UMUR "Pits of Utumno" is the first demo recording by German death metal act Morgoth. The demo was independently released in June 1988. Morgoth formed in 1987, although their origins can be traced as far back as 1985 when they worked under the Cadaverous Smell, Exterminator, and Minas Morgul monickers (in that chronology in the period 1985-1987).

Morgoth are one of the earliest German death metal acts and their 1989 "Resurrection Absurd" EP is one of the first German death metal releases, and although they were only a death metal band for a relatively short period in time before they started experimenting with other music styles, they are widely considered a seminal German death metal act (along with artists like Atrocity and Fleshcrawl).

Stylistically the material on "Pits of Utumno" isn´t pure death metal though, but more a brutal and aggressive thrash metal style with some death metal elements. Lead vocalist/bassist Marc Grewe had not yet developed a growling vocal style, and instead performs a gnarly and raw snarling death/thrash rabid dog vocal style. If he hadn´t changed his vocal style on subsequent releases, he could actually have been a great death/thrash vocalist, because he sounds really great here.

Only two of the six tracks from the 22:10 minutes long demo would appear on subsequent Morgoth releases. "Eternal Sanctity" and "Pits of Utumno" would be re-recorded and included on Morgoth´s second EP release "The Eternal Fall" from May 1990. The remaining tracks are exclusive to this demo. It´s not that the two tracks Morgoth chose to re-record are any less thrashy than the other tracks on the demo, but of course they sound less thrashy in their re-recorded versions with Marc Grewe growling on them instead of performing the rabid dog snarls he does here.

It´s obvious that Morgoth were already a well playing band and that they also understood how to compose an effectful song, and it´s therefore no wonder that they got signed pretty fast by Century Media Records for the release of "Resurrection Absurd" (released in November 1989). A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" is the 3rd full-length studio album by German death metal/industrial metal act Morgoth. The album was released through Century Media Records in September 1996. It´s the successor to "Odium" from 1993 and features the exact same lineup who recorded the predecessor. Morgoth were a bit of an unconventional act on the early 90s death metal scene, as they started out as an old school death metal act, but soon drifted towards a more industrial tinged death metal style (on "Odium (1993)"), and on "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic", the band have changed their sound again.

"Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" features nothing that would lead you to think that Morgoth were previously a death metal act, because the material on the 10 track, 42:40 minutes long album is in a heavily 90s Killing Joke influenced industrial rock/metal style. There may have been moments on "Odium (1993)" where those influences shone through, but that is nothing compared to the full-on industrial rock/metal style of "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic".

If you can see past the major Killing Joke influence and don´t let the rather obvious clone factor bother you, "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" features some pretty great quality industrial rock/metal. It´s nothing earth shattering or groundbreaking, but it´s well written and delivered with great skill and conviction. Lead vocalist Marc Grewe has completely abandoned his growling vocal style, and now sings using a more raw shouting type vocals, which he occasionaly also used on "Odium (1993)" (they are not far removed from how Jaz Coleman´s most raw vocals sound like). The riffs can be hard edged and metal oriented, but they are predominantly more atmospheric in style. The rhythm section deliver a tight and creative attack, which drives the music forward in a great energetic fashion. In addition to what the "regular" instruments play, the music also features atmosphere enhancing sound effects/keyboards, and even a techno influenced track in "...And Its Amazing Consequences". The lyrics, which deal with subjects like politics and social issues, further enchance the dark atmosphere of the album.

Highlights include "This Fantastic Decade", "A New Start", and "Cash...", but "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" is a very consistent release both when it comes to the quality of the songwriting and the overall musical style, so there´s nothing sub par featured on the album. It´s not an album featuring many standout tracks either though, and the highlights mentioned above aren´t miles ahead of the other tracks on the album in terms of catchiness and memorability. So the consistency of the material is both a strength and a weakness.

"Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" features a powerful, detailed, and relatively organic sounding production, which suits the material perfectly. So upon conclusion "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" is a quality release on most parameters. It was probably not what most fans expected when it was released in 1996, even though "Odium (1993)" made a few promises pointing in that direction, and it wasn´t exactly a success upon release, which was probably a contributing factor to Morgoth disbanding in 1998, but evaluated isolated from the band´s other releases and without preconceived expectations of what it should have sounded like, it´s still a good quality release and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Odium" is the 2nd full-length studio album by German death metal act Morgoth. The album was released through Century Media Records in May 1993. It´s the successor to "Cursed" from 1991 and features the exact same lineup who recorded the debut album. Morgoth were formed in 1985 under the Exterminator monicker, but soon changed their name to Minas Morgul. In 1987 they finally changed their name to Morgoth. The band released the two EPs "Resurrection Absurd (1989)" and "The Eternal Fall (1990)", so along with "Cursed (1991)", the band already had some recording experience.

Having existed for a great deal of years at this point also meant the band began to show an interest in changing their sound and trying out new things, and especially drummer/keyboard player Rüdiger Hennecke came to the writing sessions with new influences from industrial rock and electronic music. So while the material on "Odium" is still old school death metal at its core, Morgoth have evolved quite a bit since "Cursed (1991)", and the new influences shine through a lot. "Odium" is a bleak and dark affair, which depicts a world in despair and decay. A gloomy post-apocalyptic atmosphere runs through the album, and the new influences further help enhance a feeling of impending doom. The lyrics deal with the consequences of human greed, social/politial struggles, a post-nuclear world, and other "happy" subjects.

"Odium" features a cold and clinical, yet still raw and powerful, sound production which suits the bleakness of the material perfectly. This is an album featuring a perfect balance in that department. The musicianship is also a great asset on the album. Morgoth are a tight playing unit delivering sharp heavy riffs, atmosphere enhancing lead work, and creative drumming. Lead vocalist Marc Grewe spices up his intelligible growling vocals with some semi-clean raw vocals, which provide the vocal part of the album with some variation and a slight touch of the melodic.

"Odium" is a fairly varied release, and the 8 track, 42:22 minutes long album features both faster-paced death metal parts, crushingly heavy mid-paced brutal grooves, and atmospheric parts. The album opens with "Resistance", which is probably the fastest and most death metal oriented track on the album, but the pace is lowered considerably to a heavy mid-paced groove on "The Art of Sinking". "Submission" is an almost progressive structured track, which spends several minutes building up atmosphere and intensity (the use of keyboards is quite effectful), before changing into a faster death metal song. "Under the Surface" (which the band released an official video for) is a predominantly mid-paced industrial tinged death metal track, featuring a pretty original sounding riffing style. "Drowning Sun" continues the more experimental song structure approach of "Submission", and proves to be one of the heaviest and most bleak tracks on the album. "War Inside" is the least spectacular track on the album, but still a great heavy death metal track. "Odium" closes with the duo of the 7:13 minutes long "Golden Age" and the 6:16 minutes long instrumental title track. The former is both the longest and the most adventurous track of the album, featuring a longer melancholic atmospheric section in the middle part of the song, while the latter would probably have been labelled post-metal had it been released today. It´s a heavy, melancholic, and atmospheric instrumental, which closes the album in great style.

"Odium" received a mixed response upon release. Some felt Morgoth had moved too far away from their original death metal sound, and didn´t appreciate the new industrial influences, while others praised the band´s creative spirit and unconventional take on death metal. Personally I belong in the latter camp, and I consider "Odium" one of the most original sounding death metal releases of the era. The boldness and audacity to release something like this as your sophomore studio album, when the band had enjoyed success and predominantly positive reviews of "Cursed (1991)", is worth all the praise in the world. They must have been tempted to write a "Cursed (1991)" number two, but obviously chose to follow their desire to progress and to challenge themselves and their fans. A 5 star (100%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Ungod" is the 4th full-length studio album by German death metal act Morgoth and the first studio album by the band since "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" from 1996. The album was released through Century Media Records in March 2015. Morgoth disbanded in 1998, but reunited in 2010 to play select shows. The reunion became a bit more serious along the way and Morgoth released the "Cursed to Live" live album in 2012. The "God Is Evil" single from August 2014 was the first new studio recording by the band since "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic (1996)" though and it was meant as a teaser for a new full-length studio album. However before entering the studio to record "Ungod" lead vocalist Marc Grewe left the band, and was shortly after replaced by Karsten "Jagger" Jäger (Disbelief). "Ungod" was recorded, mixed, and mastered at Sound Division Tonstudio Sundern, Germany in November-December 2014.

