On September 8th 2024, Le Passion Rouge in New York City’s Greenwich Village played host to an evening of distinguished albeit harmonized sonic darkness, courtesy of two subterranean titans of the 1990’s: Mortiis and Brighter Death Now. Each would showcase a retrospective and groundbreaking album from their catalog in its entirety, released some 30 years prior (1993’s “Født Til Å Herske” and 1995’s “Necrose Evanglicum“). Their 22-date U.S. tour The Dungeons Are Calling (also featuring U.S. dungeon synth artists Malfet and Sombre Arcane) honored their enduring collaboration, forged through the banner of Roger Karmanik’s monumental record label Cold Meat Industry, which introduced Mortiis’s epic & melodic dark electronic medieval soundscapes (now referred to as dungeon synth), by way of the project’s second and third studio albums – “Ånden Som Gjorde Opprør” and “Keiser Av En Dimensjon Ukjent”, As most of us are aware, Mortiis’s trademark and pioneering sound was rooted within the space and identity of the early 90’s Norwegian black metal scene (he was previously in Emperor and played bass on “Wrath Of The Tyrant” in 1992), but simultaneously distanced from it, and was carried to a broader audience and more fastidious backdrop with the Cold Meat Industry releases, subsequently bridging the gap between the extreme metal and industrial/noise and experimental music scenes in the early nineties.
Co-headliner, Swedish one man death-industrial & noise mastermind Brighter Death Now, lead by Roger Karmanik, performed selections and improvisations of his intensely morose and nihilistic classic 1995 LP titled Necrose Evanglicum. Those particular descriptors are actually one hell of an understatement. To elaborate, if you happen to be unfamiliar with this definitive piece in his body of work (which spans over three decades), and much like the album cover suggests- the tone of this album, from front to back, evoke nothing but the most grim suicidal frequencies, contempt for all life and mankind, and perhaps the ice cold exit from this world to whatever nightmare is waiting below. Moans of agony and echoes of utmost suffering included. Synth duties on the title closing track were also provided by none other than Mortiis himself. Necrose Evanglicum is a full-on audio haunting, and not like one from your father’s “Halloween sounds” cassette collection of yesteryear, but one that is perhaps from the blackest and bleakest of psychiatric wards, and could only be conjured from a mind that has already been damned to (or, at least frequently meditated on) hell itself, and it is certainly not for the faint of heart.
Brighter Death Now took to the stage, quietly but masterfully and started up kindling the electronic fire that would very soon open up to be the raging inferno of his set that evening. Various black & white images were projected onto the screen behind him, some of which included a flashing skull superimposed with vast cosmic or microcosmic emptiness, Aboriginal figures and shapes, a tree full of hanged men, and the project’s trademark Yantra symbol. The sounds and images together calculatingly project an aura of dread and futility. The bleak droning sounds slowly shifted into more intense hellraising noise, as we all were seemingly hurdled into the Absolute. As the sonic and visual maelstrom ensued, shredding the audience’s collective psyche into oblivion, Karmanik took hold of the mic and stepped out from behind his table set up, with the silent and commanding presence of a Don, inched closer toward the crowd while emitting the vast, echoed and indecipherable screams of existential anguish which make up the vocal portion of Necrose Evanglicum. As the intensity of his auditory inferno began to subside and his set came to a close – he stood alone, unwavering, hands clasped and head tipped down in acknowledgement, as a black silhouette amidst the fog and lighting with death’s head fittingly gleaming on the screen behind him. Surely, Brighter Death Now succeeded in furnishing a night of VERY LITTLE FUN for everyone in attendance.
Headlining that evening on a more enchanted note is everyone’s favorite winged and armored forest dwelling goblin- the almighty Mortiis, masked persona of Håvard Ellefsen, who would be journeying over the hills and far away, back to his Era I roots to perform his 1994 debut two-part album Født Til Å Herske (Born To Rule). The iconic, minimalist hour long composition conveys a reverence for the natural world, solitary landscapes, and atmospheres of grandiose melancholy. The musical and visual aesthetic of Født Til Å Herske managed to tap into an archetype so heavily that mainly it, along with a small handful of other contemporary releases, provoked a genre of music, retroactively dubbed dungeon synth. It stands exactly 30 years later as an unmistakable classic.
Equally sorrowful and triumphant, Mortiis took the stage, dreadlocks draped over his warlock nose. From behind his primitive, post-apocalyptic scrapyard looking keyboard setup, the familiar opening notes of “Born To Rule” rang out and set the tone for the remainder of the night- the crowd ready to receive his immersive folklore. Amidst the hanging fog and under the ambiance of deep red and blue lighting, the Dark Dungeon maestro wove a sonic tapestry that transported the audience to an ancient realm of forlorn, mystical introspection. Echoes of ancient forests and Norway’s own frozen tundras mesmerized the curious attendees. His noble and Tolkienesque arrangements almost served as a soothing natural remedy after Brighter Death Now’s audio assault. Mortiis’ reworking of Født Til Å Herske had more overall dimension, layering and depth, but at the same time stayed completely true to the original composition. Dare I say, this version may have been a more enriching experience for the ears. As the serpent doth eat its tail- Mortiis has now ventured back to where it pretty much all began back in ‘93, and given us a refreshing an updated, not simply ‘modernized’ version of his groundbreaking release, solidifying his status not only as a treasure not only within the phenomenon of Dark Dungeon Music, but as a tried and true artist of modern electronic music.
The union of Mortiis & Brighter Death Now proved to be a match made in heaven (or hell) depending on one’s perspective.
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