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Morbid Angel- Altars of Madness


salmonellapancake

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     This is the band that made me truly fall in love with not just death metal, but extreme metal in general. This first record is where David Vincent (bass and vocals) and Trey Azagthoth (lead guitar) came to be known as pioneers of death metal, legendary songwriters, and blasphemous lyricists. This album would be highly influential in death metal, black metal, speed metal, and all kinds of extreme music. 

     Morbid Angel produced timeless riffs in songs like "Immortal Rites", "Maze of Torment", and "Chapel of Ghouls", unforgettable solos in "Suffocation", "Lord of all Fevers and Plague", "Damnation", and "Evil Spells", all the while attacking religion, embracing darkness, and finding empowerment through commitment to the Ancient Ones.

     For me, the most important part of this album is its emphasis on freedom of thought and the breaking of societal norms and expectations. In the booklet of the CD I purchased, Trey Azagthoth explains the purpose of Morbid Angel, stating that they wish to stray from conformity in order to reach a freedom of expression which is unavailable to anyone who simply adheres to the illusions that society presents to us. 

     This is a very rich album, musically and lyrically, and it taught me a lot about myself and my spirituality, freeing me from many vices that I never even realized were there.

     

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  • 1 month later...

By far one of the best DM records ever...  The thing which sells it for me is how they keep a consistent tone and feeling throughout the whole thing, it's really a "composite piece" as I think people say.  Like classical music, everything ties together so nicely.  If you listen to the riffs, you notice this 1-4-3-4-2-4-3-4 motif coming up all the time (Chapel, Maze, Rites), I find it cements a certain atmosphere throughout the record..

There are other things they do this with as well, sometimes particular parts (or even kinds) of solos at specific points, bringing back certain drum or vocal rhythms later on, the whole thing feels like it's been built (or "grew") with one vision, one ideal in mind.

Probably the baseline for DM, as far as I'm concerned - if it's not up there with Altars of Madness, I don't have time to listen to it anymore...  Good review, man, reminded me why I love this record so much :)

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  • 1 year later...
On 8/30/2016 at 4:32 PM, welkyn said:

By far one of the best DM records ever...  The thing which sells it for me is how they keep a consistent tone and feeling throughout the whole thing, it's really a "composite piece" as I think people say.  Like classical music, everything ties together so nicely.  If you listen to the riffs, you notice this 1-4-3-4-2-4-3-4 motif coming up all the time (Chapel, Maze, Rites), I find it cements a certain atmosphere throughout the record..

There are other things they do this with as well, sometimes particular parts (or even kinds) of solos at specific points, bringing back certain drum or vocal rhythms later on, the whole thing feels like it's been built (or "grew") with one vision, one ideal in mind.

Probably the baseline for DM, as far as I'm concerned - if it's not up there with Altars of Madness, I don't have time to listen to it anymore...  Good review, man, reminded me why I love this record so much :)

I would certainly agree. I think Slowly We Rot by Obituary started my interest in DM but Altars of Madness really sealed the deal.

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