Intense Records - 1991
9/10
Australia's Mortification has to be one of my favorite anomalies in existence. By 1991, it wasn't uncommon to find metal of the righteous tongue, but doing it in the death/thrash style in a country that had such little influence in the metalsphere seems like an interesting melting pot in hindsight. Given the extremely raw and absolutely hateful feeling of their style, it almost seems like a paradox. Simply titled Mortification, there's a reason why this still sticks today and works into my regular rotation.
Given that the likes of Sepultura and Morbid Saint had left a pretty menacing mark on the scene, you may expect this to seem like just another one, but a couple things allow this to hold a flame to other classics. For one, the hellish guitar tones meeting the raw atmosphere compliment the straightforward drum blasts that coat this entire record, striking that perfect balance of underproduced but full of clarity. I also wager that this general vibe relishes in more punk-oriented chops beneath the surface than most will pick up upon first listen. I certainly wouldn't go as far as calling this anything falling into the hardcore realm, but the smallest attention to detail will reveal the flavors amidst the thrash foundation.
One of the sneakier examples to me would be "Bathed In Blood" due to its start/stop aura that captures otherwise overtly thrashy rhythms with precise speed. Doing this with such masterful death metal vocals and nothing going over the top is likely one of my favorite features on Mortification. Similarly, shorter numbers like "Break The Curse" sounds like a death-covered Black Flag song, and "No Return" glean hints of crossover fury with its explosive speeds contrasting a calmer center. However, I would even say some songs, such as "Ritual Warfare" almost touch catchiness, mostly because of the sharp basslines pummeling along with the advanced drumming, and the memorable chorus. The longer "Satan's Doom" draws this out into doom territory, but not once does it lose its focus. I guess the short version of saying all of this is that the band has an ear for rhythm, which is sometimes all it takes to be supreme.
I really love how nicely all of these pieces fit together, and that they're executed with such brevity (a theme that unfortunately would not stick around for subsequent albums). Bands like Mortification are so fun, where they take all of the evil themes that Christianity wants to combat and turns them into a proverbial lake of fire meant to capture their figurative threat in musical form. It sounds as evil as the album art looks, but they manage to still sneak three crosses into the logo, matching the covert way righteous messages make it into the otherwise harsh delivery. Anybody that digs the earlier death/thrash sound should absolutely give this holy grail a try.
