Mortification

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Mortification
General information
Genre (s) Death metal , thrash metal , power metal
founding 1990
Founding members
Steve Rowe
Cameron Hall (until 1991)
Jayson Sherlock (until 1994)
Current occupation
Vocals, bass
 Steve Rowe
guitar
 Mick Jelinic (since 2002)
Drums
 Damien Percy (since 2006)
former members
guitar
 Michael Carlisle (from 1991 to 1994)
Drums
 Phil Gibson (from 1994 to 1994)
guitar
 Bill Rice (from 1995 to 1996)
Drums
 Jason Campell (from 1995 to 1996)
guitar
 Lincoln Bowen (from 1996 to 2002)
Drums
 Keith Bannister (from 1996 to 2001)
Drums
 Adam Zaffarese (from 2001 to 2004)
guitar
 Jeff Lewis (from 2002 to 2004)
Drums
 Mike Forsberg (from 2004 to 2006)

Mortification (English for humiliation) is a Christian metal - band from Australia around singer and bassist Steve Rowe. More precisely, the music can be divided into the sub-categories Death Metal and Thrash Metal . On the other hand, newer material (from around 1998) has a clear Hardcore influence. Mortification have achieved a high level of awareness in the metal scene . The band's breakthrough came with the album Scrolls of the Megilloth , which received very good reviews in many heavy metal magazines and attracted them international attention.

Band history

The beginning and the first successes

After the Christian thrash metal band Lightforce split up in 1989 , bassist Steve Rowe decided to found Mortification in 1990. The aim of the band was to offer an alternative to traditional death metal bands like Carcass , Death or Obituary . In the same year, the debut album Break the Curse was recorded, on which Steve Rowe also took on the role of singer in addition to the bass. It was followed a year later by the self-titled album Mortification , which was harder and faster than its predecessor. Mortification quickly gained a reputation within Australia for being the fastest and loudest metal band around. With the 92 album "Scrolls of the Megilloth" they became known beyond the borders of their country with Christian metal fans, but also in the non-Christian metal scene. Because of this, some Black Metal fans spoke out loudly against this "new scene" and verbally attacked founder and frontman Steve Rowe in particular. In response to these attacks, the lyrics in the 1993 subsequent albums Post Momentary Affliction and the live album from the Australian Black Stump Festival Live Planetarium contained text passages that were clearly directed against Satanism .

Excerpt from the song Time Crusaders :

The progress of eons has passed.
We see that music lives on.
God created all styles.
Satan has only perverted.

Shortly thereafter, drummer Jayson Sherlock left the band and switched to the doom metal band Paramaecium . He was replaced at short notice by Phil Gibson with whom the band brought out the best-selling and best-known album Mortifications Blood World . Due to the great success they started their first tour across Europe and America . After the tour Michael Carlisle and Phil Gibson left the band and it was not until 1995 that Steve Rowe found guitarist Bill Rice and drummer Jason Campell, with whom he recorded the sixth studio album Primitive Rhythm Machine , which no longer contained any death metal influences, it was pure Thrash Metal. After the fate of the band was uncertain for several months, as Steve could not find a fixed line-up , it was announced that Lincoln Bowen would take over the guitar with immediate effect and Keith Bannister, who actually worked as a roadie for the band, would now be the drummer in the Band should play along after taking extra lessons for it. Together they recorded EnVision EvAngelen . Due to the new line-up, the style of the band had essentially changed. The intro of the new album in particular was 18 minutes long and had many melodic influences. A subsequent concert was released on two EPs under the names Live whitout Fear and Noah sat down and listen to the Mortification EP, while having a coffee .

Rowe's cancer and further musical change

In the summer of 1997, Steve Rowe was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and at times looked like he would not survive the disease. Even a bone marrow donation from his father could not stop the cancer. When the doctors gave him only a few hours to live, he gave up any further medical help and put himself in “God's hands” alone. In 1998 the surprising news came that Steve had survived and successfully fought cancer.

After his sensational healing, which he founded through his belief in God, the album Triumph of Mercy came out, which was characterized by melodies and hard riffs. Shortly before the production started, they went on tour again in America and, thanks to a loyal fan base, played in sold out houses. Another album followed in 1999 called Hammer of God , which is the longest studio album by the band with a running time of 70 minutes. It also contained a medley of four albums, as well as three demo versions from the previous album Triumph of Mercy . Another live album, Ten Years Live Not Dead , was released in 2000 for the ten-year stage anniversary . In 2001 Keith Bannister married his great love and therefore left the band. He was replaced by the then 15-year-old Adam Zafferese. With the new drummer on drums, they recorded The Silver Cord is Served . At the request of Lincoln Bowen the album contained many elements of hardcore and thus the music direction turned more towards Power Metal. The Silver Cord is Served was a shock, especially for fans of the previous albums .

