"Worth the $.92 I paid for it." | 2009-02-13 |
| - Reviewed By stranjer55 from Knoxville, TN |
| I got this off the bargain shelf at a local used book store just to try it out. I have to say that, not being a big death metal fan, it is better than I expected. Based on the reviews I have read I am looking forward to checking out some of MA's older stuff. To be more specific, the drumming on this CD is retardedly boring. Only a few times throughout the entire CD do you ever hear anything other than machine gun thirty second notes on the kick. Secondly, the guitar solos sound really out of place in the mix. And finally, the bonus CD is just a waste of disc space. I have never heard of a band releasing a track of just a guitar solo from another song. They are technically sound solos, but pointlessly out of place without the rest of the music. Are they trying to release some kind of study material for aspiring death metal guitarists or just being pretentious? Either way, it sucks. But, overall, it was worth a buck and the time it took to leave this review. |
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"Drac on 'Heretic'" | 2008-05-09 |
| - Reviewed By D. from parts un-known |
| Nothing but continued brutality from one the true "pioneers" of DEATH metal... The drumming esp. is purely vicious! |
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"The Angel Flies Again" | 2008-02-27 |
| - Reviewed By devon_maloy from Dallas, TX USA |
I've been listening to death and black metal for about 16 years, and well-composed death-metal tracks are still very hard to come by. It takes an exceptional talent to make a song that maintains the intensity and keeps you interested.
Buy this album for the two tracks that will rip your head off. After the poor showing on their last album, I was skeptical about Heretic, especially hearing that 60% of the album is just guitar noodling and doodling. However, there are 2 tunes on this album that make it worth buying. "Enshrined in Grace", and "Stricken Arise" seem to maintain Morbid Angel's title as the heaviest ever. I'd say that these 2 tracks are the heaviest tunes this band has ever done, and I have all 9 of their albums, so I should know!
The vocalist takes on more of a David Vincent style on this album; with more clarity and definition of diction, and agression out of nowhere. Steve Tucker ups his attack ten fold on this album! He must be pumping steroids all of a sudden!
Just when Tucker was getting strong, they're bringing back Vincent on the next album, I hear? That'll be a real return to power!
Stricken Arise!
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"Under "Levels" of Filler There Is An Album Here." | 2007-04-07 |
| - Reviewed By Bradley M. Rickett from Tower Hill, IL United States |
The metal hiarchy known as Morbid Angel have a high standard to live up to. Morbid fans are a passionate bunch with no tolerate for "under the mill" albums and the band is aware of that. I myself expect to embark on a tremendous dark journey when a new Morbid album is released. However, referring to the album HERETIC, which starts out fairly strong, falls into one of the most absolutely ridiculous track layouts I have personally EVER encountered actually making it the most muddled down and anti-climatic album in death metal history.
At first run, I immediately noticed the intentional less-than-stellar mastering which fits well in preserving their unique "old school" sound and is not a distraction at all. The distraction is that out of the 14 tracks LISTED on the album only 8 are performed by the band entirely- the rest being filler tracks with only "Abyssous" to hold enough worth to grab my attention (The unlisted "tracks" are fodder not worthy of mention). No disrespect to the bands musicianship but what the Hell were they thinking with the album layout? I felt like a victim at a local carnival. You know, where the toothless guy shows you all kinds of cool prizes (Awesome song titles in this case) and proclaims you look like a "winner" but you soon find out they're only an illusion and you would have to win for hours to have a chance to get them. I don't want to have to play for hours to win my prize just as much as I don't want to have to sift through a bunch of garbage that the band led me to believe on the back panel were album worthy songs. They're not. Even "Drum Check" should not have been an actual album track. I won't deny that it is an entertaining track but as cool as it is should not have been listed in the actual tracks-as it is more suitable for a ghost track, the only one suitable for this actually. As a matter of fact this 70 minute CD contains about half that in good material with the rest being soaked up with the immense amount of silly ghost tracks.
So why three stars after all the slamming? Because underneath the plethora of filler there is an absolute monolith of an album presented here. On the actual song tracks Morbid Angel do not waiver. The songs range from diabolical blasting to spidery mid tempos filled with utter creepiness. Also, contrary to many reviews that the songs are tedious, I personally found them to be very inspired and eventful and aside from a few song similarities they all deliver. The members abilities are also unquestionable. Pete Sandoval, though he sounds a bit programmed from time to time presents jaw dropping blasts and double bass beats that continue to destroy. Azagtoth's guitar work is very well thought and even darker and more bizarre than past releases and Tucker has reached his vocal peak on this album.
So the bottom line is that this could 've been a great 10 track disk, given the use of a few tracks as long as the continuity is not broken. The fatal flaw that is causing many fans to overlook it's greatness is the filler. It just distracts the listener and pulls them away from the atmosphere that is created. I believe this to be an absolutely unacceptable flaw, especially from veterans of a scene whom should know better. |
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"Their worst album" | 2007-02-10 |
| - Reviewed By Phlegmak from Edison, NJ United States |
| Unfortunately, Morbid Angel made a mediocre album with Heretic. Their previous one also wasn't particularly amazing. This is by far Morbid Angel's worst album. I definitely don't recommend this for anyone, except perhaps rabid Morbid Angel fans. I gave it two stars because a few bits here and there are good. |
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"Death Metal Gods flop big time with this loser!" | 2006-10-24 |
| - Reviewed By An Amazon User |
| I've given this MA disc several good listenings to and it just plain sucks. I really hate to say this too. As a guitar player myself, I have nothing but respect for Trey and Pete. THey are truly gifted musicians. However, this album is just plain boring. There are NO catchy or interesting riffs, the production quality sucks and the vocals are NOT up to the standards of Dave Vincent. Unless you're a die hard MA that will listen to anything thay put out, no matter how crappy it is, then save your money. The latest Cannibal Corpse album Kill is a WAY better album and represents where Death Metal is TODAY in terms of catchy, brutal riffs and blistering leads. Pat's guitar work in the new Canniabal, and The Wretched Spawn, blows this away on every front. |
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