With their last two sermons ‘Frontschwein’ and ‘Viktoria’ focusing on war it’s probably a good time for Swedish death squad Marduk to return with a different theme after a five-year gap between Studio albums. Fear not, destruction is still rampant even if it is the aftermath of it focussed on here. ‘Memento Mori’ returns us to the funerary rites and psalms of old, namely circa the 17th century when disease and plagues were rife, cures non-existent and primitive to say the least. This is an album that is going to leave you gasping at the speed and virulence of its instigators although any chance of grabbing a quick breath is going to leave you reeling in the noxious fumes of rot and decay. As Mortuus states “it’s a reminder of death” and there is no escaping its clutch for anyone. One has the feeling here that he has embraced themes explored by his other project Funeral Mist and along with founding member Morgan (guitar) and Simon Schilling (drums) this is as vicious a beast as you could possibly contemplate.
It’s time to “come and revel, jubilate” in the extinction of life which rattles out like a last drawn breath from the winding clamour of the opening title track. Mortuus immediately sounds rabid and feral gurgling and rasping as he observes things like the grim reaper himself. Rugged and all-consuming yet with a formidable melodic thrust the music steams away with occasional doomy parts breaking up the shredding ballast. Schilling is impressive throughout, blasting away and driving things forward without offering anything in the way of mercy. There are no gaps between tracks and the segue between the first and ‘Heart Of The Funeral’ is a gallows humour death march, the familiarity of which can’t help but leave you with a wry grin. Short and volatile this explosive number moves onto ‘Blood Of The Funeral’ with the sound of a grave being dug and absolute mayhem being unleashed. Morgan whips up a hell-storm of riffs and Mortuus is without doubt ‘drunk on the blood of the funeral.” The lyrics are well worth reading here, pure grim poetry. There’s an ominous keyboard part dwelling deep too as if the embittered tumult is not enough to already cope with.
Life is but a game we pass through and that pastime is orated by the frontman, as like death playing chess, Marduk indulge us in a round of ‘Shovel Beats Sceptre.’ This one takes the form of a slower crushing malignancy and has the feeling of glory about it, death’s embrace welcomed with open arms as the clock ticks down and the scythe finally reaps your very soul. ‘Charlatan’ reminds us that turning to religion is a foolish folly, it’s not going to save you and is a blasphemous assault against Abraham, complete with entwining morose guitar melody and obliterating sections rife with spite and disgust. ‘Coffin Carol’ is an intriguing title, that sticks in the mind a bit like Typhoid Mary as one envisages a deliverer of carrion to mass pits of bodies covered in lime. We missed new numbers on the group’s last live outing when they played at Incineration Fest, this one would have probably gone down a storm as its belted out with absolute conviction until the closing part sends shivers down the spine. Marching ever onwards boots stamp and ‘Marching Bones’ are unleashed in fury. A great central riff snakes around and listening to it has visions of a famous film and teeth being sewn into soil with a skeletal army emerging to cause havoc.
The album can catch you off guard due to the velocity of some of the songs being nothing short of overwhelming and seemingly passing by in a flash. The grinding, winding ‘Year Of The Maggot’ for example a parasitic diatribe spreading filth as it’s delivered like an absolute whirlwind. If anything things speed up with the neck snapping vocal delivery and booming backing orchestral swathes of ‘Red Tree Of Blood’ being the album’s intense epoch. Or it would be if not for the somewhat strange coffin-nail ‘As We Are.’ If ever a requiem is needed to remind that all we are is dust in a fragment of time, this is it; a morose and fitting finale.
Perfectly constructed over a 42-minute running time ‘Memento Mori’ has a completely addictive personality that has had me playing it over and over again. Dragging you in and spitting you out its as deadly as anything previously delivered over the 15 albums of Marduk’s distinguished career and bound to be on many an end of year list. Drink deep from the poison of death, it will be with you before you realise!
(9/10 Pete Woods)
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