Crawled out of Velenje in the late 2013, Slovenian black metal duo SNØGG embodies a perpetual experimental journey through the otherworldly creative thoughts. Their self-categorized style “Freeride Black Metal” incorporates various dark, extreme and unusual sonic elements. Each of the releases was followed by a supporting Eastern European tour. The band, led by Ulv and Mørke, has so far appeared in more than a total of 60 local and international concerts all together. Snøgg’s aesthetic live shows and records both feature guest members who partake in experimentation and improvisation on stage and studio. Every live performance of Snøgg differs from the previous shows, and not even two shows of the band can be placed under the same category.
After churning out a demo and three short releases, the ever surprising Snøgg is ready to deliver the fifth offering and the first full length, Chhinnamasta. Replacing the previously used Norwegian black metal elements with more powerful, hammer-wielding riffs (in the vein of Ulv’s former band Entheogen), the duo bends mostly towards melody oriented post-black metal direction in this record. Nevertheless, Snøgg recycled its idiosyncratic weird noisescapes and dirty vibes form the previous releases.
The songwriting process of Chhinnamasta was originally begun around the time when Qivitoq (2nd EP) was released, but was interrupted due to the creation and the recording of Abeloth (3rd EP), so the songs had the time to develop in the minds of the band members. The recording crew got a little smaller this time, comprising only of Ulv, Mørke and Azbuka. This time, Rok Kugonic took the wand as the main producer.
Chinnamasta is the Hindu goddess who cut her own head to control her lust. The album does not include any original Hindu story about the self-decapitated nude goddess, merely portrays the band members’ vision of what Chhinnamasta represents, focusing on the problems of ever-repeating life circles that try to direct us on the wrong path by manipulating and enslaving us. However, the band borrowed ideas from other religions and stories outside Hinduism to illustrate Chhinnamasta.
Track-listing:
1. Y’ (Ddraig Goch)
2. Stream of Blood
3. Void of Valor
4. Phantom Mountain
5. Fear Beyond Death
Credits:
Ulv – guitars, bass, keyboards, vocals and rituals.
Mørke – drums and spells.
Additional Musicians:
Azbuka – noise and field recordings
All music and lyrics written and performed by Snøgg and additional musicians.
Recorded and produced at RMC Kunigunda, Velenje by Rok Kugonic and Snøgg.
Sponsored by Mestna obcina Velenje.
Pre-Order:
https://snogg.bandcamp.com/
For More Info:
https://www.facebook.com/
Zoheb M.
Qabar – Extreme Music PR
