Band:	Summoning
Album:	Minas Morgul
Style:	Atmospheric black metal
Release date:	October 16, 1995
Guest review by:	Silent Creeper

01. Soul Wandering
02. Lugburz
03. The Passing Of The Grey Company
04. Morthond
05. Marching Homewards
06. Orthanc
07. Ungolianth
08. Dagor Bragollach
09. Through The Forest Of Dol Guldur
10. The Legend Of The Master-Ring
11. Dor Daedeloth

Minas Morgul, the second Summoning album, was released just six months after their debut "Lugburz", when the band was still pretty unknown even if they were already under Napalm Records. This was also their breakthrough album, with which they became known to a larger metal audience and still remains as one of the most appreciated Black Metal releases.

Nowadays fans of so called "true" Black Metal would probably shudder at the fact that the songs are actually based on keyboards, drum programming and (nowadays) over-used Lord Of The Rings lyrical themes. But not in the Summoning case. They were actually one of the very first Black Metal bands that used Tolkien's themes in their lyrics (other bands used them more or less only for the band names or nicknames of band members) and also in a very unique way that probably no other band will ever be able to achieve.

Let's go to the music. Keyboards and drum programming give Minas Morgul an amazing sound, which other instruments or real drums never could. The keyboards create an amazing epic atmosphere while drum programming gives album medieval feeling and doesn't sound artificial at all (as in many cases it does); you sometimes actually think that you are listening to the real Middle Age percussions. Guitars and bass are used only as accompaniment and that's a great thing which gives the keyboards and drum programming a much more notable part. All the instruments are also played in a pretty slow tempo that makes the songs more epic. The vocals are done by both members, Protector and Silenius and prevent any parts from sounding monotonous or anything like that. They both have pretty special vocals, some sort of low-pitched shriek which fits amazingly with this kind of musical/lyrical concept. Minas Morgul also has perfect "low-budget" production which isn't too raw but also not sterile and fits the album perfectly.

It is very hard to say which songs are the best, because every single one of the them is amazing in its own special way, including the first song Soul Wandering and the sixth one that is called Orthanc, which are both instrumental. To conclude, this album is one of the most perfect pieces of Black Metal art and that's why it deserves nothing less than a perfect ten.