When it comes to bands that call themselves nominally "black metal", but engage in what is really screamo goth rock or, in the present case, nu-metal, Dimmu borgir and Cradle of Filth are probably at the top of the list. But Gorgoroth isn't very far down, either.
Saying "I want to be overground not underground" is something not even Shagrath would be shameless enough to say... yet, here we are. The band comparing themselves to Burzum and Darkthrone openly embracing the Mötley Crüe ethos.
This is what the band's frontman, Infernus, admits during an interview with Morsay Magazine, about the recent incident in which he was left in a coma - in August 2023.
Gorgoroth's Infernus Says He Wants to be "Overground" Black Metal
Infernus, real name Roger Tiegs, is first asked why he is so adamant that Gorgoroth is "true black metal" when they hired Vice Media to do an entire (revisionist) documentary on the "history of black metal", portraying them (Gorgoroth) as the inventors of the genre... never mind Burzum, Bathory, Darkthrone, Immortal or Mayhem, who all played black metal well before Gorgoroth.
The band also had MTV release their music... in the name of "trver than thou" of course.
Infernus: We want to be an overground band as the opposite to the underground per definition. We want our music and our message to be available for whoever. Therefore of course MTV is a proper tool for us and our agenda.
He also addresses the rumour that he "recruited" Gaahl and King ov Hell in a male exclusive nightclub in Oslo, much like Dark Funeral is said to recruit its members through "grinder" dating apps.
I never met Gaahl [in a g-y night club]. I don't know what Dark Funeral is up to either, so don't measure us against Dark Funeral. [...]
He continues on the subject of Gaahl and other ex-Gorgoroth members (who left after the 2008 scandal).
Infernus: I had that guy in mind for years, believe me. It was me who came to him. I spent some time on taking the decision - a week or so? - and I picked from the uppermost assortment of musicians all according to what I felt comfortable with. I got a straight yes immediately, both from him, and from the other guys [King ov Hell, tn.]. We were more or less tuned in on the same goals.
He also doesn't mince his words about King ov Hell, the ex-bassist of Gorgoroth.
He had his qualities. And that's why I took him into the band in the first place. I always defended him, and it would not be appropriate to pretend anything else now. I liked the music he came up with, and given the historical perspective of the band - that I was never really concerned about having to write all and everything of the material myself - as long as the end result was good and I could stand behind it, I did not - and still do not - care who writes the music.
At least he is honest about the contributions of Gaahl and King ov Hell to the band, at a time where many felt Gorgoroth was running out of the little "steam" they had to begin with.
Infernus: "I am a religiously devoted Satanist!"
And regarding the persistent rumour that Infernus' satanism is a front for his sexual proclivities (something Tormentor said in multiple interviews).
Infernus: I have a Gnostic Satanic understanding of my being in the world. I am a religiously devoted Satanist. This means I have a concept of God transcending every thought I think and every feeling I feel. In everyday life as well as in the function I have in the music business and the so-called "Black Metal scene". To me Satanism represents a striving towards complete goodness and freedom. Some may understand it, others not.
Of course, Infernus constantly tries to set himself up as a sort of "Varg Vikernes" figure, a misunderstood outcast. But the musical output of the two bands, Gorgoroth and Burzum, simply don't match. You can't compare the nu-metal of "Instinctus Bestialis" with something like "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss".
Also, Infernus is known to rip off riffs from fellow black metal musicians - the aforementioned Burzum, but also Mayhem, Darkthrone, Bathory, Taake, Thorns, Marduk, Khranial and, more surprisingly, Bullet For My Valentine (see "Building a Man").
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