Review by Daniel for Mortification - Mortification (1991)

Victoria's Mortification may not be a household name for extreme metalheads around the globe these days but, for those who are dedicated to the teachings of Lord Jesus Christ, they may be the most important artist in the entire Christian metal movement. Mortification began life as a fairly uneventful heavy/power metal band by the name of Light Force that was built around long-standing bass player Steve Rowe back in 1985. Light Force didn't exactly achieve world domination but they did manage to release two full-length albums during the back half of the 1980's before Rowe gave in to his new-found passion for more extreme metal sounds & transitioned Light Force into something altogether different in 1990. Guitarist Cameron Hall would soon depart, being replaced by Michael Carlisle who would join Rowe & drummer Jayson Sherlock (Revulsed/Deliverance/Horde/Paramæcium) to record the self-titled Mortification debut album in 1991, a record that would become my entry point for the band shortly afterwards. The trio would go on to produce a couple more important records for the Christian metal scene in 1992's "Scrolls of the Megilloth" & 1993's "Post Momentary Affliction" before changing their style dramatically & confusing a large portion of their fanbase with 1994's "Blood World" which took more of a groove metal approach. The band have maintained their presence consistently ever since, returning to their death metal roots during the mid-2000's.

My introduction to Mortification would come through underground metal radio programming in the early 1990's with the opening track "Until the End" from the self-titled album representing ground zero. I generally liked what I heard from the "Mortification" album but it would be Ben who would ensure that my exposure to the band would reach a new level when he picked up their second full-length "Scrolls of the Megilloth" a couple of years later, following that purchase up with Mortification's next couple of CDs progressively over time. I wouldn't say that I ever found myself genuinely loving any of these releases but I did always maintain a level of respect for Mortification, despite their Christian affiliations which have always been at odds with my strong Atheistic beliefs. The fact that you really wouldn't know any better unless you read the lyric sheets certainly helped in that regard as I never had any intention of allowing their God-fearing message to reach my conscious more directly.

The "Mortification" album is somewhat of a transitional album in the band's creative journey. It sees the trio shunning their earlier classic metal influences altogether by adopting the more extreme style that Light Force had hinted at on their 1990 "Break the Curse" demo tape with three of the six songs from that relatively unknown release being re-recorded for this debut full-length. "Mortification" offers a fairly basic brand of death/thrash with the boys still very much trying to find their own sound & often resorting to crude imitations of the bands that influenced them. The music is generally more thrash based than it is genuine death metal at this point but those lines are often blurred. You won't find too many blast beats here though with the gruff death grunts of Rowe being the main element that ties the "Mortification" album to death metal.

The debut album was produced by American Roger Martinez who was known as the vocalist & guitarist from LA Christian thrash metallers Vengeance Rising with the result being a pretty rough & ready effort that's noticeably lacking in precision & bottom end. Despite the basic nature of the riff construction though, Mortification had a knack for producing catchy death metal hooks & it's this component that maintains my interest for the majority of the record. "Until the End", the short 33-second blast of "Turn", my personal favourite "No Return" & energetic closer "The Majestic Infiltration of Order" are all excellent examples of the early Mortification sound but there are some flat periods to be found across the eleven tracks, particularly during the latter stages of the B side with a three-song run that doesn't do a lot for me. You'll no doubt be able to pick up a couple of riffs that have been pulled straight from Metallica's "Kill 'Em All" too which isn't something you would usually find on a death metal record but, as I said earlier, this was very much a transitional release for these Victorians.

While I haven't paid any attention to Mortification's lengthy string of releases since 1995's "Primitive Rhythm Machine" sixth album, they do still hold a place in my heart as one of the bands who inspired me to start my own death metal band. They were amongst the earliest Aussie acts to reach international recognition so I've always maintained a level of respect for them, even if I can't get onboard with their Christian messaging. Looking back now, the Mortification debut isn't a bad record either & it compares pretty well with "Scrolls of the Megilloth" in terms of quality to tell you the truth, although I would no doubt pick their sophomore effort over this introductory effort if I had to choose. Neither represent anything terribly essential for the death metal community though in my opinion & I doubt that Mortification would have amounted to much had it not been for their religious slant. Still... I can't deny that I get some enjoyment out of their first few albums, despite rarely feeling the urge to return to them.

For fans of Master, Cancer & early Living Sacrifice.