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Morgue > The Process to Define the Shape of Self-Loathing > Reviews
Morgue - The Process to Define the Shape of Self-Loathing

This is what all modern grind should be - 90%

Noktorn, May 28th, 2008

This album is probably one of the angriest pieces of music I've ever owned. It's rare that you come across stuff that's so unbelievably violent and hateful, and not just in a single department; every person recorded on this album sounds like they're attempting to kill not just their instruments but each other. Vocals are utterly frenzied, misanthropic barks and wild screams, riffs are barely held together sets of insanely distorted power chords with no sense of melody at all, and drums are hammered on with unbelievably massive intensity that threatens to collapse the kit at any moment. Apparently this album is a conceptual releases about some experiences the band had while in the US, and I have to seriously wonder what the fuck happened to make everyone so ANGRY.

Morgue was apparently a death/goregrind band in their earlier days, but the material on 'The Process To Define The Shape Of Self-Loathing' is a unique style of noisy, slightly industrialized modern grind mostly similar to Nasum in their 'Inhale/Exhale' days. The tempo never drops below 'I'm going to kill your family', there seems to be a layer of extra distortion on every instrumental voice in the mix (including the vocals with just a hint of processing designed to make them seem even LESS human), and the songs are essentially pure swirling chaos with little in the way of logical structure. While there's a similarity to Nasum in general sound, even that band never sounded THIS ridiculously angry. It's totally brutal entropy from start to finish. Maybe it's the fact that Morgue's songs are about interpersonal relationships and alienation versus Nasum's simpler themes of societal corruption and politics. Those are all well and good, but it's hard to touch the interior, self and outwardly directed loathing that this music expresses.

The 'real' music of this album only lasts about twenty-five minutes; the second half of 'Meridian' is a piece of noisy breakcore electronic music that actually works perfectly within the greater context of the album. This is a very unique piece of music that probably can't be replicated exactly by anyone else. It's a very personal record that you're only going to really understand if you can identify with the total burning rage that every member of this band expresses throughout the album. If you like very raw, noisy, absolutely barreling, straightforward grind, you'll LOVE this album, but it's definitely not recommended for people who don't consider Pig Destroyer easy listening. This album kills normal people instantly.