"Blasphemy Made Flesh"

10 songs (39:44)

Well where do I start, I have had this album a long long time. Why am I reviewing it now, about six months later? I like to listen to an album awhile before I develop a final verdict about it, and with some albums that takes longer than with others. Not that it has taken me all in 6 months to decide if Cryptopsys first CD is as good as what I consider their newer material to be, but it was hard for me to make a decision about this album. It has taken me longer to get into this CD than any other I may have bought, so I put it away for many months and I must say Im glad I picked it up again because once its grows on you its a hell of an experience.

First off, I can see why Lord Worm is missed by so many people, his vocals are so alien, so inhuman, and his variety is great, from high piercing screams to low grunts to unintelligable growls. The vocals in themselves are something to listen to, they are fierce and very interesting, which is something I see lacking in 99% of other death metal bands. The production here isnt perfect, things sound a little thin at times, but it also sounds clear, and the bass can be heard. The percussion is loud and the drums sound good. Generally everything sounds ok in the production despite being a little unbalanced on the guitar.

To me, this may not be as intense as Cryptopsys latest material when compared with overall speed, but in its own respect one can hardly ask for more from a band, especially with these vocals. And few bands even reach this level of heaviness and skill of playing, much less originality. A few of the songs here are the best I have heard in death metal, but every second of this album is intense and pure Cryptopsy. All of the solos are interesting and well done, several are fairly long. The solos bring out the emotion in each song so well, which is another thing I love about this band is how they accomplish that feat, not just adding what seems like random, unnoticable notes like so many other bands.

A few of my favorite tracks would have to be Defenstration, Abigor, Swine of the Cross and Pathological Frolic. Each song has some outstanding characteristic, Abigor has an unforgettable solo in it, Open Face Surgery has a scream in it that lasts for 30 seconds straight, unforgettable, if you want to scare people just let them hear that. This music just kills, plain and simple, some songs begin slow, others blast into intensity in the first second, but everything here is worth a listen, over and over. Like Incantation album, I am suprised more people do not speak of this one and recommend it to people.

I want to comment on the lyrics, they are very well done, Lord Worm writes very vivid stuff here. Very sick on one level and rather deep on another, putting you into a sick mind. Also the artwork is well done, unlike anything you may expect. The feel of the album is hard to define, there is death and cruelity, but the cover almost expresses a fantasy realm. The music in itself has a different feel to it also, especially solos like in Abigor and riffs in Pathological Frolic. To me cruelty and death are not the prime emotion here, the real emotion here cannot be defined, only felt when you listen. Its really a beautiful and rare thing unlike what I see in much music today. Cryptopsy have always been able to put a feel to some of their songs like the acoustic beginning to Cold Hate, Warm Blood on Whisper Supremacy that is almost has a renaissance feel to it and yet it goes along with the music so well. Again this to me is part of what seperates them from the rest and what few bands accomplish. Cryptopsy manage to tear the listener away from what everyone else seems to be doing and takes them into their own world.

One last note, this album does take awhile to get into, and while it is not as complex as a lot of death metal out there, it holds its own in complexity and structure. Cryptopsy have improved a great deal over the years in the way of complexity and structure but this album offers a lot of insight into their development.

As with the other Cryptopsy album I wish to go through each song and tell some about each:

Defenstration - This song has a very catchy chorus, perhaps Cryptopsys more catchy song, also there are several stops and starts throughout the song.
Abigor - Overall a very intense song with a very intense solo. One of Cryptopsys best by far.
Open Face Surgery - This song begins with a twisted intro and has a good slow-fast-slow-climax type structure to it, listen for the 30 second scream!
Serial Messiah - This song also has an errie intro to it, this song is not as memorable as the others perhaps but there is some great solo work is in it.
Born Headless - Begins slow, a very good mid-tempo heavy song.
Swine of the Cross - This song is pure death metal, very heavy, and some very cool moshing riffs toward the end.
Gravanged - This is a good fast song, climaxes at the end with a galloping type rhythm.
Memories of Blood - This song has some good contrast with fast and slow parts and some especially good vocals in it, a good mix of everything.
Mutant Christ - Like Track 6 this is pure death metal, good solo work also.
Pathological Frolic - This is my favorite on the album, a hell of a song, very powerful with some slow and some fast parts with it and a long solo also.

9/10

"Whisper Supremacy"

8 songs (31:12)

This CD is amazing, the first time I listened to the first few songs I was a little physically exausted. This is about as brutal as you can get and still call it music. If theres anything heavier than this I would like to hear it because I cant imagine what it would be. From the beginning "whisper" of DiSalvo until the end, this album is a non-stop rollercoster through hell, and I love every second of it.

Ok enough about the heaviness, about the music, this is a perfect example of a CD that is so complex you wont recognize all the riffage even after several listens. You will have to listen to the album several times to get into it, this is some wild music that will probably sound like complete unorganized chaos at first. However, anyone that sits down and actually LISTENS CLOSELY to this album cannot deny that Cryptopsy are very good with their instruments, they play one riff for about ten seconds before switching to another, over and over at intense speeds...amazing. Although the riffs are thrown at the listener one after another, they are arranged and organized well so everything flows together. Songs like Cold Hate, Warm Blood and Faceless Unknown are easier to get used to, they have more underlying harmony, but each song has an underlying course and structure.

