Band:	Mors Principium Est
Album:	Liberation = Termination
Style:	Melodic death metal, Gothenburg metal
Release date:	March 02, 2007
Guest review by:	MeloDeathViking

01. Orsus
02. The Oppressed Will Rise
03. The Animal Within
04. Finality
05. Cleansing Rain
06. Forgotten
07. Sinners Defeat
08. The Distance Between
09. It Is Done
10. Terminal Liberation
11. Lost Beyond Retrieval

Mors Principium Est is a band that has made quick work of climbing up the melodic death food chain. Inhumanity was a solid album, but with The Unborn they launched themselves from a solid act to a top shelf outfit capable of holding their own against the likes of Dark Tranquility, Insomnium and other top tier acts. Unfortunately, with the release of Liberation = Termination, they have taken a step in the wrong direction.

The album starts with the now obligatory intro track, which is little more than white noise followed by an electronic voice letting us know that the album is actually starting now. The track that follows, "The Oppressed Will Rise", is a solid track that starts off with a bang and just never lets up. This is the track that should have kicked off the album. "The Animal Within" is the band's attempt to spice things up. This track is very melodic, and relies very heavily on the keyboard, giving it an almost electro feel. There's something about this track that just doesn't sit right with me though, but I give the guys credit for trying something new. The one thing I will say is that the end transitions perfectly in to my favorite tack, "Finality". This is the most brutal and relentless song on the album. Most people would say this is a typical melodeath song, but what can I say, I'm a sucker for a song with a big pair of kick drums. The guys really flex they're musical muscles on this song with some memorable riffs, great solos and slick drum fills. "Cleansing Rain" follows suit as another fast paced, very melodic track. The one thing that really stands out to me about this track is the lack of heavy, riffing guitar throughout most of the song. The lack of the chugging riffs actually adds to the song, as it allows the melodies in the song to stand out more. Both instrumental tracks on the album fail to stand out and are easily lumped in with the numerous other melodeath instrumentals out there. The rest of the album passes without making much of an impact; offering up, for the most part, bland, generic songwriting. The title track does however include some very nice textures and layers, that for the most part, were lacking on this album compared with there earlier works.

To sum the album up, it gets off to a good start, but then falls down and just never gets back to the level of the first few songs. As stated earlier, the album really lacks the textures and layers that their first two albums possessed. This album really fails to be anything special, especially when you consider their back catalog. As far as generic melodeath goes, this is probably one of the better albums out there, as it does have some shining moments. If you are looking for a Mors Principium Est album to start with, check out The Unborn, it's a classic album that really holds it's own against the big guns out there.