I guess the thing that upsets me most about this album is simply that there was so much potential here it's not funny. Many secular death heads know who Mortification is, and with the influence, not to mention affluence of Metal Blade, Mortification stood a good chance of having seriously turned a lot of people on to Christian metal.
Sadly their debut release on Metal Blade is a FAR cry from what we know these guys can produce. Someone asked me to rank this album with other Mort. albums and my only statement was "It's not as bad as Primitive Rhythm Machine, but only slightly better."
OK, let me do at least a small part of reviewing here. The first song...titled "Metal Crusade" would lead one to think we are embarking on a metal onslaught of the good old days of Mortification. Well we aren't. Steve has chosen to take his vocal style into a modern progressive stage and steer clear of his talented growls. Further this song brings in some keyboards to the Mort. elements. The keys come in mid-song and are so out of place it's simply horrible. It seems to me like Rowe's been listening to all these Black Metal bands using keys and felt he had to throw some in somewhere. It didn't work.
As far as the rest of the music goes, well, Steve is uneventful, but still holds his own on bass. Lincoln is awesome. This guy has talent oozing outta his finger tips and into his guitar. His performance is far overshadowed however by the downright terrible vocals. Keith is by far the most disappointing part of the album for me. I got to see him play live and he was able to nail the older Mort. stuff so I know he has skills, he just didn't use ANY of them on the album. The drums on this album are terribly boring from start to finish. I even checked the liner notes to find a song that gave Keith credit on the music, and listened carefully to hear him go off, which never happened.
I hate to say it but the majority of the album falls right in that same line, so I'm going to just stop here. The final tracks of the album are bonus tracks and are recording demos from Triumph of Mercy, plus the Medley of songs that Mort. played live from their old stuff. Including Lymphosarcoma, Nocturnal, and Scrolls, however all are sung in the new vocal style...and after one spin you realize you don't need to hear them ever again.
This album hurt me. If you've read Dead long you know I'm pretty much a psycho Mortification fan. For so long there was none better. Now however, it's just not worth your time.
2/10
Other coverage for this album
HM Magazine #78Reviewed by Doug Van PeltMortification has played a true tribute to the classic metal sounds that influenced it from the beginning. What we first heard on Blood World comes out more prominently here, but it's played so aggressively and tight that it beats the "old school" criticism to death. The album has good songs on it. The guitar tones bite a la Iron Maiden, the vocals are less grindy, but still close to the Steve…Art for the Ears 1999Reviewed by Marco PovervestThe mortified guys are back with a hammering thrash-album. Wow, start the first tune with powerful thrash (Metal Crusade). New here are the keyboards which add so much more atmosphere. The guitar comes clearly out of the mix so that's good. It's an aggressive song with a great guitarsolo. I only think the song could have been shorter. I didn't know Mortification could be this good nowadays, you…The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Justin W. JonesGet ready for a trip back metal lane. But the real trip is your tour guide--he looks like he's stuck in the eighties, he plays like he's stuck in the eighties, but I'm glad he's in the nineties. Yes, Mortification has released yet another album. Right from the start you get the metal fix you've been craving for so long, but you may question if you really wanted it in the first place. Steve Rowe…Dead Zine 1999Reviewed by NecRoSarXWell, it's good to see the band Light Force back together after all these years. Wait a minute, what's that you say? This isn't a Light Force album? This is a Mortification album? No, that can't be. Mortification is the ultra-heavy death metal/grindcore band from down under. This is a CD of classic power metal, reminiscent of Iron Maiden. No, this has to be Light Force. Wait up. After inspecting…Dead Zine 1999Reviewed by SFhxcSFI've heard a lot of bad things about this album. I don't know why. I know it's not grind and I know it's disappointing (R.I.P. old Embodyment). But this cd does not suck by any stretch of the mind. It's not brutal but it's metal! And we love metal! If you've read my other Mortification review...I think Morty's lyrics are cheesy and don't feel great need to comment, sorry. I do love…Dead Zine 1999Reviewed by SORGThis is the 9th full length CD from Steve Rowe and company, not to mention a couple of live eps, a best of compilation, a rare import, and some stuff Steve done back in the late 80s with his band Lightforce. Steve Rowe has been through the fires of Hell and is here to tell about it! He has successfully won a war against Leukemia (cancer of the bones and blood stream), even though at one point the…Dead Zine 1999Reviewed by FletchOuch. I give Mortification an E for effort. However, the glory days of Scrolls of the Megilloth are long gone. From the vague memories I carry of EnVision EvAngelene, this is somewhat of a step up in some areas, but an even further decline in others. Steve's personal classic metal tastes are showing through more than ever. The solos and riffs on this cd are pretty, well actually, extremely…Dead Zine 1999Reviewed by MuchTo be honest I have had zero interest in this band for years, other than the question of "have they ventured back into the land of brutality yet"? SIGH Not now and I fear never again. I did have a bit of interest upon hearing that keyboards were going to be used on this release. This new amenity ended up being an enmity because they sounded so "lite & airy" that it made Morty sound even weaker. A…Similar sounding releases
1998ExtolBurial
1997Theocracy A.D.Welcome to our Island
2001AmosGothic Soul
2003TourniquetWhere Moth And Rust DestroySeraphDemo
2000FeezelLife Moves OnMore from Mortification
1996The Best Of... Five Years
1996EnVideon (Video)
1996Live Without Fear
2003Power, Pain & Passion
1998Triumph Of Mercy
1994Grind Planets (Video)
