MORBID WIZARD (Necrosis Of The Eyeball) CD
Following on from the release of 'Lord Of The Rats' (review here), Ohio's MORBID WIZARD return with 'Necrosis Of The Eyeball' and it makes me feel dirty just listening to it. This is definitely a very grim and nihilistic trip which is free from any gleam of hope. And that is how it should be when it comes to sludge metal. MORBIS WIZARD are masters of their craft, which is further underscored by 'Necrosis Of The Eyeball' that consists of five ruthless tracks. The guitar tone and the weight of the riffs is smothering. Meanwhile Scott Stearns (who also the did the album cover which is packed in a DVD case) is the sole guitarist after Bahb Branca left MORBID WIZARD, but that doesn't affect the sheer power of their raw doom-laden heaviness.
The icing on the cake is without doubt singer Jesse Kling, whose vocals have been recorded seperately. Perhaps this is because his voice has been enriched with some cool, unobtrusive effects, but actually I don't know because I'm no studio technician. Anyways, his vocals give the impression of a man who life is killing slowly and painfully or who is imprisoned in a weird dream. The first track 'Grave Chyld' trudges along with maximum power and apart of Jesse Kling's corrosive vokills it's also Scott Stearns, who adds an extra amount of sickness to the song with his unmistakably bizarre guitar solo. Not to forget the effect of the bone-crushing riffs. Basically, the applies to all five songs, but sometimes they manage to outdo themselves as in the case of 'Chemical Fog'. Especially here the vocals are downright nasty and perfectly staged. There are also some atmospheric keyboard sounds that are making sure the song is moving in a slightly different direction after approximately two minutes.
But the thing to me that seemed the most amazing is that MORBID WIZARD have done a cover version of 'Night Songs'. It has been originally recorded by the U.S. hard rock outfit Cinderella in 1986. Well, I never listened to that band, because I feel it's a waste of time but after listening to the version of MORBID WIZARD I was curious to hear the original song. Needless to say, MORBID WIZARD have given this tune a special treatment which ensures that each die-hard Cinderella fan will jump out of the window in a jiffy. I, however, like the cover version much better, not only because Scott Stearns and crew did leave their very own stamp on it. Strictly speaking, each of the five tracks rules and rarely fails to have a strong impact on the listener. With 'Necrosis Of The Eyeball', MORBID WIZARD sets the bar high for other sludgemongers, so that anyone who likes this band or genre can't go wrong with this one - it's for the real connoisseurs.
(KK)