Vorga - Radiant Glory

Vorga

Radiant Glory

by Louise Brown at 25 March 2019, 7:21 PM

German Black Metal band VORGA formed in 2016 and has one release available currently; the EP "Radiant Glory," released in February of this year. It's quite brief with regard to the tracks to discuss.

"The Black Age," starts out fast and aggressive, as any good Black Metal song should. It features a great deal of brutal guitar riffs, hyper-speed drums and a solid bass-line that will get your attention immediately; the vocals are equally good, venomous and sinister in just the right way. But… it reminds me a lot of music by another band that I reviewed for a different publication recently;  LETHERIA, a Finnish Black Metal band that is slowly starting to gain attention, too. It's not to say that "The Black Age" isn't good; it is. It's just not very original.

"Argil," by contrast, is a far better song. It's melodic, but still heavy with a lot of bass as well as an underlying guitar track that adds so much to the whole piece, rounding it out in a way that is subtle, yet important. The vocals were more to my liking as well, brutal and commanding without being overbearing or annoying. I did find the song's bridge to be a bit long, but it didn't take away from it too much. It is still one of the better songs on the EP.

"Divine" is faster-paced, much like the opening track. It's a well-executed song, precise and machine-like. While it possesses all of the qualities required for any great Black Metal composition once again the problem is it lacks originality. I have heard other songs like it before recently; the album by DODSFALL that I reviewed not that long ago comes to mind. No, I don't expect VORGA to come up with something that's never been heard before. That is asking a lot of any band, especially one that is still fairly new. My complaint relates to the feeling that the band could be so much more if they simply tried a little harder to find their own style to imprint on the genre. They obviously have the talent. I believe they're still hesitant to trust their instincts and simply go for it,throw caution to the wind; it's okay, guys, really, your fans will appreciate it.

The final song, "Hunger," is slow and Doom-laden to begin with, then gradually builds into something more. The sense of tension within the track gave it that missing component that wasn't present at times within the other songs. Black Metal needs certain amounts of rage and despair to maintain the precarious balance that it carries within it; after all, at the very heart of the genre lies the battle between Dark versus Light. I thought the vocal performance was far more persuasive on this track, too, getting your attention by sounding wicked without overselling it. I honestly love this song because of the dark magic it seems to contain. It almost weaves a spell about you while you listen. (Not literally; this is music, not witchcraft.)

 While I won't say I was overwhelmingly impressed with "Radiant Glory," I wasn't completely put off by it, either. It has its' good qualities as well as its' not-so-good qualities. If you're a fan of Black Metal that is basic and to-the-point then you should add the EP to your collection.

Songwriting: 6
Originality: 6
Memorability: 6
Production: 7