Lord Mortvm ‒ Diabolical Omen of Hell Review

Fast Rites: because sometimes brevity is fundamental.

Norway’s Lord Mortvm plays the type of metal that was best back when dirtbags knew they were dirtbags. Back when Saint Vitus was adding the punk grit to ultimately crawling doom and when Eyehategod was taking all those things they needed for pain. A creeping, crawling, molasses dirge in musical form.

In fact, Vitus and EHG are about the two best reference points for this band and debut Diabolical Omen of Hell. The riffs never (EVER) do more than is necessary to communicate either lumbering anguish or more of a bluesy haze; the soloing often carries a very Chandlery love of the wah pedal (the lead in “Omega XIII” initially struggles to even find a second note); and the slightly blackened vocals carry the kind of strung out and exhausted quality Mike Williams often exudes. (The difference in the latter is that these vocals are probably a performance, not real life.) Where Lord Mortvm changes things up a tad is through the lyrical subject matter, which eschews the addiction and societal topics of their most obvious influences in favor of things much more devilish and evil, with some horror samples added in for good effect.

The result is a lovingly miserable little slab of dirty doom that ought to appeal to fans of the above in addition to acts like Electric Wizard and Faustcoven, or really to anyone that thinks Sleep is too upbeat and positive. Diabolical Omen of Hell won’t shift any paradigms, obviously, but it ought to be a good addition to your personal soundtrack for when you’ve had one beer or [insert chemical of choice] too many.

Release date: June 25, 2021; Label: Helter Skelter Productions

Posted by Zach Duvall

Last Rites Co-Owner; Senior Editor; Obnoxious overuser of baseball metaphors.

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