Anyone into technical death metal should already be well aware of this band. Many hail None So vile as one of the best albums in the genre including myself. Unfortunately though it seems many fans are not into this new one. Im not really sure why, Ive heard many excuses from "they are boring" to "DiSalvo's vocals sound like hardcore vocals." Well to me, neither of these statements are true. I think this is Cryptopsy's most intense release yet, so I do not find them boring. Also I cant think of any hardcore singer that has the extremity of DiSalvo. I have some theories as to why some fans arent into this album. One is that perhaps they have not given the album their full attention. Another is that it seems there is this rule in underground metal that you are cool and more knowledgeable if you like a bands earlier releases as opposed to fresh material. This is sad because Cryptopsy has gotten more intense and more technical with each release....something few bands can achieve.

On the album cover there is a huge futuristic train heading towads a man on the tracks.....thats a good depiction of this album because this shit hits you like a train and keeps on going, leaving you in its tracks. One thing that has always impressed me about Cryptopsy is not so much how brutal they are or their speed. I like how in most songs they have this part that comes out of nowhere, maybe a jazz breakdown or a funky bass run, and then they stop on a dime and chug off into a new direction. This makes them very unique, almost progressive in an otherwise stagnant genre. I think just about every trick that a death metal band has ever pulled off is in this album somewhere....you just have to find it through the many many parts of each song. The last track is sort of interesting....it has a vocal effect of a train whistle in the beginning and the song chugs along just like a train.....its nice to see some brains behind the brutality.

Ofcourse, as you have come to expect from Cryptopsy, each member has a few more tricks up his sleave. There is no weak part in the line up. Each member is very skilled at what he does. Flo's drumming is perhaps faster, tighter, and more creative than ever. The leads in songs like "We Bleed" are absolutely stunning, pulling off sweep picking with such ease and sounding melodic yet intense. Then you have the excellent bass lines with impressive solos here and there. And unlike most death metal albums, you dont know where those bass solos are gonna show up. DiSalvos vocals though are apparently a problem for some. He does not sing in the usual cookie monster style. He does more of a yell and annunciates better than most death vocalists. I prefer his vocals to Lord Worms because he is tighter and accents the music better. But if you prefer cookie monster, you might not like him.

All in all and excellent release. I dont see how a fan of extremely technical death could not get into this album. As I said earleir, this band gets better and better. Most bands start to get lazy but these guys up the ante everytime. This is one of my favorite death metal releases this year.

This review is credited to:
Jim Jones