Together with Adam and Lincoln Steve Rowe started the first world tour Mortifications and played in the USA as well as Europe, Africa and South America . Lincoln Bowen's wife recorded the entire tour and the first DVD Conquer the World was released . In the same year Lincoln left the band because he felt more of the hardcore scene. A year later Steve and Adam found the two guitarists Mick Jelinic and Jeff Lewis and recorded with them the eleventh studio album Relentless . Further tours followed, including through Germany. Due to the Iraq war , a planned tour through Europe was canceled. In 2003 it became known that Mortification was working on a new album. Since Steve got into financial difficulties with his own company after the recordings and had to sell his own recording studio at short notice , the release date of the album was delayed. Brain Cleaner was released in 2004 and, because of its hard sound, could be compared to the 1992 album Scrolls of the Megilloth . With the new album, the line-up also changed. Adam and Jeff Lewis left the band and Mike Forsberg, who used to be on drums at Cybergrind , became the band's new drummer.

In 2006, Mortification released Erasing the Goblin , the 13th studio album, which was initially supposed to be called Impaling the Goblin , but since this name has a sexual connection in some cultures, they renamed the album Erasing the Goblin . The album, in contrast to the latter, was more like the beginnings of Mortification, which made many of their fans happy. This was followed by Live Humanitarian , another live album with recordings from the concerts, after Erasing the Goblin . In May 2009 the last studio album for the time being was released with the name The Evil Addiction Destroying Machine . Those who pre-ordered the album got an entry on the "Mortification Im-Mort-Alized Supporter List", which was later published on the Internet. A year later another album was released for the 20th anniversary under the name Twenty Years in the Underdround .

Texts

Singer and songwriter Steve Rowe mostly refers to God and psalms or verses from the Bible in his lyrics . In some of his lyrics he also sings about illnesses and the misery of people. For example, the song Human Condition says:

Wars and famines, AIDS and broken lives
Drug offenses, damage to bring demise
Bury the dead in their coffins
Mankind is rotting away
Global misconceptions
Lies to steal your life

But it also sends a clear signal against Satanism. An example from the lyrics by JGSH :

Jesus grind satans head
JGSH
Jesus grind satans head
Jesus grind satans head
his head is dead
his head is dead
his head is dead
his head is dead

Cover artwork

Almost every cover of Mortification has its own, mostly Christian, meaning.

Break the curse
The raven represents sin and death. The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ broke the curse on sin and death.
Mortification
Probably the most controversial cover of Mortification shows hell as a lake of fire (Revelation 20: 13-15). A column of skeletons, which rises from the lake of fire into the sky, is supposed to represent all the souls who have disregarded the belief in God.
Scrolls Of The Megilloth
The cover depicts a cave, in the middle of which are the scrolls of Megilloth. The bones around these are supposed to represent the people whose spiritual life dies because they have never received instruction in God's words.
Post Momentary Affliction
Originally the cover of Post Momentary Affliction was supposed to look different, but since Nuclear Blast wasn't satisfied with it, a different one was chosen. The current cover shows two dilapidated houses and in the background the Statue of Liberty sticks into the sky. There are rumors that this cover shows the derelict World Trade Center , although at the time the two towers were still standing.
Only the version released on Intense Records still has the original cover. There, in a bizarre landscape, a white staircase is depicted that leads to God's throne. In front of the throne, in the direction of the stairs, lies a sword symbolizing the Bible. An anatomically represented heart with a crown of thorns floats on the throne, as a symbol for Jesus Christ, as well as a flame that stands for the Holy Spirit. To the left of the stairs a hand with claws can be seen breaking through or sinking into lava. Presumably this represents the hand of the devil.
Live planetarium
The cover of Live Planetarium shows an alien on the left and a demon on the right . In the opinion of Mortification, anyone who thinks they have seen an alien has actually seen a demon because the devil is cheating on people by showing them confusing things or shapes.
Blood World
The porthole on Blood World is intended to clarify God's view of the earth. The "red sea" represents Jesus' shed blood, through which our sins are washed clean again.
Primitive rhythm machine
The skull stands for Satan and all evil. The three swords are supposed to represent the crosses of Golgotha, on which Jesus Christ was crucified with two criminals.
The Best Of Five Years
The cover of The Best Of Five Years CD is a mixture of the above covers.
EnVision EvAngelene
The cover shows a piece of fabric that is fastened between two posts and set up in a bizarre landscape. On the banner is written in Hebrew "Jehovah Nissi" (Hebrew "The Lord is my standard" 2 Mos 17:15  LUT ) . Above it are the fish, which stands for the Christians , the Star of David , which stands for the Jews and two swords, which stand for the Bible. The crown should make it clear once again that Jesus Christ is the King of all kings.
Noah Sat Down And Listened To Mortification While Having A Coffee
On the cover sits Noah , who is taking a break with a coffee while he builds his ark. He's listening to Mortification and is surrounded by Australian animals.
Triumph Of Mercy
On the cover of Triumph Of Mercy , Steve Rowe can be seen wearing angel wings. It is the first album after his serious cancer illness.
Hammer Of God
The cover of depicts the Star of David. The hammers in the middle represent the strength of God, the crowns represent his sole rule.
The Silver Cord Is Severed
The cover shows Steve's bass, from which all four strings have been cut. The picture refers to the sentence: "Before the silver cord breaks and the golden bowl breaks."
Power, pain and passion
The hand forms a circle around the words Power, Pain and Passion, which stand for the wreath of thorns, which is also on the cover.
Relentless
The cover of Relentless is full of symbolism . Among other things, there are again the three swords on the cover, which symbolize the Bible. The armor represents God's armed forces and the bread with the chalice represents the sacrifice that Jesus made before his death.
Brain cleaner
A young boy is sitting in a library reading the Bible. Fog has formed around him, which is supposed to represent the holy spirit by which the boy is filled.

