Morbid Tales
1984 EP and studio album by Celtic Frost
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Morbid Tales is the debut album by Swiss extreme metal band Celtic Frost, released in November 1984. It was originally released in Europe on Noise Records as a mini-LP with six tracks, while the American release by Enigma/Metal Blade added two tracks, bringing it to the length of a regular studio LP. The band retrospectively refers to the LP release as the band's debut studio album.[4][5]
| Morbid Tales | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| EP and studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 1984 | |||
| Recorded | 8–15 October 1984 | |||
| Studio | Caet Studio in Berlin, Germany | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 24:51 (Mini-LP) 32:09 (LP) 50:02 (album version) | |||
| Label | Noise (Europe) Enigma/Metal Blade (US) | |||
| Producer | Horst Müller, Tom Warrior, Martin Ain, Karl Walterbach | |||
| Celtic Frost chronology | ||||
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| 1999 remastered edition cover | ||||
 | ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 5/10[3] |
In 1999, a remastered edition of Morbid Tales was released on CD by Noise Records, which also contained the tracks from their 1985 EP Emperor's Return. In 2017, a remastered edition was released by the same label on CD and vinyl formats.
Legacy
The thrash metal intensity of Morbid Tales had a major influence on the then-developing death metal and black metal genres, along with Under the Sign of the Black Mark by Bathory and Seven Churches by Possessed. It included elements that were adopted by the pioneers of both styles.[6][7] The band's bleak and dead serious fashion style was also influential, including their corpse paint face makeup.[2][1]
In 2011, Invisible Oranges ranked Morbid Tales as #2 in the list of top 10 albums recorded with guitars tuned to E standard.[8]
In 2014, J. Andrew of Metal Injection wrote: "In a way, Celtic Frost (along with Hellhammer) could really go on any essential listening list for extreme metal. They've been so influential to thrash, death, and black metal that they transcend any tight, genre-specific limitations. And though To Mega Therion is often considered their signature musical achievement, Morbid Tales offers a glimpse into the raw beginnings of what many of us fans now take for granted. [...] Morbid Tales marks an important moment in the mid-1980s where signs of what was to come with extreme music began to emerge."[7]
In 2017, Rolling Stone ranked Morbid Tales as 28th on their list of 'The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time.'[9] Decibel placed Morbid Tales at #14 in their "Decibel Thrash Top 50". Contributor Jeff Wagner wrote about how the LP was "Hellhammer refined, but no less demented", and that it "remains as pure and primal as Celtic Frost would ever be."[10]
In the commentary for Darkthrone's album Panzerfaust, Fenriz cites this album along with Bathory's Under the Sign of the Black Mark and Vader's Necrolust as key riff inspirations.[11]
"Danse Macabre" was later sampled in the demo track "Totgetanzt" from their 2002 demo album Prototype.[12]
Track listings
All music by Thomas Gabriel Fischer, all lyrics by Thomas Gabriel Fischer and Martin Ain, except where noted.
Original Mini-LP version
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Into the Crypts of Rays" (Fischer) | 4:46 |
| 2. | "Visions of Mortality" | 4:49 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 3. | "Procreation (Of the Wicked)" | 4:02 |
| 4. | "Return to the Eve" | 4:05 |
| 5. | "Danse Macabre" | 3:51 |
| 6. | "Nocturnal Fear" | 3:35 |
| Total length: | 24:51 | |
Full-LP American version
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Into the Crypts of Rays" (Fischer) | 3:39 |
| 2. | "Visions of Mortality" | 4:49 |
| 3. | "Dethroned Emperor" (Fischer) | 4:37 |
| 4. | "Morbid Tales" | 3:29 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 5. | "Procreation (Of the Wicked)" | 4:04 |
| 6. | "Return to the Eve" | 4:07 |
| 7. | "Danse Macabre" | 3:52 |
| 8. | "Nocturnal Fear" | 3:36 |
| Total length: | 32:09 | |
1999 CD remastered edition
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Human (Intro)" (intro to "Into the Crypts of Rays"; originally joined as one track, CD reissue split this into two tracks) | 0:41 |
| 2. | "Into the Crypts of Rays" | 3:39 |
| 3. | "Visions of Mortality" | 4:49 |
| 4. | "Dethroned Emperor" | 4:37 |
| 5. | "Morbid Tales" | 3:29 |
| 6. | "Procreation (Of the Wicked)" | 4:04 |
| 7. | "Return to the Eve" | 4:07 |
| 8. | "Danse Macabre" | 3:51 |
| 9. | "Nocturnal Fear" | 3:36 |
| 10. | "Circle of the Tyrants" | 4:27 |
| 11. | "Visual Aggression" | 4:10 |
| 12. | "Suicidal Winds" | 4:36 |
| Total length: | 50:02 | |
2017 remastered edition bonus tracks
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 10. | "Morbid Tales (1984 Rehearsal)" | 3:41 |
| 11. | "Messiah (1984 Rehearsal)" | 4:45 |
| 12. | "Procreation (Of the Wicked) (1984 Rehearsal)" | 4:14 |
| 13. | "Nocturnal Fear (1984 Rehearsal)" | 3:54 |
Personnel
Credits adapted from the original editions.[13][14]
Celtic Frost
- Tom Warrior – guitars, lead vocals, co-producer
- Martin Ain – bass, bass effects, vocals, co-producer
- Reed St. Mark – drums on tracks 10–12 (remastered edition)
Additional musicians
- Stephen Priestly – session drums
- Horst Müller – additional vocals (tracks 3, 5 & 7)
- Hertha Ohling – additional vocals (track 6)
- Oswald Spengler – violin (tracks 7 & 8)
Production
- Horst Müller – producer, engineer, mixing, mastering
- Karl Walterbach – executive producer