped out at Totenburg, was dismissed from the band Lyssa because he raised his arm in the Hitler salute during their performances. He also said in an interview:

“We Germans are the master race ! We have to do everything we can to ensure that the mob doesn't get the upper hand, because somehow I have the feeling that Germans are dying out and that everything is sinking into a huge multicultural sewer. Does that have to be? "

- Tino "Occulta Mors" Mothes :

Discography

Demos

The publication dates of the first two demo recordings given by Kanwulf are highly dubious.

  • 1991: Orke
  • 1993: Herbstleyd

Albums

EPs

  • 2000: Amarok
  • 2002: Rasluka Pt. II
  • 2004: Rasluka Pt. I.

DVD

  • 2008: Dead ~ Ication

Sampler contributions

  • 1998: Herbstleyd (Different Version) on No Colors Records Compilation (Pt. II)
  • 1999: Herbstleyd (Edit) on Ablaze # 28 July / August 1999
  • 2001: The Day Burzum Killed Mayhem (Edit) on Ablaze # 28 March / April 2001

Others

  • 2000: Fuck Off Nowadays Black Metal (MC / LP)
  • 2001: Black Metal Endsieg II (split with Decayed , Apolokia and Godless North)
  • 2004: Crushing Some Belgian Scum (Live)

Individual evidence

  1. a b Information on the band's official website under "Biography"
  2. whfb.lexicanum.de ( Memento of the original from April 6, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / whfb.lexicanum.de
  3. a b c d - Interview with Kanwulf for the Black Light Magazine from Spain -. Archived from the original on April 1, 2011 ; accessed on September 5, 2014 .
  4. Nargaroth - Orc. Archived from the original on May 3, 2007 ; Retrieved June 30, 2010 .
  5. Orke. Discogs , accessed January 18, 2010 .
  6. Garry Sharpe-Young : Biography. (No longer available online.) MusicMight.com, archived from the original on September 22, 2012 ; Retrieved January 18, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.musicmight.com
  7. IMDB entry for the Highlander episode Homeland . Retrieved June 30, 2010 .
  8. Information in the Biography section on the official Nargaroth website.
  9. Official website. December 22, 2014, accessed August 25, 2014 .
  10. Diana Glöckner: The True Spirit of Black Metal? 1999, archived from the original on June 21, 2008 ; accessed on June 30, 2010 : “I don't do black metal, in this bronze-colored booklet there is only metal because black metal was satanic for me somewhere, it should be like that, and I don't have much to do with Satan Cap. That's why I think it's not Black Metal. It would be a pretty strong insult to me to label this music Black Metal because it isn't. Black Metal, this term [sic!] , Is worth far too much to me for that . "
  11. Nargaroth: Black Metal is War - A Dedication Monument. No Colors Records 2001.
  12. Rasluka Part II (PDF; 1.7 MB).
  13. Rasluka Part I (PDF; 2.5 MB).
  14. CD review: Nargaroth - Herbstleyd ( Memento of the original from October 29, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.metal1.info
  15. a b Less recent articles .
  16. ^ Yersinia interview . Originally from the Sheol web magazine , archive on oocities.com .
  17. Review of Strids End of Life by Abditus Vultus ( Memento from August 14, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  18. Reviews of Nargaroth at FinalWar  ( page no longer available , search in web archivesInfo: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / finalw.fi.funpic.de  
  19. Kanwulf: Seasons (PDF; 2.1 MB). Accessed October 8, 2012.
  20. Concert report: SUMMER BREEZE 2002 .
  21. Live report - "Summer Breeze Festival 2002" ( Memento from October 18, 2002 in the Internet Archive ).
  22. Diana Glöckner: The True Spirit of Black Metal? 1999, archived from the original on June 21, 2008 ; accessed on June 30, 2010 (original link is dead): “Because the people were not close to the spirit of music, I have already explained that. They weren't behind it that way and I didn't want more of it to happen and believe me, these gothics and punks who tried something - terrible! It was also for our good. "
  23. Wolf-Rüdiger Mühlmann: NARGAROTH. Herbstleyd Retrieved August 25, 2014.
  24. Wolf-Rüdiger Mühlmann: Germany, your black metal bands . In: Rock Hard . No. 269 , October 2009, p. 89 .
  25. Kanwulf with Sonja Zietlow. ( DivX AVI (27.4 MB)) (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 26, 2011 ; Retrieved July 26, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / nargaroth.autisma.net
  26. Thorsten Zahn: Haradwaith . Blood brothers. In: Metal Hammer . Axel Springer Mediahouse Berlin, December 2010, ISSN  1614-2292 , p. 66 .
  27. Diana Glöckner: The True Spirit of Black Metal? 1999, archived from the original on June 21, 2008 ; accessed on June 30, 2010 (original link is dead): “It's not a National Socialist idea behind it! I would never do that! National Socialism restricts, sets limits. That would be my mental suicide! I can only find free development in this music! "
  28. Diana Glöckner: Dialogue between “Kanwulf von Nargaroth” and Diana Glöckner in the “Magacinum Ab Ovo”. 1999, archived from the original on June 21, 2008 ; Retrieved June 30, 2010 (original link is dead): “You would have understood that there was no fascist thought behind it, because you know that I support the war graves service and MIA International (Missing In Action, an organization that locates missing persons from the Vietnam War power)."
  29. ^ Sónia Fonseca: Nargaroth. Pest Webzine, January 2014, accessed September 5, 2014 .
  30. evil: NARGAROTH - Herbstleyd (2-LP) :: Review / Review ( Memento of the original from November 26, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.metal-district.de
  31. Nargaroth- Norbitz- Herbstleyd , accessed October 8, 2012.
  32. Nargaroth - Black Spell Of Destruction (live burzum cover) , accessed October 8, 2012.
  33. ^ Christian Dornbusch, Hans-Peter Killguss: Unheilige Alliances. Black Metal between Satanism, Paganism and Neo-Nazism. Unrast Verlag, Münster 2005, ISBN 3-89771-817-0 , p. 169.
  34. a b Christian Dornbusch , Hans-Peter Killguss: Unheilige Alliances . Black Metal between Satanism, Paganism and Neo-Nazism. Unrast Verlag , Münster 2005, ISBN 3-89771-817-0 , p. 182 .
  35. "That he would have recorded the Nargaroth demo 'Orke' in '91 is all a lie, the demo was recorded in '99." ( Marcel Spaller : quoted from Shaddai: Lies and half-truths about Kanwulf von Nargaroth , lies and half-truths about " Kanwulf von Nargaroth " ( Memento from February 28, 2009 in the Internet Archive ))

Web links

Commons : Nargaroth  - collection of images, videos and audio files