Year: 2022
Total Time: 41.26
Label: Peaceville Records
The fathers of Death/Doom Metal AUTOPSY, needed five years to present us new music and to declare emphatically once more that the throne was, is and will be forever theirs. But let’s take facts from the beginning, although I believe that there is no one reading this review and does not know this great band. AUTOPSY were formed in 1987 in Oakland, USA and their first revording apperance was that year with the historic demo “Critical Madness”, and until 1995 when they split up they released four full length albums, including the masterpieces “Severed Survival”, “Mental Funeral”, and two EPs, creating a legend in the Death/Doom Metal scene and influencing countless bands. The leader of the band, who is among others responsible for drums and vocals, is the leading figure that goes by the name of Chris Reifert, who also played drums in the legendary “Scream Bloody Gore” of the mighty DEATH.
But because injustices must be righted at some point in life, AUTOPSY returned to action in 2009 to reap the fruits of their legacy. So from then until today they have offered us four albums, three EPs, a live album, a split and several compilations. Hyperactive and as always with top quality. So, this year they released their new album entitled “Morbidity Triumphant”, which even though we knew before it was released that it would be worthy of their name, they managed to blow our minds by offering, in my personal opinion, their best album since 2009.
The album starts with “Stab The Brain”, an aggressive composition with a sick groove and a Chris Reifert sounding like an inmate of a mental asylum. “Final Frost” that follows, seems like it came out of “Mental Funeral”, it starts slowly and torturously before it transforms into an Old School Death Metal storm. The fast rhythms drop in “The Voracious One”, which eases us up as the epic song “Born In Blood”, with the classic AUTOPSY ‘dance’ beat follows, while “Flesh Strewn Temple” with its creepy riff and Reifert’s singing – the screams of the last minute gave me goosebumps – as if he’s about to lose his mind, could be the perfect soundtrack for any horror movie.
I could go on writing for hours as the band sounds, even after all these years, with the same momentum they had when they were building their legacy. The rest of the album continues at the same high quality with Doom Metal breakdowns, OSDM outbursts, earth-shattering groove, a paranoid Reifert and all these elements infused with the rotten, muddy sound that we’ve loved all these years by AUTOPSY. Regarding the lyrics, titles like “Skin By Skin”, “Maggots In Your Mirror” don’t need much explanation.
“Morbidity Triumphant” is not only one of the best releases of 2022, but also one of the best Death/Doom Metal albums of all times and of course another highlight in AUTOPSY’s discography. Countless bands have tried to copy their sound but the uniqueness of this band is untouchable. Εven after all these years they remain true to their sound and values, offering us raw albums, insanely anti-commercial and underground, as they were when they started their frenetic musical journey.
Rating: 8,5/10
Editor: Nikos Manousis
Related Link: AUTOPSY – Facebook Page
