Blessed Are the Sick

Blessed Are the Sick is the second studio album by American death metal band Morbid Angel, released on May 22, 1991 through Earache Records.

Blessed Are the Sick
Studio album by Morbid Angel
Released	May 22, 1991[1]
Recorded	January – February 1991
Studio	Morrisound Recording, Tampa
Genre	Death metal
Length	39:24
Label	Earache Relativity
Producer	Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel chronology
Altars of Madness (1989) Blessed Are the Sick (1991) Abominations of Desolation (1991)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
About.com	[2]
AllMusic	[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[4]
The Great Metal Discography	6/10[5]

Composition and musical style

Though the album features some fast sections, the overall sound is markedly slower than the debut, with identifiable classical music undertones present^[6] (main composer Trey Azagthoth would dedicate this album to Mozart). Tracks 9, 10 and 12 are re-recorded songs from the 1986 demo Abominations of Desolation.^{[citation needed]} According to Chris Krovatin of Kerrang, "while Altars is straight-up death metal horror, Blessed is a strange and static album, with Morbid Angel's more straightforward moments peppered between arcane, Lovecraftian passages of twisting guitars and off-kilter drumming. It's a starker and more unique approach to the genre, and one that set Morbid Angel apart from the rest of the blood-drenched pack."^[7]

Blessed Are the Sick's tracks have been described as "semi-catchy," and the album as a whole has been called "short [and] to the point." The album's lyrics explore the "drug-fueled religious theories of guitarist Trey Azagthoth." His shred guitar style has drawn comparisons to Eddie Van Halen.^[8]

Background

The cover painting is "Les Trésors de Satan" by Jean Delville. The album was reissued in 2009 as a digipak in DualDisc format. The CD side contains the original audio release and the DVD side contains a one-hour documentary.^[9]

Reception and legacy

Bradley Torreano of AllMusic commended the band for not "[wasting] time noodling on forgettable riffs and needless tempo changes the way so many of their contemporaries did," and said they joined "the upper class of death metal bands" with the album.^[10]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by David Vincent, except where noted; all music is composed by Trey Azagthoth, except "Desolate Ways" by Richard Brunelle.

No.	Title	Lyrics	Length
1.	"Intro" (instrumental)		1:27
2.	"Fall from Grace"		5:13
3.	"Brainstorm"		2:34
4.	"Rebel Lands"		2:41
5.	"Doomsday Celebration" (instrumental)		1:49
6.	"Day of Suffering"		1:54
7.	"Blessed Are the Sick/Leading the Rats"		4:47
8.	"Thy Kingdom Come"		3:24
9.	"Unholy Blasphemies"	Azagthoth, Vincent	2:10
10.	"Abominations"	Azagthoth	4:27
11.	"Desolate Ways" (instrumental)		1:40
12.	"The Ancient Ones"	Azagthoth	5:53
13.	"In Remembrance" (instrumental)		1:25

Personnel

Morbid Angel

• David Vincent – bass, vocals
• Trey Azagthoth – guitars, keyboards
• Richard Brunelle – guitars
• Pete Sandoval – drums

Additional personnel

• Tom Morris – engineering, mixing

Release history

Date	Note
May 22, 1991
November 3, 2009	Reissue