Review Summary: From skilled followers to inspired innovators: an overlooked death metal gem.

The impact that Chuck Schuldiner and his band Death had on the metal landscape was immediate, profound and resounding. Years of demos, rehearsals, tinkering and refining culminated in the legendary one-two punch of Scream Bloody Gore (1987) and Leprosy (1988). What made these albums so groundbreaking and defining was their marriage of style and substance, codifying the aesthetic of the nascent death metal genre while showing that raw aggression and finesse in songwriting need not be mutually exclusive. This would prove to be both a blueprint and a gold standard for straightforward death metal, inspiring countless bands across the world for years to come.

One band for whom Death were an important influence was Morgoth, hailing from the modest and often overlooked German scene. If Florida and indeed the United States in general became a hotbed for death metal, Germany wasn't quite so lucky, though it was not without interesting bands: Atrocity, Jumpin' Jesus, Fleshcrawl and, you guessed it, Morgoth. Despite being around in some form or another since 1985, it wasn't until June of 1988 that Morgoth released their first demo cassette - Pits of Utumno; a solid effort perhaps best comparable stylistically to the sound of American bands such as Sadus and Morbid Saint. It was certainly good enough to catch the attention of a newly-formed little record label called Century Media who were quick to get Morgoth aboard. But the raw death/thrash sound would quickly fall out of fashion, with many bands starting to favour the more refined approach showcased by Death's Leprosy. And though many did try, few managed to emulate the subtle songwriting brilliance of that album quite like Morgoth. Their two EPs, Resurrection Absurd (1989) and The Eternal Fall (1990) displayed serious knowhow in terms of crafting dynamic songs, with natural tempo changes as well as seamless fills and solos that never feel like they're trying to be too flashy. In other words, they understood the intricacies that made classic Death, well, classic. And they incorporated that into their music quite adeptly, although the vocals and production did lean perhaps a bit too much on the Florida sound. The full length debut - 1991's Cursed - continued in a similar vein, with an added touch of slower sections much like what Obituary and Asphyx were also employing at the time. If Morgoth's Story had ended there, they would have still been notable if only for how well and how thoroughly they were able to emulate Death's sound without ever falling into banality.

Luckily their story did continue, which finally brings us to Odium, released in May of 1993. Tasteful tom drums set the pace before quickly giving way to a familiar sound. The production is noticeably different, drier, less primitive, but overall the opening track Resistance doesn't stray much from Morgoth's established sound. The Art of Sinking follows suite, another fairly unassuming song that mixes things up a bit with crunchy mid-tempo grooves somewhat reminiscent of Entombed. It's solid, it's respectable, it's what you would expect 1993 death metal to sound like for the most part. At this point cynical listeners are likely to wonder: is this a sophomore slump?

No, or at the very least not in the sense of feeling like an uninspired retread of the same old ground. Submission starts with a moody clean guitar, eventually becoming an equally ominous distorted guitar. Toms take the stage again for a protracted, almost Neurosis-esque build-up that reaches peak tension thanks to some subtle synth usage before exploding back into death metal. Well then, this certainly is different! Under The Surface pulls no punches either, the buzzing opening riff has a distinctive industrial metal feel to it, as does the steady double bass coming in to support it; it has a driving, relentless feel to it without being overpowering. And when the guitars slow down, the Schuldiner-inspired rasp turns to more of a shout, the toms come in yet again, blimey, it's hard not to say Neurosis. Drowning Sun takes a similar approach but applied to a more deliberate groove affair, chunky and plodding, reveling in guitar noise and melodic soloing alike in its second half.

So it's time to take a step back and recontextualise. Leading with the most straightforward tracks on the album now seems like a clever way of easing fans of pure death metal into Morgoth's more ambitious ideas here. And upon closer inspection, those first two songs also have traces of industrial influence; obviously the guitar and drum sound are consistent across the album, but so is the very rhythmic approach to drumming. And let's not mince words, Rüdiger Hennecke kills it behind the kit all throughout this thing, obvious highlight right there. But really what's most remarkable is how organically the band is able to fit together ideas from other genres, consolidating them around what is ultimately still a robust death metal core. It feels like a natural evolution of their sound. And it seems to have been deliberate, with more recent interviews by different members painting the picture that Morgoth were not content to just make death metal for the sake of death metal, but approached the writing of this album with creativity and with an open mind. The gothic feel of eerie clean guitar, which does feature prominently on the final two tracks as well, makes a lot more sense when the band cites listening to groups like Fields of the Nephilim and Dead Can Dance at the time. Likewise the dry, industrial atmosphere that permeates Odium is explained by references to Ministry and Godflesh. Guitarist Harald Busse told Invisible Oranges that Pantera and Prong were also acts they enjoyed during this period, while singer Marc Grewe confessed great respect for Voivod and Killing Joke as bands that constantly evolved and reinvented themselves. Perhaps none of these influences are overt or obvious here, but in aggregate they help complete the puzzle of what makes Odium such a unique album.

It's no small feat to effortlessly integrate so many influences into a cohesive whole; it's no small feat to create an album with a cold, often mechanical sound while keeping the compositions both organic and dynamic; it's no small feat to branch out from death metal and create something this compelling. Though this record remains fairly overlooked in metal history, Morgoth accomplished no small feat here. And they would continue to push the boundary even further with 1996's presciently-titled Feel Sorry for the Fanatic...



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user ratings (64)
3.8
excellent

Comments:Add a Comment 
parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

review blows chunks but i felt the need to write about this band

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

i do plan on doing the next one as well because metalheads' takes on it are embarrassing

Kusangii
July 21st 2021


7099 Comments


never been one for electronic music but this is a swell album. Motion Picture Soundtrack is gorgeous

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

feature this

Shadowmire
July 21st 2021


6660 Comments


pos!!

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

🙏🙏🙏

DDDeftoneDDD
July 21st 2021


22796 Comments


"Motion Picture Soundtrack is gorgeous" yap, the main dude is a godamn genius

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

glad we can all agree

GhandhiLion
July 21st 2021


17677 Comments


for sure

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

edit: omg! thank you for the feature kind stranger

Space Jester
July 21st 2021


11280 Comments


Whoa cool review parks

I like this album but haven’t jammed in awhile, might do that today

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Sweet



yea i like this band

Ryus
July 21st 2021


37886 Comments


resurrection absurd is cool havent heard anything else by them tho

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

honestly that one might be the best of their pure dm stuff



cursed usually gets all the love but i think its not as tight as the EPs

TheTripP
July 21st 2021


4670 Comments


gonna have to give this a shot!

Keyblade
July 21st 2021


30678 Comments


aw hell yea. havent heard this one, only heard Cursed

ShadowRemains
July 21st 2021


28058 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

marc grewe's vocals still absolute filth

brainmelter
Contributing Reviewer
July 21st 2021


8416 Comments


phat pos

ShadowRemains
July 21st 2021


28058 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

btw if you dig this, listen to suffocated truth by obscenity

parksungjoon
July 21st 2021


47231 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

well i dig this because of the industrial bits not in spite of them, but regardless ill try not to forget!



cheers everyone, check and rate m/m/m/



will try to do the next one this week



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