Aussie brutal death metal merchants Algor Mortis have returned with their debut album The Art of Suffering. I reviewed their Stages of Death EP in 2024 and was quite impressed by these Australian brutalizers. 10 songs in 26 minutes, and it’s all about the quality, baby! At 58 seconds, “Lifeless” opens the album, and Cecilia’s Keane’s vocals are just as putrid as ever. She has an amazing set of pipes. Guttural and powerful. The song is over before it starts.
“Harvest” is up next, and like their EP, as I mentioned, there is a Sanguisugabogg flair to their sound. Alex Butten, is the newest member, and he brings his bass skills to the fold. The rest of the band remains intact, with David Seedman on drums and guitarists Jordan Dearsley/Armando Wall delivering the goods. Sam Commens was the previous bassist and is not listed as a former member, so I am unsure if the band has 2 bass players. But that is doubtful. Back to the song. The pinch harmonics and massive, guttural, knuckle-dragging, heaving heaviness have a huge ‘Bogg influence, and Cecilia has monstrous and filthy/clogged-sewer pipe vocals on this song. The grooves, interwoven between the blasts, make this song crushing. I can imagine this song in their upcoming live set. It’s massive and heavy AF. You will whirlwind pit slam all damn day. The riffs are crazy catchy as well, with some cool guitar soloing at the end.
“Angel Guts” is another killer song with some help from Dysentery on this track. Massive pit-fueled violence with those riffs. The song has a bit of Creeping Death influence as well. So there are some hardcore/death metal-y groove elements happening. This song has sharp pinch harmonics and some The Acacia Strain tones. When that band goes from slow slam to slower and heavier slams. We got that going on here, my friends. Very creative groove moments with plenty of pure beatdown moments. Elements of slam and brutal death metal are all over this sucker. This song must be in their live set.
“Pig” has some nods to my alma mater, Internal Bleeding, with the slam structures. This song does not let up, and the drums sound outstanding. Some cool technical guitar harmonies, going up and down the fretboard, create a dizzying effect. The blasts are sharp and on point. Stop on a dime sort of thing, and once the slam comes in at the 2.49 section, there is no way neighborhoods are left standing.
“Entrophy’s Lullaby” ends the album with some show clip, with atmospherics and soft bass guitar pluckings. The song breaks into a slow and heavy instrumental that is pretty cool, and then that is the end.
The Art of Suffering is one of the very best brutal and heavy slammy death metal releases for 2026. This is exactly the debut album Algor Mortis needed to release, as they are in a sea of oversaturation with this style of metal. The band separates themselves by creating tempo shifts and catchy riffs – which are fun, and carry on for a bit, to embed in your brain. The slams are creative and will make crowds move! Cecilia’s strong vocal performance, attached to a wicked production, are also killer elements.
The album cover has a lot going on, though, but you can make out screaming and tortured souls adorning the cover. Get this album Now!!!!!!!
