Mortual – Altar of Brutality

Coming from the humid depths of Costa Rica, Mortual have been one of the country’s most interesting Death Metal exports in recent years, releasing a steady stream of demos and EP which eventually caught the attention of Nuclear Winter Records. Having already exhibited a great deal of promise with their previous EP, ‘Evil Incarnation’, Mortual have returned with their full length ‘Altar of Brutality’ that expands upon their initial offerings and provides some of the most devastating and downright evil Death Metal of this year.

Mortual are a band that could be decidedly categorized as old school oriented in their approach but not wedded to any one band or style. Rather, the impression you get through the short duration of the record is a trio of individuals who have been able to pick out the best bits of early 90s Death Metal, with particular emphasis on Florida Death Metal. This approach works very well for the band as you have your base Thrashy sound that is both pummeling and fast paced that recalls the early works of Morbid Angel, Deicide or even their Latin American peers Mortem. Yet this is also imbued with the technical prowess of early Cannibal Corpse circa The Bleeding era, with lots of precise grooves and also neatly arranged guitar harmonies sparsed throughout the songs. This is also reflected in the solo work, which varies between your standard whammy bar/dive bar overload to much more sophisticated and nuanced solos such as in the track ‘Divine Monstrosity’.

The guitars are only one part of the picture here, as the audible bass plays a pivotal role in giving the record a fuller and chunkier sound to really drive the brutality. A lot of the bass work here reminds me of what Alex Webster was performing in the early CC days, in all it’s splendour. The drumming does a lot of the heavy lifting here, as Chalo is able to deliver a potent dose of blastbeats mixed with transitional fills that allow the band to diverge into more unconventional territory with their songwriting.

Latin Americans certainly love their Thrashy Death Metal, but Mortual are a step above just plain old school worship. Their careful mixture of influences gives us a very varied record that goes beyond normal genre conventions. It’s a pleasure when bands get the concoction just right, able to understand their roots while simultaneously crafting something distinctly of their own. In this record, visceral and straight to the vein vicious Death Metal co-exists with tasteful technical guitar work that will satisfy any maniac of the genre.