Originally issued by the band itself, then issued by Relapse with bonus tracks, the first two Mortician EPs — Mortal Massacre from 1994 and House by the Cemetery from 1996 — get another go-round on this single-disc collection. The shorter EP format has always been kinder to Mortician — and extreme music in general — as it’s easier to take in such brutal subject matter in short blasts. Whether these two mini albums go better together or separately depends on how much relentlessly harsh gore-driven death metal listeners can stomach. – Wade Kergan