I’ve always had a strange fascination for industrial music. From the music of Ministry to the modified music of Norwegian Black Metal band, Mortiis, there’s a fair helping of the music to choose from. One such band is the morphing Mortiis, evolved from the once high and mighty Emperor. Mortiis, the stage name of Håvard Ellefsen (bass, Emperor, 1991-1992), formed first as a creator of morbid dungeon music, then as a full-bodied band of four.
Mortiis has previously released four albums (The Smell Of Rain – 2001, The Grudge – 2004, Some Kind Of Heroin – 2007, Perfectly Defect – 2010). With a new lineup, Mortiis has a new album on the horizon, planned for release on January 29 via Omnipresence Records. The new album is called The Great Deceiver.
Simply put, The Great Deceiver will most certainly NOT be for every music fan, nor will ANY of Mortiis’ prior works. That includes the band itself. But, like the evolving theater of Dark Rock that began with Alice Cooper, and advanced by Marilyn Manson, Mortiis is an interesting part of the whole phenomenon. It might be said, however, that even the fright of Marilyn Manson’s music and show, pales considerably under the weight of a Mortiis set.
For the interested, Mortiis is giving away their first single, “Doppelganger”, for download at their site. The song is a single edited version of the longer track found on the album. There is also a lively remix track of “Doppelganger” available for download.
