Altars of Madness

Witness the majesty of Morbid Angel's debut LP "Altars of Madness". This record is a singularity in the pantheon of extreme music. Born from a scene that was already coming up against it's inherent limitations, MA somehow transcended into timeless glory on this album. Guitarist/mastermind Trey Azagthoth is a true genius whose name doesn't make it on to very many "best guitarist" lists outside of the metal underground, but this is the mainstreams loss.David Vincent's vocals are simultaneously guttural, yet decipherable, becoming iconic in their own right.The drumming of Pete Sandoval-well, this is the stuff of legend. Many a band from Florida in the late 80s/early 90s was fast, but not THIS fast. Pete pushed the speed limit of death metal to grindcore tempos (see-Terrorizer), giving rise to the genre of death/grind. One could make and argument that Repulsion already did that a few years back with their "Horrified" LP, but even that record couldn't touch the musicianship on display here. Add to this the often talked about "otherworldly" vibe that the record exudes and you have a bone fide masterpiece on you hands.All of that out of the way, this review is based on the recent Earache reissue of the record on LP and CD as part of their "Expanded Dynamic Range" series. Several classic Earache releases are getting this treatment, and I for one applaud it.Throughout the 90s and part of the 2000s, "remaster" came to be a dirty word for music fans. It usually mean that the record in question was going to come out sounding like bricked out garbage. Victims of the "Loudness War", (look this up for an afternoon of intriguing reading!) remastered albums hitting the shelves were lacking in highs and lows, with everything crammed into the middle and then made LOUD. They sounded awful, and completely ruined the intended sound of the original recordings.The cure? Go back to the original master tapes, clean them up to get them sounding as authentic to the recording sessions as possible, and press them with the dynamic range (basically the sonic difference between quiet and loud moments on the record) fully intact. When you play them, they don't sound much louder than the original copy you probably own. But when you turn the volume up, it's a pleasant surprise to not have your ears blown out! For the music fans who care about this stuff, these editions are worthy additions to their collections without a doubt.My only beef with this particular record is that there is no CD booklet. The EDR versions of Napalm Death's first 2 LPs came with booklets of lyrics/photos. So, it's pretty bare bones on that count and it leads me to believe that someone like myself who has had a copy of this record for 29 years is the intended audience. Keep the original for lyrics and photos (and the 3 remixes!) and play the new one LOUDLY!!!A side by side play comparison with my original CD from 1989 gives the sonic edge to the new one in volume by only a hair. No big deal, with the point being how does it stack up when the volume knob gets turned clockwise?The EDR really kicks in when you crank it up, sounding full, balanced and preserved at high volume. The original CD had a limit to the volume you could play it on without getting grating to the ears.In the final analysis of this reissue, it's a winner and Earache earns your cash for it. Now go buy it!!!

The first of many good ones to come.This album is actually a rerecording of many songs from Morbid Angels first attempt "Abominations of Desolation" but Azagthoth wanted better and ended up creating what would become one of the more notable albums of the genre for future generations of metalheads.

What can really be said about Morbid Angel's "Altars of Madness" that hasn't already been stretched over the past 15+ reviews? Plainly, it's a genuinely bludgeoning, visceral, blood-curdling display of satanic death metal, that somehow manages to remain technical, precise and consistent throughout all of its 10 tracks. If I could liken each Morbid Angel to a criminal, this would, without a doubt, be the kerosene-wielding church-burning maniac. "Altars of Madness" really is that good. Yes, it really is worth all the hype. It's raw. It's brutal. It achieves everything you want from a classic death metal album. And yes, if you haven't already got it, do yourself a massive favour and check it out. Lastly this record got me into death metal so it pretty much has a special place in my heart!