This album got good production, you can hear all the instruments although the bass is rather buried at times, mainly because of how loud everything gets. The guitars are low, grinding and generally have a perfect sound for this style of death/grind. There are no buzzing or weak guitars here although Cryptopsy incorporates some intense shrilling guitar throughout to add some texture. The bass is rather hard to describe, very low and perhaps even "grainy" with a flappy/clang type sound but very strong. As I said the bass is often buried under the overwhelming guitars and vocals. The drums are a little buried on this album also, maybe even remote or obscure at times and they are not very loud usually but they are always apparent. Although the double kick drums and percussion is right in front and refuse to be ignored, the other drumming has more of a "thumping" or "poping" that do get buried at times. Despite all of this the drumming is incredible, Flo Mounier is undoubtedly one of the best drummers in death metal. It is true, he CAN have two rhythms going at once. I have seen Cryptopsy refered to as "hyberblast metal" several times, if this is a true discription you can thank Flo for it. One review I saw said Flo sounds like "a demon trying to destroy a drum set," what a perfect description! Ultimately what makes "Whisper Supremacy" so brutal is the speed of the music that never lets up, and when I say never I mean never. Except for a second or two here and there in two songs to give the listener a false hope of some peace, this CD is constant top speed.

The guitar solos all fit the music and Cryptopsy can put feeling into them like no other band. They all fit so well and are so intense I have almost cried hearing some [no joke]. There are several solos throughout the album, many mixed with blast beats, with very intense and climaxing results. Also the amount of blast beats Cryptopsy uses is what I personally love about this CD, there are too many to count, some last for a few seconds and some for about half a minute as on Emanciate but all are insanely fast and make up a big part of the music.

Of all the reviews I have read, the one [and usually the only] complaint I see is this album is TOO complex, some people dont want to take the time to get into it I guess, too bad for them I say. Another complaint I see more often, less about the music and more about the bands changes, is about the new vocalist. The vocals took me awhile to get used to, they are not grunts like the old Cryptopsy or typical death metal. The new singer, Mike DiSalvo has a kind of low scream, more like hardcore than typical death metal. Although some people didnt like this change for Cryptopsy, it works for me. The overall sound goes great with the vocals, especially since there are insane speeds reached and DiSalvo somehow manages to keep up. One last complaint people give me is about the lyrics, I care not about lyrics anyway, but the ones here are intelligently written, and if I want something sick I will read some Cannibal Corpse.

I guess I have to put some kind of "con" seeing as I have written a page or two and praised this album to no end. I wish the drums were a little louder, but I am more a guitar person anyway and the drumming is exceptional so I will not let that take away from the rating. If there is one complaint about this CD I could make it would be the length, I wish that this CD was a little longer, really the songs are all good length though so that isnt too much of an issue. Conclusion: This is without a doubt a must buy for anyone into brutal/technical death metal, and if ya dont like it, its obviously too heavy for you.

I feel compelled to run through the songs and tell a little about each since I like this CD that much...

Emanciate - This is my favorite track, good God this song is brutal and the blast beat at the end of the song is one of the best I have heard.
Cold Hate, Warm Blood - This song creates a very good atmosphere. There is a bass rythm that starts at the beginning and runs all the way through. A very cool solo toward the middle, and some cool slow-grinding riffage.
Loathe - This song is very complex, it gets more brutal as it goes along. Very good solo at the end mixed with a blast beat, one of those that makes you want to hurt someone.
White Worms - A very good song, very brutal, and has a chorus, very cool ending that builds, good lyrics also by Lord Worm.
Flame to the Surface - Just another good brutal song. Long solo in the last half.
Depths you've Fallen - I cant really describe this song, it is less heavy at first, and groves along, but then changes to sound like most of the other songs.
Faceless Unknown - Very heavy, kind of like Emanciate. This song creates an atmosphere also like Cold Hate, Warm Blood. Very dark with a cool solo at the end.
Serpent's Coil - Very good track, with some really cool guitar riffs. A intense, fast song to end this great CD with.

10/10

"And Then You'll Beg"

9 songs

Cryptopsy's Official Website - The official Cryptopsy website, well done with pictures and samples.
Cryptopsy - This site has reviews of all Cryptopsy's albums, I do not agree with them all, but here they are.
Cryptopsy - This site is a big record distributer, they have a little page on Cryptopsy and you can order CDs from them. Although the one time I ordered from them they sent me something else I didnt want [and now I have two copies of Dying Fetuses "Killing on Adrenaline"] but still they are a really good label and have lots of underground music.
Cryptopsy - Reviews of Cryptopsys first two albums.
Cryptopsy - A review of Whisper Supremacy.
Cryptopsy - A review of Whisper Supremacy.
Cryptopsy - A review of Whisper Supremacy.
Cryptopsy - A review of Whisper Supremacy.
Cryptopsy - A review of Whisper Supremacy I strongly disagree with.
Cryptopsy - A short review of Whisper Supremacy.
Cryptopsy Interview - An interview with Mike.