MORBID ANGEL - DOMINATION (1995)

Domination by Morbid Angel both the original 1995 CD & 2016 vinyl reissue. The vinyl cover artwork is actually the same as the 1st print vinyl from 1995.

Many don’t seem to know the vinyl had a different cover in 1995, but the only reason I’m showing the CD is that I prefer that artwork.

This was a first day buy for me, it didn’t matter that I was beginning to get more into the Black Metal scene in 1995. The band had an enormous task to followup the Altars of Madness; Blessed Are The Sick & Covenant albums.

I put all those 3 in my top-5 Death Metal albums of all time so I had my expectations set extremely high. After 2-3 listens of Domination in May of 1995 it was apparent they didn’t outdo those 3 records but it was still an excellent album.

1995 was a weird year in the Death Metal genre, the North American scene delivered some great ones though and Morbid Angel showed them all they were still the kings of the genre. Songs like Dawn of the Angry; Nothing But Fear; Caesar’s Palace; This Means War; Dominate; Eyes To See... and all other brilliant songs.

Know that some disliked this album and I can’t understand why? Some criticized the lyrics but I didn’t mind them, the sound or songwriting. Something I still regret to this day was that me and a friend didn’t go to Gothenburg in 1995 and witnessed the Morbid Angel, Dissection and Moonspell gig at Kåren...

But I was 15 years my friend 16 years and we lived far far north of Gothenburg.

Got to see them on the next tour a few years later for Formulas Fatal to the Flesh (1998). But I wasn’t into that album and David Vincent was no longer in the band.

Sure there has been brilliant Death Metal releases after Domination but for me it was almost like an “end of an era” record, the scene lost much of its magic after 1995 in my opinion.