Gorgoroth is an extreme black metal band from Norway. Over the years Gorgoroth has experimented with noise and industrial overtones, but professes no interest in that particular style. The band has gone through numerous lineup changes, leaving guitarist Infernus as the only remaining original member. Their style, however, has remained relatively consistent from album to album. The name Gorgoroth is taken from the J.R.R. Tolkien series The Lord Of The Rings, in which it is a dead plain of evil and darkness in the land of Mordor.
Gorgoroth was formed in 1992 by guitarist Infernus, vocalist Hat (Hate in Norwegian), and drummer Goat. In 1993, the band released their first demo, entitled A Sorcery Written In Blood. It was also released as a split album with Burzum entitled Burzum & Gorgoroth; it contained the same tracks as the demo plus various Burzum songs. After the demo was released, Gorgoroth signed a record deal with Embassy Records and started work on their debute full-length: Pentagram. The infamous Samoth of Emperor participated on the album by recording the bass tracks. After Pentagram was completed and released, Goat left the band and was replaced temporarily by Frost from Satyricon. This led the band directly into the recording of Antichrist, their sophomore release. Vocalist Hat decided to leave Gorgoroth in 1995, but not until after he had finished recording the vocal tracks. It was at this time Gorgoroth's well-known vocalist Pest joined. Antichrist was a highly successful release, and led to the band's first live performances supporting Cradle Of Filth. They also toured Norway and England with Satyricon and Dissection. Soon the name Gorgoroth was commonplace in the black metal underground, if somewhat overshadowed by some of the more infamous black metal bands such as Mayhem or Emperor.
