The one problem I have with Cryptopsy is that it’s difficult to describe their sound more then once. There’s only so many ways you can say: “Well, this is really fucking brutal and weirdly complex, both intriguing in the manner that Swans was and madly technical in the way of Effigy-era Suffocation, and there’s all these crazy-ass time signatures, and the drummer sounds like two Gene Hoglans playing on the same set of drums. Mike DiSalvo sounds a lot better on this album then he did on And Then You’ll Beg, for whatever reason- he sounds more like an actual death metal vocalist, with lower growls and some half-hearted attempts at higher shrieks. The bassist is probably the best he’s ever been here, what with all these maddeningly jazzy bass slaps and I could swear I heard a sweep arpeggio in one of these songs.”

The above is certainly one of the ways to say that, of course.

Cryptopsy had come off their best release ever, None So Vile, with their name on everyone’s lips and their record blasting through every death metal fans’ stereo. Their tour had, of course, been insanely successful as well, revealing to a larger (but not US) crowd of fans their limitless energy and ability in the live setting. ( I mean, could you thrash around to 36 solid minutes of this music without atrophying major muscles and probably dying in the process? I really doubt it.) Essentially, they were on the top of the death metal world at that point, for what it’s worth.

Then Lord Worm left to become –get this- a TEACHER.

Yeah, I keep thinking ‘what the fuck’ too.

Anyway, in the true spirit of John Paul Jones, the band decided to replace Lord Worm with some other guy and continue the band. And so, they found Mike DiSalvo, soon elected by the fans to be ‘the very WORST guy they could have ever chosen to follow up on LORD FUCKING WORM except for possibly Captain Beefheart.’

Personally, I believe that’s a bit unfair, but hey, they do have a certain point. Let’s look at their lyrics.

Lord Worm:

You made me in your image /I deformed yours into mine /Now we're even, O loving god /Equals in my melting eyes

Mutant christ, loving christ /Know me with thine naked eyes /Holy christ, one tenth the size /So unlike the other christs

Mike DiSalvo:

The machines are raping the machines /The cum drips down the legs of humanity /Slip slide, don't fall /Stabilize, won't crawl /Under muck spittle soil /Within the serpent's coil

Within the serpent's coil

Blindfolded by your own fucking will /Dive into the shit /And swim for a while /Peel the crust from all over your body /And scrape the blood /From your putrid fucking hands

Yeah, healthy dose of ‘what the fuck is this shit’ there. Anyway, the production on this CD is better then that on And Then You’ll Beg, if only for the extra punch that the guitars have. The vocals and drums are constantly jockeying for position of ‘Loudest Instrument,’ and the bass isn’t quite forgotten, but is rather buried underneath the rubble. I suggest that you turn it up a bit for the full effect.

DiSalvo was, as I have voiced, while an inadequate followup to Worm’s legendary performances, a capable frontman in his own right. Here, at least he tries a bit to sound like a death metal vocalist, unlike on the next disc, where his performance is the epitome of ‘phoned-in.’

The riffing is really, really, really technical, the same number of reallys fast, and just about perfect, except for on Faceless Unknown and Depths You’ve Fallen where it comes about as slightly contrived.

The best song on here is clearly Cold Hate, Warm Blood, featuring lyrics penned by Lord Worm and not that other guy, and with some oddly melodic guitars at the beginning right before DiSalvo, Roy and Levausseur crash into your ears like some sort of monstrous asteroid. The tune is complex in structure, with some black-metallish sounding tremolo riffs mixed in with the Liege of Inveracity-esque slow sections and roaring, screaming midway passages. This disc loses enough points to put it behind And Then You’ll Beg due to the last couple of songs and the shitty lyrics. Still, a masterpiece just for the first six songs. Don’t skip the last couple anyway, it feels better to listen to the whole thing at once.

In a few years, this will be a certifiable classic. Pick it up now to avoid the rush.