When I think of brutal death metal/grindcore, I must admit that France is not my first thought (its probably not yours either), well Morgue have forced me to change my pre-conceived ideas. Since bursting out of Alès, Occitanie / Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur in 1997, this crew have been painting the world blood red with a sound that draws from the darker, more rumbustious side of death metal. I’m pleased to report that the passing of time hasn’t diluted the band’s rage at all and album number five finds them doing what they do best and delivering a brutal, awe-inspiring record.
Like someone opening a door to hell, the preamble to opening track ‘Upon The Alter’ is spooky and cinematic, like the introduction to some über-cool horror film it certainly sets the scene. It also gets the listener into a state of mind where we are almost transported to another plane, meaning that when the band kick in around the one-minute mark, they kick in hard. Yet, no matter how heavy things get, Morgue never loose that filmic quality; this is the soundtrack to the most depraved slasher flick you’ve ever seen and ‘Upon The Alter’ sends blood flying in all directions. From the crimson sleeve to the song titles to the sound contained within, Close To Complete Darkness is a very angry album, and the whole aesthetic sends a warning to the curious; this isn’t metal made for lilly-livered, land-lubbers, rather the relentlessly punishing tracks such as ‘Blemish’ are only made for more hardy metalheads. There’s an explosive nature to cuts like ‘Sacrificial Blood’, a flammable quality that suggests it should be handled with extreme care.
Morgue currently comprise of Max Lobier (guitar, vocals, drums) and Jérôme Blandino (bass), and it is a configuration that gives the band a singularity of vision. There’s no deviation from the norm here; all of their energy is focused into a fine, red hot laser beam and this in turn ensures that the band sound far bigger than their constituent parts. They create a sound that is go huge it can barely be comprehended; it is a nowhere ending sky, an expansive ocean or a brutalist building towering over the listener and making the listener feel small and insignificant. Morgue have a lot of brute strength, but don’t mistake that for a one-dimensionality; the rhythm section is labyrinthine and dizzies us with complex patterns, whilst the guitars are equally concentric which turns ‘Sulphurous Fire’ into a spiral staircase descending into the very depths of hell.
The unstoppable force of Morgue makes them something of a musical steamroller crushing all in their path, and they don’t come much more uncontainable than final track ‘Speculative Fall Of The Human Race’. It’s the type of song you could imagine continuing in perpetuity, and that’s a good synonym for Morgue; despite approaching their 30th year, you feel there’s a lot of mileage left in this band…you try stopping them!
- Close To Complete Darkness is released via Godz Ov War Productions and is available now (from here).
Track List:
- Upon The Alter
- Doorways In Crimson Red
- Blemish
- Sacrificial Blood
- Disobedience
- Towards Complete Darkness
- Sulphurous Fire
- Death In Communion
- Speculative Fall Of The Human Race
