Metalheads are suckers for nostalgia. The very root of its subculture is framed as defenders of a faith that upholds a purity of metal. This did not begin with neckbeards arguing in the comment sections or message boards about what metal is true or false, it came from the earliest days when bands were hosting “anti-disco” shows into the eighties when Thrash bands set themselves against the glam rockers of the Sunset strip that spilled over into parking lot fisticuffs.
This brings us to Morta Skuld who emerged in the early nineties, the peak of American Death Metal. Perhaps not a name held with the kind of esteem enjoyed by bands like Incantation or Obituary, but they have nonetheless returned with Creation Undone (Peaceville Records) to teach a master class in the genre’s origins, as it emerged from its Thrash roots which is shown in the style of chugged riffs that power this album.
The vocals are croaked out in a manner more like Arise-era Max Cavalera. This allows the lyrics to cut through and make the song’s narratives known. The drummer pounds the point home in a manner with conviction. The bass also cuts through the guitars to stay present in the mix. Oddly, these guys are on Peaceville, as mention of that label always brings to mind the darker more Doom-influenced styles of European Death Metal. Morta Skuld fit the mold of the eighties Combat Records American bands. It is clear in “Painful Conflict” that these veterans do not shy away from pouring on the speed.
The opening riff to “Unforeseen Obstacles” has promise, as the band tries to balance the urge for uncontrolled aggression to take over and bulldoze you in a manner more like Deicide. This punchy approach can be appreciated, even if it falls short of the kind of charisma that has put Glen Benton at the top of the Death Metal game. The guitar solos carry most of the album’s melodic sensibility. It adds to the song rather than just being a burst of chaotic shredding. There is an almost Morbid Angel-like groove to “Perfect Prey”, making it one of the album’s best songs.
They play perhaps at their fastest yet on “Soul Piercing Sorrow”, which lyrically feels like a sentiment best approached from a slower tempo. The song does become more deliberate, with a steady stream of double bass moving it when the vocals come in. More nuanced passages surface with the touch of melody found in the riffs to “Into Temptation”, but by and large they pound things out with menacing gallops, and chugs is the rule of law controlling the flow of this album.
These guys have been at it for decades, so on the one hand, they have proven they are still capable of summoning the aggression of their youth. On the other you might also expect their experience to have translated over more in the songwriting department here. They are certainly skilled at honing their sound in the studio and capable with their instruments.
However, paying closer attention to the lyrics they lean in the direction of just being the most stereotypical metal muttering you can imagine.
But some people do not need bands with something new or real to say and just want the escape into a familiar sound that brings the comfort of metal nostalgia. Then some younger listeners wish they were there when bands like Morta Skuld were coming onto the scene and an album allows them to feel a part of that era.
No question these veterans are skilled at what they do, it just depends on whether what they do is your thing and how invested in the classic Death Metal sound you are.
Buy the album here: https://peaceville.bandcamp.com/album/creation-undone
7 / 10
WIL CIFER