Morbid Angel was such a great band. Their first three albums in particular are some of the finest death metal anywhere, and this one in particular is amazingly good. This is one of the classics; an album that succeeds at being both an atmospheric piece and a brutal, intense musical maelstrom. Built on a basic foundation of chugging, pummeling guitars, rough growls and blistering, hellish melodies, Covenant becomes something greater than just another basic death metal album. [1]
The riffs are mostly down-tuned brooding harmonies with progressions focused in a more upfront direction toward the overall patterning of each song than toward multi-stylistic progressions like those of Death’s later work. Progressions come in a more basic form emphasizing stylistic deviations at the end of riff cycles and uplifting the percussion section like in “Rapture” and “Blood on My Hands” where the riff template remains generally the same while the ends of riff cycles are the focal point of deviation. Solos, like in “Pain Divine” and “Vengeance is Mine”, break the riffs with long shreds that wail more than wind over the top of the band with stead upward surges pulling away from the remaining sonic vortex. Breaking from this style in the rest of the album, “Angel of Disease” hinges on soloing to become an integral part in the movement of the song as each drive and drop is punctuated by a screaming guitar which leaves and returns to the newly created formula perfectly as though each guitar took the scenic route to the same destination. [2]
A couple of weak points in “Covenant” would be in the vocal and bass departments. Though the lyrics compliment the music well hinging on the expected themes of questioning religion, the horrors and events of Hell, violent acts, and violent acts involving members of different religions both on Earth and in Hell, the vocals have trouble complimenting the music with a hollow sounding guttural that is more comparable to hardcore punk vocals with an extra rasp than full on guttural technique. Where the vocals do compliment the music is in the stomping “Pain Divine” and the slower “The Lion’s Den” where growls come off strongly with a more prominent and powerful delivery, but this doesn’t hold true for every song as the desolate “God of Emptiness” is vocalized very gravely and really hurts the ambiance of the later spoken vocals. “Angel of Disease” is vocalized through layered yells that border screams. This kind of chanting delivery muddies the mix in a few places and sounds rather out of place in the mix, but after a few listens did grow on me. The problem with the bass guitar sound is evident from the beginning of “Rapture” through to when it takes center stage during “Angel of Disease”. There isn’t an bass guitar until “Angel of Disease”. The guitars riff, harmonize, and solo so loudly that the bass center to the band is nonexistent even when balanced according to the unrelenting percussion section. Here and there, bits of bass can be heard in the opening of “The Lion’s Den” or “World of Shit (The Promised Land)” when the band slows it down, but it isn’t until “Angel of Disease” when the bass shines in the breaks and takes center stage in the dropping progression beginning at 2:57 while the guitars quietly solo around the bass lines and prepare to rise again later in the song. Like in most death metal, the bass guitar’s part seems nonexistent but when it does come up, it shines among the rest of the band members. The vocals on the other hand, though proficiently executed at times, still are not up to par with the rest of the music and in too many places fail to compliment the intensity of the rest of the band. [2]
This is a classic, and also a work of death metal art that proves the genre can do much with even just the bare minimalistic elements of the sound. Covenant is a towering achievement, and while I don’t think it’s quite the songwriting clinic that Altarswas, it easily bests everything else the band ever did (although Blessed is amazing in its own right…). This is a layered and complex work that just gets better with time. Music is about what it makes you feel, and the places it takes you, and Covenantreveals more horrors packed in its 40 minute runtime than most bands do in their entire careers. Some bands just write lyrics about Roman coliseum fights, misanthropy on the world stage, masochism, devil-worship and ancient Lovecraft-esque deities, but Morbid Angel grabs you by the throat with Covenant and makes you experience those things as if they were happening to you. This is a masterclass of terror, a work of atmospheric genius. Bow before it now and forever. [1]
Tracks
- Rapture
- Pain Divine
- World of Shit (The Promised Land)
- Vengeance Is Mine
- Lion's Den
- Blood on My Hands
- Angel of Disease
- Angel of Disease
- Nar Mattaru
- God of Emptiness
- I: The Accuser
- II: The Tempter
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