Morbid Angel have always been the most unconventional of the major Florida death metal bands, never quite doing what was expected of them and reaping just rewards for their technical, atmospheric music. Their first four albums, recorded with frontman David Vincent, remain iconic among fans of the genre, though the records they made during his decade-long departure failed to match up. He’s been back in Morbid Angel for a few years now and Illud Divinum Insanus is the band’s comeback album.
Illud could have gone one of two ways: a repetition of the surreal, blasphemous grind that made Morbid Angel’s name in the early 90s, or a new direction reflecting the passing years and the band’s multiple influences.
Fortunately, it’s very much the second option, with a couple of songs that pursue the violent template of before (Nevermore is the obvious exponent of the archetype) and several that include distorted kick-drums, layered vocals and anthemic, Technicolor choruses (We Are Morbid, Radikult). The most eye-opening song for die-hards will be Destructos Vs The Earth/Attack, a curious amalgam of video-game soundtrack and industrial metal.
Whatever you think of Morbid Angel’s new direction, there’s no denying their ambition or the renewed confidence of this album. The simple fact is that American death metal has been in a rut for the best part of a decade: Illud might be the album to shake things up a bit.
