Full Album Stream: Morta Skuld: Through The Eyes Of Death – EPs reissue / Prolong The Agony – new video

Relapse Records has recently compiled a couple of demos old school death metallers, MORTA SKULD, have originally released some twenty years ago (1990's ‘Gory Departure’ and 1991's ‘Prolong The Agony’) along with previously-unreleased material. You can listen to the “collection of unstoppable Midwestern death! a must for collectors of classic, primitive death metal in all its forms” right here in full. Both demos were produced by former DEATH manager Eric Greif and remastered by Chris Wisco at Belle City Sound. Album cover art comes from Travis Smith, known for his works for DEATH, OPETH, NEVERMORE and KING DIAMOND. The ‘Prolong The Agony’ video was directed by Doug Cook and produced by Eric Grief. Buy the album here (Relapse Records).

“ ‘Prolong the Agony’ was written 21 years ago,” explained guitarist Dave Gregor to Deciblog where the video has premiered. “When we started shooting the video, I felt a bit lost and as we went take after take the vibe started to come back to me, kinda like that adage about riding a bike. When we were writing this song I was really into everything must be evil stage. My drummer Jef Jaeger and I wrote the lyrics not to glorify crucifixion but to describe the act of what one would feel and what one would go through being subjected to that act. The entire second MORTA SCULD demo, ‘Prolong The Agony’, was about what one would feel or experience going through these horrid things. Doug Cook had a great vision for the vid that was a realization of the lyrics.” Read more on Deciblog.

Founded in 1989 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, by guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Dave Gregor joined by guitarist Keven Zeitler, bassist Jason Hellman, and drummer Jesse Rofritz, MORTA SKULD released the two aforementioned demos and a split single with VITAL REMAINS (1993) before being signed by British independent metal label Peaceville Records for the release of their debut full-length ‘Dying Remains’ (1993), with ‘As Humanity Fades’ following in 1994. Third album, ‘For All Eternity’, came out the following year; “But,” writes AllMusic's know-it-all Eduardo Rivadavia, “none of these releases, though brimming with ably performed American death metal, made it into [American] record stores unless imported from overseas, and so MORTA SKULD's frustrated members, Dave Gregor (vocals and guitar), Jason O’Connell (guitar), Jason Hellman (bass), and Kent Kent Truckenbrod (drums), decided to link up with U.S.-based Pavement Records for the release of fourth album ‘Surfice’ in 1998.” After the release, Jason O’Connell left the band and was replaced with a string of several different fill-in guitarists - the most notable of these was Takis Kinis (REALM). Kent Truckenbrod, who bounced next, was replaced by Jason Mooney. MORTA SKULD went on hiatus by the 2000s. In 2005, Peaceville Records issued a “best of” compilation album entitled ‘Re-Surface: The Best of Morta Skuld’.