MORTEMIA · Misere Mortem | RED LP

Red vinyl in gatefold sleeve.

Background information about 'Misere Mortem'

Misere Mortem is the sound of a man locking himself in a room with nothing but riffs, choirs and his own demons — and coming out with something magnificent. Originally released in 2010, this was Mortemia, the solo vessel of Morten Veland, the Norwegian mastermind behind Tristania and Sirenia. Stripped of the female counter-voice that defined so much of his other work, the album leans hard into the shadows: granite-heavy guitar work, sweeping symphonic arrangements, cavernous choirs and that unmistakable growl, still one of the most recognisable in the genre.

What makes it stick is the songwriting. "The Eye of the Storm" and "The Pain Infernal and the Fall Eternal" are not just exercises in gloom — they are proper songs, with hooks that burrow in and refuse to leave, melodies that ache in the best possible way. Veland wrote essentially everything here and performed most of it himself, and you can hear that single-mindedness in every bar: no committee, no compromise, just one obsessive talent chasing a very particular darkness. It sits proudly beside the classic Sirenia records like At Sixes and Sevens and An Elixir for Existence, yet it breathes differently — leaner, colder, more personal.

Long a gap in many a Gothic Metal collection, the album finally gets its first ever vinyl pressing, presented in a gatefold sleeve. For anyone who has worn out a copy of Nine Destinies and a Downfall or still mourns Tristania's early years, this is a welcome return to the crypt.

For fans of: Sirenia, Tristania, Trail of Tears, Theatre of Tragedy, The Sins of Thy Beloved

Other Versions

BLACK LP · 19,99 €

Track listing

1. The One I Once Was
2. The Pain Infernal and the Fall Eternal
3. The Eye of the Storm
4. The Malice of Life´s Cruel Ways
5. The Wheel of Fire
6. The Chains That Wield My Mind
7. The New Desire
8. The Vile Bringer of Self Destructive Thoughts
9. The Candle at the Tunnel´s End

Manufacturer: Hammerheart Records BV, P.O. Box 277, 6300 AG Valkenburg, Netherlands, Contact: www.hammerheart.com