Solo Orlando Black-Metal Project: Gates of Mourning

Tags: black metal, Daniel Morris, Florida, Gates of Mourning, grindcore, Legions, local musicians, Maruta, Mayhem, Miami, Nightfall Blooms and Golden Horns, Of Beauty Lust and Thrones of Blood, Orlando, solo project

You might be lucky enough to catch Orlando resident Daniel Morris walking down Park Avenue in corpse paint or hanging around a severed goat’s head. He’s not in a cult, and he’s not looking for the local sacrificial meet-and-greet. He’s a solo black metal artist, releasing a new album under the moniker Gates of Mourning. Morris has been involved with many metal projects before—some black metal, some not—but Gates of Mourning is a little more personal of a project, and he’s very proud of his efforts on the brand new album: Nightfall Blooms and Golden Horns.

For those who are unfamiliar, black metal is an extreme subgenre of metal that was born out of thrash bands in the 80’s, such as Venom and Hellhammer. But it was the Norwegian bands in the 90’s who really molded it into what it’s recognized as today, complete with ostentatious medieval costumes, black and white face paint, Satanic or Pagan imagery, and malevolent lyrics. It might not be the sort of tracks that you would commonly find in the charts, or used as background music on sites like poker.dk, but black metal certainly has a loyal and significant following.
but black metal certainly has a loyal and significant following. The music, in particular, is fast, utilizing wailing vocals, tremolo picking guitars and blast beat drums.

Black-metal projects, like any other music, are started for numerous reasons (some more serious than others), but Morris’s reason was simple—self-expression.

Morris was first and foremost a drummer. He wanted to play drums ever since his grandparents bought him a “First Act” drum set from Wal-Mart when he was younger. Since then he’s also taken up other instruments.

“With guitar, I really only picked it up to play black metal,” Morris said.

His influence was never limited to black metal, though. He has been a long-time fan of classical music, and he was even influenced by pop-punk bands, such as Taking Back Sunday, Coheed & Cambria and New Found Glory.

But Morris isn’t the typical “metalhead” you would expect. He’s a vegetarian. He pushes carts at Target. And he uses black metal as a form of self-expression, not to proclaim his affinity for any sort of Pagan religion.

Black metal has a rather misanthropic past. Many of the Norwegian groups that began the genre were known for their anti-social and anti-Christian views, since it was so near the punk era. They burnt churches to the ground, there were murders between band members, and a lead singer who committed suicide was immortalized when a photo of his dis-em-brained body was later used for an album cover. The genre is often considered underground and has never really breached or been accepted by mainstream audiences.

That doesn’t mean that the genre hasn’t expanded, though. It’s recently been influenced by more and more styles. For example, the American black-metal band, Agalloch, and the French band, Alcest, are both influenced by post-rock. It’s not necessarily obvious from the beginning but certain moments in their music reveal aspects that relate closer to bands such as Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky, rather than ones Darkthrone or Gorgoroth.

Liturgy is another American band, based in Brooklyn, who have used the basic elements of black metal but attempted to transform it into something completely different. The lead singer wrote a manifesto called “Transcendental Black Metal: A Vision of Apocalyptic Humanism,” which was meant to define an entirely new philosophy and subgenre of black metal. In the end, many people haven’t taken lightly to the idea, since their music seems too drowned in pretense, but they’ve gained some critical notoriety for their willingness to break molds.

Regardless of the direction the genre is ever taken in, the fact remains that it’s a very grandiose style of music. It’s steeped in back story and rituals, but Morris believes that it’s simply about the music.

“Many bands are concerned about being evil or whatever,” Morris said. “That’s fine. I listen to those bands, too. But I don’t think black metal is limited to being religious or even anti-religious.”

Morris is also a singer and guitarist for another Orlando black metal band called Legions and the drummer for a grindcore band, based in Miami, called Maruta. Maruta released a new album recently on Willowtip Records. They’re even getting ready for a European tour from September 2011 until October 2011.

With all of these projects, Morris keeps himself busy, but he still has time for his solo projects. He thoroughly enjoys the process of writing the songs by himself, being a part of every aspect of the album. He said he begins with the guitar riffs and moves on from there.

“The lyrics and vocals are always last, even though they are very important, especially on this album,” Morris said. “Most importantly, the final product is usually a result of the expression of myself.”

Black metal is often known for its raw, unproduced recordings. It can easily grate on the ears of a casual listener, but to some it’s a rare form of art. For those like Morris, it’s all about the sincerity.

Listen to the new Gates of Mourning track below: “Of Beauty, Lust and Thrones of Blood” off of the new album, Nightfall Blooms and Golden Horns.

–Robert Miller

06 Of Beauty,Lust and Thrones of Blood by GatesofMourning