Discography

Studio albums

  • 1991: Mortification (Nuclear Blast / Intense Records)
  • 1992: Scrolls of the Megilloth (Nuclear Blast / Intense Records)
  • 1993: Post Momentary Affliction (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1994: Break The Curse 1990 (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1994: Blood World (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1995: Primitive Rhythm Machine (Nuclear Blast / Intense Records)
  • 1996: EnVision EvAngelene (Rowe Production / Nuclear Blast / Diamante)
  • 1998: Triumph of Mercy (Rowe Production / Nuclear Blast)
  • 1999: Hammer of God (Nuclear Blast / Metal Blade Records )
  • 2001: The Silver Cord is Severed (Nuclear Blast / Intense Records)
  • 2002: Relentless (Rowe Productions)
  • 2004: Brain Cleaner (Rowe Productions)
  • 2006: Erasing the Goblin ( Magic Circle Music )
  • 2009: The Evil Addiction Destroying Machine (Rowe Productions)
  • 2012: Scribe of the Pentateuch (Rowe Productions / Soundmass)
  • 2015: Realm of the Skeletaur (Rowe Productions)

Live albums

  • 1993: Live Planetarium (Intense Records)
  • 2000: Ten Years Live Not Dead (Anniversary Album) (Nuclear Blast / Metal Blade Records)
  • 2007: Live Humanitarian (Rowe Productions)

Anniversary albums

  • 1995: The Best Of Five Years (Intense Records)
  • 2000: Ten Years Live Not Dead (Nuclear Blast / Metal Blade Records)
  • 2002: Ten Years: 1990-2000 Power, Pain and Passion (Anniversary Album) (Rowe Productions)
  • 2010: Twenty Years in the Underdround (Nuclear Blast)

EPs and demos

  • 1996: Live Without Fear (Rowe Productions)
  • 1996: Noah Sat Down and Listened to the Mortification Live EP While Having a Coffee (Rowe Productions)

Splits

  • 1994: Tourniquet / Mortification (with Tourniquet ) (Intense Records)

Videos and DVDs

  • 1991: Metal Missionaries ( videotape )
  • 1994: Grind Planets (videotape / DVD) (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1994: The History Of Mortification (videotape)
  • 1994: Live Planetarium (video cassette / DVD) (Intense Records)
  • 1996: EnVidion ( videotape ) (Rowe Productions)

Others

  • 1993: Death ... Is Just The Beginning II (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1993: Hot Metal V: Screaming Truth (Intense Records)
  • 1993: Five Years Nuclear Blast (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1993: Heaven's Metal Vol. 1 - Video Magazine (Video)
  • 1994: Godspeed (Rowe Productions)
  • 1994: Summer Blast 1994 (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1994: Heaven's Metal Vol. 3 - Video Magazine (Video)
  • 1995: Death ... Is Just The Beginning III (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1996: Hard And Heavy From Down Under (Madacy Christian)
  • 1996: Modification: A Tribute To Steve Rowe And Mortification (in-house production)
  • 1996: Death ... Is Just The Beginning IV (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1997: Ten Years Nuclear Blast (Nuclear Blast)
  • 1998: Heaven's Metal Vol. 5 - Video Magazine (Video)
  • 2001: Death ... Is Just The Beginning VI (Nuclear Blast)
  • 2002: Death ... Is Just The Beginning Classics (DVD) (Nuclear Blast)
  • 2002: Rock On Christian: Loud (Madacy Christian)
  • 2005: Monsters Of Death (DVD) (Nuclear Blast)
  • 2005: Oz Mosh 2005 (Rowe Productions)

Web links

Commons : Mortification  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e biography on the German fan page mortification.de; Retrieved August 21, 2010
  2. ↑ Lyrics on darklyrcis.com; Retrieved August 21, 2010
  3. ↑ Biography ( Memento of the original dated February 7, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on the official MySpace fansite; Retrieved August 21, 2010 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / blogs.myspace.com
  4. ↑ CD preview at stormbringer.at; Retrieved August 21, 2010
  5. ↑ Mortification album listing on darklyrics.com; accessed on August 21
  6. ↑ Lyrics of Human Condition on darklyrics.com; Retrieved August 21, 2010
  7. ↑ Lyrics by JGSH on darklyrics.com; Retrieved August 21, 2010
  8. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p cover explanations on Mortification.de; Retrieved August 21, 2010
  9. ^ Mortification - Break The Curse 1990. In: Discogs. Retrieved April 13, 2016 .