Morte Macabre ~ Sweden

Symphonic Holocaust (1998)

Here's another one of those albums I bought upon release and haven't heard it since, some 26+ years later. Remarkably, though, I had a short real time review. So let's start there.

---Jan 1999

This is as good as everyone says. Call it Landoten or Anekberg - but this is a perfect amalgamation of the two groups: The melancholy of Landberk's first album mixed with the heaviness of Anekdoten. All instrumental remakes of cult horror films + a 17 minute original song. The album is loaded with mellotron.

---9/29/25

The "everyone" above is likely to have been rec.music.progressive, a chat board filled with prog rock enthusiasts (and haters it seemed) during the late 90s and early 00s (next gen of alt.music.progressive). One that I spent way too much time on, though eventually drifted away when career demands didn't allow for much free time. At some point I remember trying to keep some journals like UMR going, for the readership there. Fortunately I captured these on my hard drive and transferred them from one laptop to another over the years. Today, all my reviews are easily searchable on my hard drive.

Those monikers like Landoten and Anekberg were being thrown around at the time. The album had a stellar reputation right off the bat, as many fans were looking for that old analog sound that the two bands brought forth, along with the almighty Anglagard.

Despite the heavy presence of mellotron, the album does not come off as a retro prog release. Though the majority of the album are covers of horror soundtracks, I'm not familiar with any of them, so it all sounds fresh to me. The short 'Threats of Stark Reality' is also a unique track. Though the liner notes name check Museo Rosenbach, Goblin, Celeste, and Gracious, none of these groups' efforts will leap to mind. Starless / Red era King Crimson may come closest but only in the darkest instrumental mid sections of their lengthy tracks. The music remains dirgey, slow, and atmospheric throughout. Only on the lengthy original closer does Morte Macabre pick up the pace, about midway through.

This proved to be the only album created by this collaboration. It stands unique in my collection, though I understand a few other groups took on a similar premise afterward.

Ownership: 1998 Mellotronen (CD). Booklet with recording details and an enthusiastic review.

1//99 (acquired / notes); 9/29/25 (review / new entry)