Hex Morbidity is a two-piece black/death/thrash outfit
hailing from the UK. On “Evangelical”, the band offers 3 songs filled with
various different sounds of extreme metal. The opening riff of “Oblivious To
All” immediately displays the brilliant thrash influence the band has. This sound
comes straight from the clutches of Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, and other
like-minded early first wave of black metal bands. The only real complaint with
this track is that it clocks in at only 2 minutes. Just when it feels like it
is really getting going, the song ends. Luckily, however, the next track, “Make
Them Suffer” is equally enjoyable. The track displays Hex Morbidity’s black and
death metal influences, as the riffs take the form of both evil tremolo-picked sections,
and heavier chugging riffs. This song also really displays the excellent vocals
of Jarod Lawley. He has a traditional raspy scream, but it is never
ear-piercing, nor is it drowned out by bad production. In fact, the production
is pretty much perfect for this style of music. It is raw and muddy, much like
Venom or Celtic Frost, but it doesn’t reach the awful levels that many second
wave black metal bands would get to. This allows all of the riffs to be heard
clearly, while still conjuring the appropriate atmosphere. One bigger surprise
of this release is it never gets all that fast. It is up-tempo overall, but “Evangelical”
never reaches the frantic pacing that was all common in black metal in the 90’s.
This works in the band’s favour, as it prevents all of the songs from blending
together. Ultimately, “Evangelical” is a very solid release by a young band in
a genre I’m not overly fond of. Well worth hearing, as I can assure you that
this band will go on to do great things!
Highlights
"Oblivious To All"
"Make Them Suffer"
Final Rating
3.9/5 or 78%.