Review: “Feeding The Machine – Part 1” by Mordkaul

Back in May 2020 Belgian Melodic Death Metal band Mordkaul recorded their debut album “Dress Code: Blood“, citing influences from the Swedish Death Metal bands of the 90’s alongside acts like Morbid Angel and Death. Soon after the recording, Jan Rammeloo (ex-Bliksem, Furia, Your Highness) and Tony Van den Eynde (ex-Leng Tch’e) joined the quartet with the album seeing release in January 2021 on WormHoleDeath Records to critical acclaim, something which was also given to the bands performance at Alcatraz Festival a year later. Recorded at Project Zero Studios in Belgium by Yarne Heylen (When Plagues Collide, Gallia, Nervosa) with mixing and mastering from Dan Swano (Necrophobic, Deserted Fear, Skeletal Remains) at Unisound, the band have completed work on the first half of the follow up album “Feeding The Machine” with the second part to be recorded in May 2023. It will then be granted a physical release as a full package…

…placing the history lesson to one side, we look at “Feeding The Machine” as we do at death, through bloodshot eyes. The cover art looks enticing, the Batman character Two Face sat upon a throne as if a Cyborg, plugged into the Matrix with his Terminator red eye seeing all while a pair of Vixens stand beside him. It’s the perfect depiction of the lyrical narrative of opening cut “Crown Of Worms” which tears the place up like a tornado of souls. Gothenburg sound influenced Melodic Death Metal leads add a vibrant touch to the blistering blast beats of Adrian Erlandsson and tight Death Groove riffs before the solo, an extended face melter , makes its mark. It’s fit for hero worship at the alter of sacrifice and when you add to it the weight of the one in “In Dead Eyes“, it becomes clear that the band are on a flawless killing spree with these cuts. Tommy Goffin’s vocals are brutal, from the same realm as Robert Meadows (ex-A Life One Lost, Mind Power) in style and his power is not to be underestimated, the gravelly tones of “Welcome To The Sixth Stage Of Grief” his finest moments on the record. A powerhouse Death Metal cut which drives termites out of the woodwork with its sheer destructive edge, it finds Goffin offer up a couple of demonic Death growls of the finest order.

For I Am Machine“, arguably the lyrical title track, has at its beating black heart monstrous Groove Death riffs of the variety that the likes of Rob Arnold from Chimaira would be proud to have written, something which speaks volumes about the bands dedication to their craft as career musicians. Nothing is lazy, there is no excess fat to be trimmed, everything has been honed to perfection at the grindstone of the rehearsal space and Heylen and Swano deserve a lot of credit for nailing their roles. All too soon the final cut of this half of the album is upon us in “The Beast Of Dread” and it certainly does not disappoint. Spine juddering angular riffs light the way for the boats like burning bridges while the warm leads are perfectly contrasted to the ice cold metronomic rhythmic performance. What Mordkaul have given us is a burnt offering that perfectly balances light and shade, a Groove Death record for the modern age that simply demands to be heard. All that is missing is the second half of the album and we can’t wait to get our teeth into that one [8.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Crown Of Worms
2. In Dead Eyes
3. Welcome To The Sixth Stage Of Grief
4. For I Am Machine
5. The Beast Of Dread

Feeding The Machine – Part 1” by Mordkaul is out 16th February 2023

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