Morbid Angel
| Morbid Angel | |
|---|---|
 Morbid Angel live in Toronto in 2006. From left to right: David Vincent (background), Trey Azagthoth (foreground) |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Tampa, Florida, United States |
| Genres | Death metal |
| Years active | 1984 – present |
| Labels | Combat Records, Earache, Giant, Candlelight, Roadrunner, New Renaissance, Season of Mist |
| Website | www.morbidangel.com/ |
| Members | |
| Trey Azagthoth Pete Sandoval David Vincent Destructhor |
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| Past members | |
| Mike Browning Wayne Hartsell Dallas Ward Richard Brunelle Kenny Bamber Sterling Von Scarborough Steve Tucker Erik Rutan Jared Anderson Tony Norman John Ortega Michael Manson |
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Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida. UK music magazine Terrorizer ranked two Morbid Angel albums in its "Top 40 greatest death metal albums," with their 1989 debut Altars of Madness appearing at number 1. Decibel Magazine also rated guitarist Trey Azagthoth as the number 1 "death metal guitarist ever". The band's songs are complex in arrangement, owing to the considerable technical skills of both Azagthoth and drummer Pete Sandoval (who also played in the grindcore/death metal band Terrorizer). According to Nielsen SoundScan, Morbid Angel is the third best-selling death metal band in the United States with sales over 445,000[1] in the United States alone, with their third album Covenant being the best-selling death metal album of all time in the United States, at over 127,000 units sold.[2]
Contents |
History
Morbid Angel was formed in 1984 in Tampa, Florida. The band made their debut in 1987 on New Renaissance Records. They recorded their debut album, Abominations of Desolation, in 1986, but the band was unsatisfied with the final product and it remained unreleased until 1991. Their first proper studio album, Altars of Madness, was released in 1989.
Morbid Angel was one of the original death metal bands signed to Earache Records, and was also influential in the transition of death metal from its thrash metal roots to its current form by adding guttural vocals, up-tempo blast beats, incorporating atonality in guitar soloing, and dark, chunky, mid-paced rhythms. They were also the first death metal band to have a touch of mainstream success, such as being signed to Giant Records in 1992 and having the music video for the song "God of Emptiness" shown on an episode of Beavis and Butt-head.
The band's original lyrical themes focused mostly on Satanism, Occultism and anti-Christian subject matter, but from Blessed Are the Sick onward, the lyrics slowly moved toward the ancient Sumerian gods. Much of this is a nod to the Simon Necronomicon, which was influenced by Sumerian mythology as well as the author H. P. Lovecraft[3], as well as a fascination with the Roman Empire, though anti-religious elements continue to permeate the lyrics. Their albums are notable for being released in alphabetical order (their first album starts with the letter A, the second with B, etc.). Guitarist Trey Azagthoth has said in an interview that it was a coincidence with the first two albums, but has been done consciously since then.[4]
As stated on their official website, Morbid Angel's appearance on some of the mid-summer 2008 European festivals is announced as a "short break from writing and pre-production of their new 8th studio album." Morbid Angel is currently under contract with French label Season of Mist and the label will release their new album in 2010.[5] In May 2008, it was announced Thor Anders Myhren of Zyklon would be the band's new touring guitarist.[6] Myhren will also appear on the new album.
During European tours and festivals in 2008 a new song, "Nevermore", has been played from the forthcoming album.
