Morbid Angel - Blessed Are The Sick.
The Floridian death metal band’s second studio album is now over 30yrs old…
Morbid Angel is possibly one of the most well known names in metal so we will spare the trivia. Certainly we were a little late to enjoying what MA had to offer and honestly, ‘Gateways to Annihilation’ was our er...gateway into twisting riffs and swamp drenched solos, inhuman drumming and deep growls.
The impact of ‘Blessed are the Sick’ on the scene can’t be overstated. Taking a slower approach than the debut ‘Altars of Madness’, it is much more of a musical effort, still fast and thrashy but with some classical overtones (Trey Azagthoth dedicated this one to Mozart). The tone is mood driven, creeping in parts through the air and gut punching you when the pace picks up.
Dave Vincent's vocals standout for their authority and power, he just sounds huge! Obviously Trey is a god on the strings and all the arrangements display that signature drenched sound he would cement over the band's career. It's worth mentioning here that guitarist Richard Brunelle didn’t just play second fiddle to Trey; his sole writing credit ‘Desolate Ways’ is haunting and beautiful and his work on the album is solid. Pete Sandoval. The Grind Commando. The drums on this are just tight, very Morrisound studios, all sewn up in Pete’s blasting style.
‘Fall from Grace’, ‘Day of Suffering’ and the title track all contain that signature MA sound and grind along with Sandoval's double bass magic. ‘Brainstorm’ and ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ are significantly faster and blast at break speed. Something Trey would continue to include on future releases, ‘Doomsday Celebration’ and ‘In Remembrance’ are thematic interludes and is probably what dates the album a little in terms of sound. The cover art is suitably arcane too, ‘Les Tresors de Satan’ by Jean Delville.
If you’ve never listened to this record before we urge you to give it a whirl, that rich Floridian Death Metal tone is too good to ignore! So, 30 years old, wonder if they will celebrate with a Sumerian themed cake? An offering to Yog Sothoth? Maybe just a socially distanced whammy-off? Nah gotta be the cake.
