Search - Toranaga :: God's Gift

Classic Forgotten Doom Metal

Joel Israel | Cedar City, UT United States | 12/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Toranaga, a doom/gothic metal band from the U.K., surfaced at the end of the eighties with this incredible album, and then quickly disappeared off the face of the earth. I remember this album and band well, since at the time I was in a metal band with all of my friends, and we loved this album...I spent many hours is my room, guitar in hand, learning these songs so we could play them live. Long out-of print, this album is a rare gem for metal fans.



Dark, brooding, old-school, and heavy as hell, Toranaga basically come across as a heavier, more modern Black Sabbath meets Bruce Dickinson. Dissonant and evil sounding atmospherics, plodding, muscular dirge riffs, and minor key solos are all over this album. Gothic and imaginative lyrics and song titles("Black Is The Mask", "Sword of Damocles", etc.)and classic NWOBHM-style vocals ala Iron Maiden add just the right touch to put this one toe to toe with any metal album out there. But, alas, it was not to be. If this had come out ten years earlier, it would have been a revolution....very, very heavy and cool metal classic, if you can find it."