Mortiis - The Grudge

The third era has begun!

I have waited quite some time for the release of this new Mortiis album. Maybe you can imagine how pleased I was to see I received the promo in my mailbox. It went straight into the cd-player.
The first thing I noticed is the usage of guitars, which I think is the main reason to call it the third era. Mortiis last album 'The smell of rain' (second era) didn't include guitars at all. That doesn't mean this new album is a metal album; I would call it electro/industrial with metal influences.
A second thing: The vocals. The vocals differ a little from the last album. On 'The smell of rain' the vocals were more clean. But the vocals were levelled by a computer, because Mortiis couldn't sing his own lyrics the way he imagined. I think that is the main reason why the vocals are more raw on this album. But fx are used a lot too.
The new songs are all quite good, and most of them are very danceable. I don't think many people will complain when they hear a track of 'The Grudge' in their local disco. People who like dance will love it as much as people who like rock or metal.
I believe Marilyn Manson fans will appreciate 'The Grudge' because that was the first thing what came up in my mind as I was listening this album for the first time.
In my opinion you should either play this album very loud or with headphones, because of the fact there are so many little musical details in the songs. It's really a great production; it's quite obvious these songs weren't written in a short period of time: Mortiis took his time.

In my opinion 'The grudge' doesn't exceed Mortiis' last album, but it is a fine piece of music.

Track listing:
1. Broken skin
2. Way to wicked
3. The grudge
4. Decadent & desperate
5. The worst in me
6. Gibber
7. Twist the knife
8. The loneliest things
9. Le petit cochon sordide
10. Asthma

Mortiis is:

Mortiis - vocals, synths, programming, sound design
Levi Gawron - guitar
Asmund Sveinunggard - guitar
Leo Troy - drums