Morgoth - Ungod (2015)

   It took for a bit longer, but the reunification and returning wave of old school death metal bands didn't avoid Morgoth either. But while most of these similar returns were quite disappointing, Morgoth did manage to leave behind a great material again (before they've split up again).
   And they did that without former frontman Marc Grewe by finding a voice very similar to his (Karsten Jäger). And indeed, without that characteristic and unique vocal style Morgoth definitely couldn't have been the same. The band's discography basically reflects the life stages of the members. In their earliest period the most extreme aspect of their music was created by the "Resurrection Absurd" and "Eternal Fall" EPs. On "Cursed" a professional death metal band could be heard, "Odium" came out when the death metal scene was exhausted, and some bands were into technical and progressive experiments in the hope of renewing their style. And their most hated release "Feel Sorry for the Fanatic" was made when an inevitable switch happened by interfering features of adulthood like the everydays life of workers, career building and settling. A becoming serious switch to some, meaningless bullshit for others. Except the reuniting wave influenced by the New Wave of Old School Death Metal, "Ungod" also represents the nostalgia ambition for the band members. Over a certain age many wishes to return to their roots and teen age favorites/ influences, and since the members of Morgoth were basically teens when they've formed the band, this nostalgia seems reasonable for the band members. Most specifically for guitarists Harald Busse the only founding member who was left and Sebastian Swart who joined the band in 1990. So "Ungod" wasn't meant to disappoint the old fans and it didn't. Those who missed the early sound of Morgoth might have been certainly satisfied. It wasn't just an imitation of the old times like most of the time like "let's play just something similar like back then". The riffs and some themes might sound very familiar, but not as rip-offs of the old records. The character and spirit of old Morgoth have returned (or resurrected in some absurd form). By music, sound quality and intensity "Ungod" could be embedded between "Cursed" and "Odium" as an imaginary extension of the band's old school death metal era.