On March 18, 2010, the band announced that Tim Yeung would play drums on the upcoming album, allowing Pete Sandoval to recover from back surgery.[7]
On June 22, 2010, the band entered the studio to begin the recording of their new full-length album, which is due for release in late 2010/early 2011, which will be released on Season Of Mist.[8]
Members
Current line-up
- Trey Azagthoth – guitar, guitar synthesizer, keyboards, backing vocals (1983–present)
- Pete Sandoval – drums, percussion (1988–present)
- David Vincent – bass guitar, lead vocals (1986–1996, 2004–present)
- Destructhor – guitar (2008–present)
- Tim Yeung - session drums (2010–present)
Former members
- Bass guitar
- Dallas Ward – bass guitar, vocals (1983–1985)
- John Ortega – bass guitar (1985–1986)
- Sterling Von Scarborough – bass guitar (1986)
- Drums
- Mike Browning - drums, percussion, vocals (1983–1986)
- Wayne Hartsell – drums (1986–1988)
- Guitar
- Richard Brunelle – guitar (1985–1992, 1994, 1998)
- Gino Marino – guitar (1992–1993)
- Erik Rutan – guitar, keyboards (1993–1996, 1999–2002, 2006)
- Tony Norman – guitar (2003–2006)
- Vocals
- Kenny Bamber – vocals (1985)
- Michael Manson – vocals (1986)
- Steve Tucker – vocals, bass guitar (1997–2001, 2003–2004)
- Jared Anderson – vocals, bass guitar (2001–2002)
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Heat. [9] |
US Ind. [9] |
FRA [10] |
NLD [11] |
UK [12] |
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| 1989 | Altars of Madness
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— | — | — | — | — |
| 1991 | Blessed Are the Sick
|
— | — | — | — | — |
| 1993 | Covenant
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24 | — | — | — | — |
| 1995 | Domination
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13 | — | — | 93 | 124 |
| 1998 | Formulas Fatal to the Flesh
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22 | — | — | 93 | — |
| 2000 | Gateways to Annihilation
|
— | — | — | — | — |
| 2003 | Heretic
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27 | 28 | 146 | — | — |
Live albums
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1996 | Entangled in Chaos
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Demo albums
| Abominations of Desolation | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| Demo album by Morbid Angel | ||||
| Released | September 2, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | May 1986 | |||
| Genre | Death metal | |||
| Length | 42:33 | |||
| Label | Earache | |||
| Producer | David Vincent | |||
| Professional reviews | ||||
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| Morbid Angel chronology | ||||
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Abominations of Desolation was an early demo album by Morbid Angel. While it was originally recorded in May 1986, the band did not release it at the time due to their dissatisfaction with the final product.[13] These recordings would later be released in 1991 at the decision of the band's record label, Earache Records.[14] Trey Azagthoth has stated in interviews this release should be considered a demo and not an album, and that the point of releasing it was primarily to eliminate the need for the low quality bootlegs which were being sold at the time.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Invocation/Chapel of Ghouls" ("Chapel of Ghouls" later recorded for Altars of Madness) | 7:11 |
| 2. | "Unholy Blasphemies" (later recorded for Blessed Are the Sick) | 4:00 |
| 3. | "Angel of Disease" (later recorded for Covenant) | 5:35 |
| 4. | "Azagthoth" (later recorded for Blessed Are the Sick as "The Ancient Ones") | 5:49 |
| 5. | "The Gate/Lord of All Fevers" (later recorded for Altars of Madness as "Lord of All Fevers and Plague") | 5:55 |
| 6. | "Hell Spawn" (later recorded for Formulas Fatal to the Flesh as "Hellspawn: The Rebirth") | 2:32 |
| 7. | "Abominations" (later recorded for Blessed Are the Sick) | 4:20 |
| 8. | "Demon Seed" | 2:12 |
| 9. | "Welcome to Hell" (later recorded for Altars of Madness as "Evil Spells") | 4:56 |
Credits
- Mike Browning - vocals, drums
- Trey Azagthoth - guitar
- John Ortega - bass guitar
- Richard Brunelle - guitar
Extended plays
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1994 | Laibach Re-mixes
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Music videos
| Year | Title | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | "Immortal Rites" | |
| 1991 | "Blessed Are the Sick/Leading the Rats" | |
| 1993 | "God of Emptiness" | Tony Kunewalder |
| "Rapture" | Tony Kunewalder | |
| 1995 | "Where the Slime Live" | |
| 2003 | "Enshrined by Grace" | Pete Bridgewater[15] |
References
Vinylnet Record Label Discographies. link. - Earache Records catalogue numbers.
Notes
- ↑ "Morbid Angel is the Third Best Selling Death Metal Bands". Blogcritics. 2003. http://blogcritics.org/archives/2003/11/18/115317.php. Retrieved 2003.
- ↑ "Best Selling Death Metal Album is covenant". Blogcritics. 2003. http://blogcritics.org/archives/2003/11/18/115317.php. Retrieved 2003.
- ↑ HPLA - Lovecraftian Music
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.Net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=130617
- ↑ http://www.metalunderground.com/news/details.cfm?newsid=36732
- ↑ "Morbid Angel Drummer Pete Sandoval Undergoes Back Surgery". MetalUnderground.com. March 18, 2010. http://www.metalunderground.com/news/details.cfm?newsid=54109. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
- ↑ http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=142041
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Billboard charts
- ↑ French albums chart
- ↑ Dutch albums chart
- ↑ British charts
- ↑ http://www.amazon.com/Abominations-Desolation-Morbid-Angel/dp/B0000072BE/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1276365982&sr=8-4
- ↑ http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:j9foxquhldje
- ↑ [2]
External links
- Official website
- Official Myspace page
- Artist page at Allmusic
- Morbid Angel discography at MusicBrainz
- Morbid Angel at Discogs
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