2019 press with No Solace and lyrics printed on the backcover

The underground is a haven for eclipsed and enigmatic bands butthis Polish act, who have enjoyed much success before the arrivalof Groza, have managed to rise above the struggling influx of lesssuspenseful bands. Fans of extreme underground music have harped onabout Mgla since the dawn of their creation, stating that they willbecome one of the most significant acts in modern black metalfolklore due to their incredible spirit and style. Having heardPresence before this full-length effort, Groza (which means dreadin English) I can say that the reaction to Mglas earliest materialis certainly hyperbolic. I did enjoy their EPs, most of which Iheard after hearing Groza, but I cannot say that I havent heard farsuperior bands to this Polish two man effort. Groza, thankfully,has hit the heights that some of the previous material didnt but Iwont be judging this on the basis of what has gone before it asfull-lengths are a step up in quality. What with having ties tomuch hyped and much loved fellow Polish bands such asKriegsmaschine (who I am not that fond of) and Massemord (who I amparticularly fond of), one was waiting in anticipating for Groza,which was released over the summer of 2008. Signed to major recordlabel Northern Heritage also added an extra sense of anticipation,which was steadily mounting. The pressure was firmly positioned onthe shoulders of the members of Mgla to perform and thankfully, asstated, this record has hit unprecedented heights that perhapsprevious material may have struggled to do in the past. There aresome notable changes to the style of Mgla, who have increased theimportance of production, which is thankfully much improved fromprevious outings, where the material was immersed in anintoxicating fuzz. Groza however, although different in terms ofproduction values, hasnt lost any of the magic that the previousreleases may have had, in terms of the production, which is muchmore accessible to modern day listeners. As black metal has evolvedfrom a sub-genre of heavy metal, with its lo-fi production andblizzard like distortion, the standards have risen and expectationson elements like the production have changed. Although fans of thegenre may have accepted the lo-fi nature of the production, themajority of fans seem to be swaying towards improved standards interms of quality. This improvement doesnt just exist in one formeither, instrumentally, this Polish act have shown a degree ofmaturity in terms of song writing. Groza is covered by acaptivating production style, which doesnt tend to rely too heavilyon any specific element of the instrumentation. In the past, Mglahave perhaps seen the guitars as the most imperative aspect ofmodern day black metal and thus, whilst improving the standards ofthe guitar sections, the rest of the instrumentation has inevitablybeen let down. That is not the case with Groza. The bass, even,which is often left out in the cold on black metal records, issubmerged in a sunny production that offers a fascinating contrastin soundscapes. Although the production may be airy and light onthis effort, unlike on previous efforts, it allows theinstrumentation to solely do the work in terms of creating thediversities in sound. For example, the guitars, which still docontain the blizzard like tremolo effects, are used to firmlyestablish the evil atmospheric tendencies, which plague thelistener throughout by increasing a sense of destructive imageryand reflective patterns. The vocals are pretty standard and donttend to stick out much, but Mgla are all about the instrumentation,using tight percussion, interesting bass lines that like todominate and special guitars, which bring the most splendor to thesoundscapes. Although negatives do exist (the largely redundantvocals and such), they dont dominate in any sense of the word and Ican easily see a horde of onrushing black metal fans, with theirarmory, battle paint (or corpse paint if you prefer) and raisedswords ready to fight for and worship this Mgla record if it wereto ever come under intense scrutiny. Having had many chances tolisten to Groza, I cant see that it will. The effective use of basswhich, as stated, likes to take control on occasions, as well asbeing very diverse and interesting, those spectacular drivingguitars (which are particularly inspired on Groza IV which usestwin guitars to stunning effect), the distorted blizzard fest ismystically blissful and sounds like any fantasy novel reads, with aspecial atmospheric aura. Perhaps less importantly, despite therather redundant vocals, the lyrics express a complexity that theinstrumentation might not and delivers a poetical view of thelyrical themes.

The lowest common denominator is crowned.
Standpoints are chosen over general reason.
Stars allocated to every man and woman.
Fair measure of futile love and will.

Fortresses of blissful unconsciousness.
Anywhere between Aquinas and Descartes.

Blazing a trail as shown, as told, over the exact sametraces.
Crawling in circles with face in dirt and spirit skyhigh.

Highly rated for a reason.

Track listing:
1. Groza I
2. Groza II
3. Groza III
4. Groza IV

Condition cover: nm

Condition vinyl: nm

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