Review Summary: Goddess Tussa, show me the way
There have been few things in black metal that opportunists have jumped onto as quickly as the Batushka controversy. Seizing this brief moment, there have been three acts outside of the Drabikowski and Krysiuk camps to claim "The Gift of God"; Batushka, the third of its name from Poland whose debut EP
6 Schisms is just on the horizon, Batyushka a group of "Russian priests" that have inexplicably released FOUR full-lengths albums since September 12th, and lastly Bagg Tussa, a Ukrainian entity "forged by the orthodox cult figure" Krylow. While one would (rightfully) assume the dubious quality of these interlopers, it may come to surprise that the last figure Bagg Tussa's premiere demo
баґґтусса is a surprisingly competent effort to replicate the album that made Batuskha a name worth fighting over,
Litourgiya.
With a cover adorned by an eerily excitable religious figure cradling an equally as unsettling Baby Jesus, a cursory glace at
баґґтусса reeks of parody. And while that very well may be Ba-true-shka, first track "баґґтусса I" makes it a bit more difficult to glean the true intentions of Bagg Tussa; it is a genuinely exciting song that evokes the same Eastern European-tinged mysticism of
Litourgiya. The guitars are driven forward purposefully by songwriting the ebbs and flows between bass-heavy tremolo riffs and more nuanced lead guitar melodies. While there a no screams or shrieks to be heard, Krylow's chants have an interesting duality about them; commanding in one breadth and vulnerable in the next, his operatic warbling is surprisingly captivating despite its limited range. As a standalone track, it is a fantastic piece of black metal. Unfortunately, the following number ""баґґтусса I" isn't as much bad as it is completely useless. Seven minutes long and consisting of nothing but chiming bells, it serves as an anti-climactic end to what could have another
Litourgiya-tier track.
Despite its relative brevity and the fact it may very well be parody,
баґґтусса is a short release that somehow delivers an unexpected yet pleasant wrinkle in Batushka-gate. If Krylow decides to continue Bagg Tussa and keeps releasing tracks like "баґґтусса I", Drabikowski and Krysiuk may have more than each other to worry about.