If Morgoth had continued the trend of changing their sound radically between studio album, as they did on the three albums released in the 90s, it would have been hard to predict the music style on "Ungod". But as they predominantly chose to focus on material from "Cursed (1991)" and the preceeding EPs (with a few nods toward the material from "Odium (1993)") on "Cursed to Live (2012)", and the two tracks from the "God Is Evil (2014)" single is old school death metal through and through, it isn´t too surprising that the music style on "Ungod" is old school sounding death metal. There are a few nods toward "Odium (1993)", but other than that it´s mostly "Cursed (1991)" and the early EPs which "Ungod" sounds like.

The compositional quality is relatively high throughout the album although there aren´t many tracks which stand out. I´d mention album opener "House of Blood", video track "Voice of Slumber", and the re-recorded version of "God is Evil", as some of the highlights. "Ungod" features 11 tracks and full playing time of 46:23. Out of those 11 tracks, 2 are instrumentals. The title track is one of them and at 6:13 it overstays it´s welcome by at least a couple of minutes, while the closing "The Dark Sleep" (which is the other instrumental on the album) is a bit more interesting. The rest of the material is of a good quality but not spectacular.

It´s obvious that Morgoth are a seasoned bunch of guys, and the musicianship is on a high level throughout. New lead vocalist Karsten "Jagger" Jäger does a very good Marc Grewe impersonation, and while that ensures that "Ungod" sounds unmistakably like Morgoth even though there is a new lead vocalist singing, I think I would have preferred to have heard a more personal vocal delivery from Jäger. "Ungod" features a raw and well sounding production which suits the music perfectly, and upon conclusion "Ungod" is a decent comeback album by Morgoth. It´s not another death metal classic like some of the band´s earlier releases, but less will do, and it´s great to have them back. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "God is Evil" is a single release by German death metal act Morgoth. The single was released through Century Media Records in August 2014. "God is Evil" marks the studio recording comeback for the German death metal veterans and features the first new original material recorded by the band since "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic (1996)". Morgoth initially disbanded in 1998 but reunited in 2010, playing sporadic gigs, and in 2012 they released the "Cursed to Live" live album, which mainly focused on the early old school death metal part of their discography.

Therefore it´s not surprising that "God is Evil" does not continue where the industrial rock/metal tinged "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic (1996)" left off. Listening to the 2 tracks on the 7:48 minutes long single, it´s obvious that the band have gone for a sound that´s as close as possible to the sound of their most celebrated release "Cursed (1991)". So this is pretty much "classic" old school US, Florida influenced death metal and references to acts like Obituary and late 80s Death are as obvious now as they were back when "Cursed (1991)" was released. Actually to a point where I was unsure if it was Obituary playing when the title track kicks in, but Morgoth soon start to play their signature riffs and Marc Grewe also settles on a more personal vocal style.

Quality wise the title track is a memorable, raw, and brutal death metal track, fully on par with their late 80s/early 90s material, while "Die as Deceiver" is slightly less interesting. It´s less catchy and overall just a bit more standard in quality. The sound production is raw and powerful, and suits the music well. The single is arguably an enjoyable old school death metal listening experience, but it´s overall slightly less interesting, than I had hoped for. Still it´s a promising recording comeback for Morgoth and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.