Mors Subita – Into the Pitch Black

Inverse Records release: April 6th 2018

This album has been topping Finnish CD dealers’ pre-order-charts recently, and true, who would not be excited about Mors Subita’s third album after hearing at least one of their old ones and/or seeing this band live on stage? Or watching one of their latest videos (see below)? Was that hype justified?
My opinion – shared by several other metal media – absolutely yes.

High quality Melodic Death Metal from Finland, finding a nice balance between straight-into-your-face aggression and appealing groove, opening and ending with a melancholic acoustic touch, providing a modern, Thrash / Progressive edge and absolutely sick guitar licks, and still containing those melodious catchy tunes so you simply cannot sit or stand still even listening to it at home…

There’s a scale of variety on different levels – the opener “As Humanity Weeps” (after the intro “Path to the Abyss”) rather focuses on the brutal approach, whereas tracks like “Vultures” come with an infectious groove echoing the Swedish variety of Melodic Death Metal. With e.g. “Alas” or “I, God” the band takes it even further, distilling all of the aforementioned elements (plus some more) and pouring them in just one song, make it still sound coherently and not like a random wrap-up of different elements. Captivating, quite exciting and creative while it feels you can just shout along with the chorus of e.g. “Fear Is Just the Beginning” when hearing it for the first time…
“Dead Sun” or “Shadows” might especially appeal to Before the Dawn fans – and then the opening of the title track, HELL YEAH – a kotau to this legend or a cross-contamination due to shredding-king Mika Lammassaari’s cooperation with the Wolfheart/Ex-BTD mastermind? 🙂

Maybe I should also mention the fantastic crystal-clear sound of Into the Pitch Black, recorded at Tico Tico Studio in Kemi with Ahti Kortelainen (Kalmah, Impaled Nazarene, Sentenced) plus additional arrangements recorded at the Demolition Center in Oulu by Mika Lammassaari. Mixing and mastering for the album was done at Illusia Productions by Stefan Pommerin.

Summing up, it is so difficult to pick a “hit song” from this album as recommendation – they all sound like hit songs … You make it or break it with the 3rd album, so they say. Well, to me looks like Mors Subita will make it …   Band website