Album Title: Mortal
Genre/ Subgenre: Death Metal
Label: Tankcrimes
Release Date: August 28, 2020
Mortal is the second full length album from Bay Area death metal act Necrot. The follow up to their amazing debut LP Blood Offerings, this album continues to live up to all the hype and growing respect that the band has been garnering. It expands on their sound, while still being very recognizable as their work. Alternating between crushing and driving death metal it also adds flourishes of speed that show a thrashy and even a punkish influence.
There are only seven track on the LP, but just about all of them achieve the highest level of quality. Some of the highlights, which is saying a lot in an album filled with them, include the first track "Your Hell". Said song has a super, absolutely killer riff. I fucking love the breakdown it has a battering blast-beat that joins in that aforementioned riff for the ultimate sonic mayhem. If you are looking for fast, then turn to "Stench of Decay", an unrelenting assault of battering and riffing fury. The album closes off with my favorite song: the crushing title track. When the music slows down a bit for the chorus it is even more devastating. At 8:34 is also the longest track, adding a progressive element to the album. But, if you think that means that it is slow or weak, you would be fucking mistaken. It is actually an absolutely blistering track and one of my favorite death metal songs of 2020.
Pic by Chris Johnston
Tight musicianship and awesome riffs make Mortal one of the absolute best death metal releases of this year. I wasn't sure if they could top Blood Offerings, but they did with this follow-up. Mortal actually gets better with each listen, as certain parts or whole tracks become more and more appealing. Old school death metal fans, put this one at the top of your must buy list!
4.5 out of 5
