Mortuary were a Mexican death metal band who, although there were some distinct thrash influences, played pretty much rotten 80s death metal in the vein of the genre's thrashing forefathers, such as "Scream Bloody Gore"-era Death, Possessed, early Sepultura, and Master (US), but fused with some early 90?s influences as well. After a rather primitive demo, Mortuary took the time in between releases to really develop as a band, and this is exactly what they did, before releasing one of the best Mexican death metal albums of all time, "Blackened Images". This album is a masterpiece of death metal filth taken to the utmost extreme, and to call this album anything otherwise would be an understatement. the most charming aspect of this album is its unapologetic simplicity. It makes no pretenses about attempting to redefine existing practices, but tends to celebrate them and amplify them by way of degree rather than grotesque manipulation. Whether it be the extensive riff development that leads into the usual thrashing madness on the opening song "Abyss Angel", which sounds like a slightly shorter version of the title song off "Hell Awaits", or the coasting intro of "Blood Storm" that reminds a bit of a number of slower lead-offs to what would become a chaotic mosh-fest on several of the middle songs off "Reign In Blood", this is a band that was definitely planning on opening up for Slayer at some point in their career (and they ultimately did in 1994 when they hit Mexico City). A classic.