Artist: Goat Orgy
Country: Bulgaria
Label: Blasphemous Rumours Promotion
Formats: Cassette Tape
Year: 2026
If you’ve never heard of Goat Orgy, you’re forgiven. Although this obscure Bulgarian Black Metal band has recorded and released a few demos and splits since their inception in 2018, these appear to have been made available exclusively in digital format through equally obscure “labels”. As far as I can tell, some of the demos haven’t even been available at all. Nevertheless, the Bulgarian label Blasphemous Rumours Promotion got wind of the band, gathered a significant number of the recordings, and released them as this double cassette tape compilation. A word of warning beforehand: this isn’t for people who like their music neat and polished.
Spread across the total running time of these two cassettes are four demos. The first, ‘The Altar Of Satan’ (2019), is the only one I’ve been able to confirm was previously available digitally. It’s also the only one with a title. The other three demos are simply labeled ‘Demo January 2019’, ‘Demo February 2020’, and ‘Demo October 2020’. Many of the songs that appear on these demos have also been used on three digital splits, so die-hard underground devotees may recognize a few tracks. Although in that case, they might have faded from memory somewhat, as the most recent public releases seem to date back to 2019.
Musically, Goat Orgy delivers a dose of raw and simplistic Black Metal that seems suitable only for the seasoned underground Black Metal fan. Its foundation can best be described as a cross between a frenzied version of early Ildjarn and the Dutch band Heretic. But given the extremely raw production, a comparison to Moonblood’s rawest rehearsal recordings is also apt. It is very reminiscent of old German Black Metal from the mid-90s: devoid of melody and finesse, hideously ugly, and stripped down to the bone.
At best, these are home recordings or rehearsal recordings, possibly recorded using a cell phone or a single microphone. In any case, no effort has been made to make the listening experience any easier, which actually enhances the spontaneity of the music. However, fans of a good drum sound will be rather disappointed, as it is difficult or even impossible to make out the drums at all. It is mainly a rabid snarl and an ever-repeating, rather bare-sounding guitar that can be disentangled from this jumble of sonic vibrations.
Lo-fi Black Metal enthusiasts will probably know what to make of this, but the average listener would be better off checking out the new Vargrav album instead. To illustrate: there are two cover songs on this album, Venom’s ‘Countess Bathory’ and Hellhammer’s ‘Massacra,’ but I completely missed those two on my first listen. Personally, I can see the appeal here, but due to the complete lack of any variety, it’s a bit of a struggle to get through. So, die-hards: come on in!
