Apoch's Metal Review - Mortuus Caelum: Ad Libertatem Per Mortem CD Review

Discography	Discography covers all information available up to day of review and is updated if future albums are reviewed.
Full-Length(s):	Macto Interitum Mundi (2006) • Ventus Infesto (2007) • Ad Libertatem Per Mortem (2012)
Split(s):	Mortuus Caelum / Hrizg (2008) • Mortuus Caelum / Winds of Malice (2009)
Demo(s):	Inners Imperator (2004) • Bright Innocence of Nature (2005)

Review

Formed in 2004, Mortuus Caelum is a Black Metal act that comes to us from the shadows of Athens, Greece. While the group is not too well-known, among certain circles, and surely in the minds of more individuals of their homeland, the group has put out a decent number of releases throughout the years. Since their Inners Imperator demo the year they formed, the group had issues something new every year, with the exception of 2011, and 2010 if you don't count compilation releases in the same manner. The group's previous efforts never really found a lot of positive praise among the style's faithful community, but does their third full-length offering, Ad Libertatem Per Mortem, pose enough of a threat to make the group a little more worthy of your attention?

Ad Libertatem Per Mortem was picked up by War Productions, who are no strangers to the group since issuing their 2010 compilation Initium Novum as well. With the labels underground Black Metal approach, it was pretty obvious that this album would be a little on the raw side, yet surprisingly it was a lot cleaner than one would expect, and not in a bad way. The guitars have a good amount of distortion to them that makes the chords sound heavy and not play into the raw razors edge sharpness that a lot of groups commonly do anymore. This heavier sound is complimented well by a strong bass performance that comes through nicely in the mix, as well as some cleaner leads that appear once in a while to add a little extra kick to the material and keep it from growing stagnant in any way. The vocals are a little lost in the mix, but that works out in the long run given the duller approach instead of higher rasp vocals, but still putting in a decent amount of energy to capitalize off an early second wave style. The drums come through clearly as well, and are all leveled nicely. The rawer side of the release does pick up the snares in a bit of an intimidating sense, thanks largely to the fast pace they are almost always played at, but the tighter sound on them just sounds right to the crisp music, but still slightly foggy atmosphere of the album. The cymbals sound great, and even the closed hi-hats come through the mix well despite the lower volume they seem to be at, while the bass kicks have a nice deep thud that really stands out and enriches every track well.

That foggy atmosphere is met nicely with very aggressive Black Metal sound right from the very start. As stated, the drumming hammers away throughout the album at a pretty fast pace, but still offers up enough variety from one track to another that it simply doesn't sound like a lust of blast beats, allowing some restraint to also be shown by slowing down at times to cater some mid-tempo material as well. But, right from the start, "Initium Novum" grabs you by the throat and bangs your head for you with its commanding sound. Sadly, it all starts off a little more like many Black Metal songs you heard before, but the additional lead chords that appear do help to work with the atmosphere, and while still pushing an intimidating factor, you can easily pick up on a slight jarring, eerie tone to the chords being played. The pounding drums compliment the stern, deeper vocal performance perfectly, and the blending of early Black Metal ideas with some of today's modern aggression for the style really makes this an impressive start for the release. While this song makes a great impact on the listener right away, it's "Bloodshed" that shows the more ruthless side of the band for much of the track. This song does go off into the early second wave sound with some melancholic, cold riffs, but for the most part it ends up being an engaging musical assault with blistering double bass kicks pounding away against pulse pounding riffs that cascade the song into an occultish darkness.

"Amarok (The Wolf God)" also stands as a good testament to Black Metal's roots. The song's darker tone and mid-tempo pace with somewhat faster drumming really gives the song a nice intimidating factor. The more sinister sounding vocals make for a punishing track that is also infectious from start to finish with a very intimidating closing that just hammers away at the listener in the most blunt of manners, making it all feel as if it is an ode to marching in the name of Amarok himself. That same kind of commanding tone is present in "Preachers of the Lie," bringing things back to the early second wave Black Metal sound, and it really is what the band does best. These type of songs really showcase how well the Mortuus Caelum handles this sound, bringing highly infectious rhythms to the material without losing their aggressive edge. This track in particular actually detours for a bit, which is a little unique for this song, giving way to a lighter, cleaner passage that works for the song, but actually ends up losing the atmosphere much of the release built up. This slower moving section of less-distorted guitars and lighter drumming is transitioned into well, but it does feel a little out-of-place, making it an interesting section, but not really necessary to the flow or progression of the song at all. When it ends, you also go into a little more cliché material that tries to build you back into the solid, catchy riffs, but it doesn't really work out, feeling more like filler material and bridges clearly not intended to make a gap, but obviously to pad the song out to the seven minute and twenty-two second length.

Thankfully, Ad Libertatem Per Mortem is far from a release of filler or padded material. Yes there are other longer songs, but outside of "Preachers of the Lie," the band does an excellent job at keeping them fresh from start to finish. While most are under the five-minute mark, or at least around it such as with the title track "Ad Libertatem Per Mortem," there are a good number of six-minute plus tracks, and they do end up worth checking out. "The Crimson King" stands out well with a great focus on earlier second wave Black Metal, though the atmosphere from the chords doesn't really come out too strong on it. The bass, however, is really what drives this song, coming through a little deeper much of the time compared to other songs, but there's also some notable issues in the drumming going off beat for a brief moment, as if through exhaustion. Other than that, this is a superb song that will keep you entertained the entire time. There's also "Amarok (The Wolf God)," which has already been discussed, but easily the best of these longer tracks thanks to its atmosphere and aggression that, sadly, seems to be lacking on the other two longer songs.

While Mortuus Caelum's previous offerings may not have really met with a lot of positive remarks throughout the Black Metal community, it's safe to say that Ad Libertatem Per Mortem is a fine step in the right direction for the group. The music played here takes an aggressive approach to the early nineties style of Black Metal with just enough of the modern speed and hard-hitting drumming we've come to accept and expect of acts today. The higher end audio levels of the instruments and vocals are met with a nice foggy sound that gives it a bit of a raw edge, but not exactly catering to fans of the "kvlt" Black Metal sound. Throw in a focus on heavier, deeper music and you have a blunt edged weapon of blackened destruction. With only a few moments that are out-of-place, or even groan worthy, such as the off-beat drumming that was alluded to earlier, there's no reason to ignore this effort, regardless of whether you're a fan of the band or not. Ad Libertatem Per Mortem is an album that is best suited to the shadows of the underground, but it definitely deserves a broader audience than those willing to dig long enough to uncover this hidden gem.

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	Digital review copy of this release provided by: War Productions.

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