I don't know if any of the other reviewers associated with LARM! dig Mortician, but I think this band rules. Mortician is the ultimate in bludgeoning, raw, brutal death metal. Since I first heard their song "World Damnation" on Relapse's 'UHF/VHF' comp, I was hooked. It's always been one of my favorite Mortician songs. 'House by the Cemetery' is easily Mortician's most brutal output and a lot of that is due to the production. It's fucking raw, seriously. In some interview, the band said they didn't master it or any of that technical studio shit. They recorded straight to DAT or whatever and had it pressed on CD. THAT RULES. The drum machine is all but inaudible, the bass is low and rumbling as fuck, the guitars shred and Will's vocals are deep as any abyss. The use of splatter/gore film samples is a big plus for me since I'm a nut for that stuff. "Intro/Gateway to Beyond" is another favorite from this album, as it uses a sample from Fulci's classic THE BEYOND (Heads up, Joe!), not to mention a brutal double-bass segment. Odes to zombies, driller killers, the evil dead, cellar-dwelling undead doctors and flesh-hunting invaders are abound. There are also two rather killer covers: Napalm Death's "Scum" and Celtic Frost's "Procreation (Of the Wicked)" (Mortician's cover was what really got me into Celtic Frost). If you can't stand this band, fuck you. Mortician rules. Everyone should own this.

© 1999 goden