Mortification

Item: Hammer of God
Author: SORG

Hammer of God

(1999)

Reviewed by SORG

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Label Rowe Productions / Metal Blade RecordsDead Zine1999

death metal grindcore heavy metal thrash metal

This is the 9th full length CD from Steve Rowe and company, not to mention a couple of live eps, a best of compilation, a rare import, and some stuff Steve done back in the late 80s with his band Lightforce. Steve Rowe has been through the fires of Hell and is here to tell about it! He has successfully won a war against Leukemia (cancer of the bones and blood stream), even though at one point the doctors gave him a zero chance of survival and less than a couple days to live! Well, a year ago Mortification, with their current lineup of Steve on vocals and bass, Keith Bannister on drums, and Lincoln Bowen on guitar, released an lp that was pretty much centered on Steve's fight against cancer (Triumph of Mercy). Although the CD was well received and hit pretty hard against the devil, I personally did not consider it one of their best. Well another year has passed and Mortification are back with a new CD (and a bit of a new sound) that I do consider one of their best! Hammer of God is true classic power metal! Mortification have long been known for their association with "death" metal and rightfully so, considering that 1992's Scrolls of the Megilloth is probably THE best "death" metal album ever recorded. Those days have long since passed and Mortification has had lineup changes and life changes that have directed Steve back closer to the roots of his music. this evolution in musical style has been an ongoing process for Mortification ever since the release of Post Momentary Affliction. Well, now to the present.... this is sounding more like an article than a review! Hammer of God is a full 70 min. masterpiece! They have now incorporated keyboards, which I love, to give the songs more melody and atmosphere. Steve is using the same vocal style as on EnVision EvAngelene and the song structures are also similar to that album. Steve is also writing lyrics that are done in a metaphorical way, like the song "A Pearl" which compares the preciousness of God's grace to the beauty and preciousness of a pearl. "Lock Up The Night" is a song that sounds almost as if Ronnie James Dio himself wrote the words. Also included on here, apart from the 10 new songs, are demo versions of "Visited By An Angel", "Unified Truth", and "At War With War" from the Triumph of Mercy CD. I must say that the demos sound even better than when they appeared on Triumph.. AND a killer song entitled "Medley" which is just that... A medley of four older Mortification tunes that have been redone to suit Steve's new style. "Medley" sounds so cool that it stands out as it's own song and is very representative of the overall Mortification experience. The thing I have and always will respect most about Mortification is their faithfulness to the ministering of the gospel (no watered down lyrics on any of these guys records!) and their refusal to bow to the trends, Mortification continues to play "true" metal for "true" metal fans.

7.5/10