Black Metal is known for the large number of bands that emerge and those that have become classics for the style such as Mayhem, Immortal and Darkthrone. However, among these bands, some reach cult status among their fans, as is the case with Thorns. Thorns' roots go back to 1989 in the city of Trondheim, when guitarist Snorre W. Ruch and vocalist/bassist Marius Vold formed the band Stigma Diabolicum, and recorded the demo “Luna De Nocturnus”, in addition to releasing the live recording “Live in Stjørdal”. They soon expanded their ranks, bringing in a bassist named Harald Eilertsen, allowing Vold to concentrate on vocals, as well as drummer Bård G. Eithun, better known to black metal fans as Faust, who would later join Emperor. The quartet changed its name to Thorns around 1991, when the use of Latin was becoming more prominent in black metal.
Demo “Luna De Nocturnus”
Coinciding with the name change, the band entered the studio to record their first demo tape as Thorns, which became the much praised “Grymyrk”. Featuring just Snorre on guitar and Eilertsen on bass, this release was not only popular but highly influential, with Darkthrone drummer Fenriz claiming that it was on this demo that Snorre co-created the Norwegian black metal guitar sound, along with Mayhem guitarist Euronymous. A year later, Thorns recorded and released their second demo, “Trøndertun” in 1992, which also became a favorite among the Black Metal faithful and continued to give the group a lot of respect in the scene.
Demo “Grymyrk”
Despite their growing reputation, even the simple act of rehearsing was difficult for the group, as all four members lived in different parts of Norway. Eventually it was decided that they would find an apartment in the capital Oslo to become more organized. However, the band was unable to find anywhere to rehearse, and as a result, several members became disinterested in Thorns and did not want to write any songs. Frustrated by this, Ruch decided to accept an invitation to join local legends Mayhem as their second guitarist, putting Thorns on hold for a while. In Mayhem, he helped to make Euronymous' guitar sound better, also influencing the lyrics, taking the place of second guitarist in the recording of the classic “De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas”.
álbum “De Mysteriis”
Despite not appearing on the finished record, he contributed entire Thorns riffs to several songs, his presence being felt not only during these moments, but generally through his impact on much of Euronymous' spine-tingling guitar work. His other role was also to rearrange the lyrics of Dead (former Mayhem singer who committed suicide in 1991) into several songs, preparing the ground for the new singer, Attila Csihar.
Metalion, Varg, Euronymous e Snorre
However, his time with Mayhem would become infamous and end in perhaps Metal's most notorious event. Ruch hung out with Burzum's Varg Vikernes quite often, moving in with him in Bergen in 1993 after almost being committed to a mental institution. According to Vikernes, it was Snorre who revealed Euronymous' plans to torture Vikernes to death, calling him to listen in on a phone call with the Mayhem guitarist in which he discussed his plans.
The two traveled from Bergen to Oslo so that Vikernes could cut ties with Euronymous (Snorre accompanied him because he wanted to show some riffs to his bandmate) and arriving at the place, a fight broke out between Vikernes and Euronymous, which resulted in the guitarist's death. Ruch was waiting outside the apartment and when Vikernes appeared with blood on his clothes, the Thorns founder panicked and tried to flee, although Varg had to catch up to him because Ruch had his car keys.
It wasn't long before Vikernes was arrested for the murder and subsequently sentenced to the maximum sentence of twenty-one years in Norwegian prison, but Ruch was also sentenced, in 1994, to eight years in prison for being an accessory to murder, despite Vikernes' insistence that Snorre was merely “in the wrong place at the wrong time” and had no part in Euronymous' death.
Snorre
He was released in 1999 and Thorns returned with the split “Thorns VS. Emperor” with Emperor, which included each band covering one of the other’s songs.
After the split release, Ruch began recording the self-titled debut album, released in 2001. “Thorns” has a proper lineup that feels more like a supergroup. Satyr, frontman of Satyricon, who according to Snorre was the one who convinced him to return to music after his release from prison, co-produced and shared vocals with Aldrahn of Dødheimsgard. The drums are destroyed by Hellhammer (Mayhem), and Snorre takes care of the rest of the instruments. From the opening of the first track, “Existence”, it is very clear that Snorre's riffs are immersed in distortion to the point of having a static effect, being more unsettling than furious, in addition to the generous help of industrial elements and Aldrahn's vocals, which gives the track yet another macabre touch.
The first track on Satyr is the excellent “World Playground Deceit”, which is once again highlighted by Snorre’s unique and mysterious riffs. Hellhammer's performance is also worth highlighting, as it adopts a mechanical style that greatly enhances the sound and, surprisingly, has few or almost no blast beats.
Black Metal and Industrial are a good combination, as some began to show around this time, and Snorre's crazy riffs are the perfect ingredients for an industrial revamp. After two more Black Metal tracks, a pair of much more industrialized songs follow in “Shifting Channels” and “Stellar Master Elite”. The first is slower and contains constant electronic additions, including the sound of banging pipes and robotic movements. The latter is more furious and releases the full power of Hellhammer at some points. Both are excellent, but “Shifting Channels” is the braver of the two, it's the first track to really give equal breath to each style.
The next pair are the two parts of “Underneath the Universe”. Part 1 is a 7+ minute ambient industrial track with a few riffs sprinkled in. The atmosphere created, despite the emptiness of the track, is an excellent bridge to Part 2. Aldrahn and Satyr are present vocally, but Snorre's composition takes the prize once again. The inclusion of some absolutely spine-tingling keyboards is an added bonus, bringing together a simply stunning track. “Interface to God” has a spiral riff that gives the sensation of ascension and once again exceptional drum work from Hellhammer. “Vortex” is a decadent track, with Snorre contributing a barely spoken, robotic vocal, along with another storm of unorthodox riffs and strange effects, making it an excellent way to end the record.
The record was met with much enthusiasm and praise, but was notably influenced by industrial music, moving away from the cold black metal style they helped create, leading Ruch to create the electronic spin-off group, Thorns Ltd. who created music for various art shows. Since then, Thorns has been largely inactive and Ruch spent more time with Thorns Ltd., but the small catalog of music that Thorns created will forever be hailed as one of the most important in the Norwegian Black Metal scene.
Leprous live @ O2 Forum Kentish Town, London. Photo Credit: Karolina Janikunaite
Leprous live @ O2 Forum Kentish Town, London. Photo Credit: Karolina Janikunaite
Leprous live @ O2 Forum Kentish Town, London. Photo Credit: Karolina Janikunaite