Altars of Madness is the first death metal album I ever bought, and it was as an EXCELLENT introdction to the genre for me. Before this album, the most "extreme" metal I listened to was probably Venom, Satan, or Metal Church. Morbid Angel's early music remains my favorite death metal today, and this album is a big reason why.I think there's something different about the atmosphere of the songs on this album compared to the average death metal album. Most death metal has very violent lyrics and is all about speed and ferocity. Some bands lose their atmosphere in the process and end up sounding more noisy and less ominous and evil (and I've always felt that sounding ominous and evil makes for great metal--just listen to Angel Witch). Altars of Madness never loses its creepy, occult atmosphere, but is still relentlessly ferocious. David Vincent's vocals are demonic, and the lyrics more than just violent; they're based in the foggy realm of the supernatural. Some death metal bands will just try to gross you out with their lyrics, but Morbid Angel CREEPS you out, which is much more exciting and effective, in my opinion.The musicianship on the album is fantastic, which is another reason I love it so much. I've always loved to listen to metal virtuosos like Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Helloween, and guitarist John Sykes, and Morbid Angel has some serious skill too. The rhythm section and the guitars do remarkable things at high speed. Being a guitarist myself, Trey Azagthoth's riffs and solos in particular have thrilled me. I would describe his playing as exquisitely chaotic and menacing. In the solos, it's like he plays all over the place in an uncontrolled frenzy, except that it IS controlled PRECISELY, and the melody of his lead playing complements the ominous riffs in the songs perfectly.The compositions are a little more complex than you're average rock or metal song. While there ARE recurring riffs in the songs, it's kind of hard to pick out a real verse and chorus in each one. There are many different riffs and sections that make up each song. They're kind of like classical compositions in this way. It doesn't take away from anything, though. If anything, it just adds to the chaotic nature of the music, which is a good thing. Also, the songs, while all being very fast, are often tastefully interspersed with slightly slower parts which are kind of like brief lulls in the storms of metal this band creates. After all, how would one realize they were amidst a storm of metal if it never abated just a little?I can't think of much I don't like about this album. All the songs are great. Especially my personal favorites, "Visions from the Dark Side," "Chapel of Ghouls," (CHILLING mid-section and solo in this one), and "Evil Spells." Get it right now if you, like me, have a taste for ferocious, diabolically creepy metal that is not only brutal, but haunting.

This album is absolutely fantastic! A devastating force of complex guitars and dark vocals, definitely earns its praise of being one of the best death metal releases ever. Buy it now! Although the cover shown is different for the cd (it’s still really cool). The picture shown is for the vinyl cover. So if you want the super detailed cover, go with the vinyl.

I can't stop listening to this album. i loved it in high school and i had the same copy for years tel it did what cds sometimes do, and found its way into someone else's collection or other wise lost in someway. so that being said this is a replacement copy, worth buying twice. One of the best death metal albums of all time.

I decided to try my hand at good ol' Death Metal, and following a bit of research, decided to take a pop at this one. I've never really gotten into this most controversial of Metal sub-genres. I always kind of viewed Death Metal as Thrash 'without a lot of other stuff,' one of them being melody and decipherable vocals, and to a large extent I stand by my initial view. But to dismiss the genre because of that would be foolish. It may be a stripped down version of Thrash, but those element are turned up way beyond 11!This album is pretty much the 'Reign In Blood' of the genre and shares a few charecteristics of that album. Defining, fast, brutally heavy and probably at the time, the leader of the pack. If an alien fell to Earth and asked for a definitive example of Death Metal, you wouldn't be doing ET a disservice by handing him this.The riffs are fast and heavy, solos chaotic a la Slayer, vocals (the Marmite point for many) typical of the genre and suited to the music, even if you can't tell what the hell he's saying most of the time! You'll either love it or loathe it, there's no getting away from that. There is also, a slight operatic and epic feel to some of the riffs. The second half of epic opener 'Immortal Rites' being a shining example of this.Curiously, the bonus, remasterd, remixed versions of the original albums' songs are noticably louder!

Bought This Version As My Other Copy Was Scratched. First Thing I Notice The Bonus 3 Re-mixed Versions Bonus Tracks Are Missing. Second There`s No Booklet Inside. The Live CD Is The Audio Thats Been Ripped From Previous Re-issue. Basically A Rip Off. Dig Must Be Short Of Cash Due To The Covid-19 Pandemic.There`s Better Versions Of This Kicking About.

The only reason it’s not 5 stars.. Arrived sealed but had no cd booklet! Where’s the inlay booklet with the lyrics and photos etc? Apart from that this is still one of the top death metal albums of all time, looks great , sounds stunning (still) extra live slbum a very welcome bonus and so it should have had 5 stars, were it not for this factory fault.

Awesome album, one of my all time favorites in death metal, great debut, so evil and dark.All songs are eargasm, great sound, headbang all the way, vocals type that i like, an album you can listen to it in loop.Top tracks: 'Maze of Torment', 'Chapel of Ghouls', 'Suffocation', 'Damnation' but basically all.38 minutes of pleasure for the ears and the neck, awesome artwork.Should be on any death and thrash metal fan collection.

Great late 80s death metal album, somewhat more technical than say Deicide or Death and has good lyrics. The quality of the recording is very good and no mixing problems what so ever. Somewhat unclear at points due to the sheer technicality but doesn't take away from the album. There's a reason you see this on many top 10 Death metal album lists and such, as it's important to the scene; a pinnacle of a genre that many bands even nowadays can't make as good. This and Deicide's self titled are two of my most favourite death metal albums to date.