Up until September of this year, I’d never even heard of the technical death metal four piece from Tasmania but finding out that they were playing in a tiny venue in Liverpool at the start of October with Luxembourg’s Scarred, I would have been a fool to pass up on the chance to see what they were like. Needless to say, I was blown away by the precision musically and the showmanship and engagement they had with the crowd, really winning them over with little fuss and destroying the place with a fantastic set. Anyway, formed in 1999, the Aussie tech death outfit are uncompromising both on record and live, and this year’s release, the self titled “Psycroptic” is no different.
Opening up with a slow building sample and some effects laden acoustic and clean guitars to give a real sense of anticipation, “Echoes To Come” opens the album up. The slightly exotic clean line coupled with some powerful distortion and drums really brings the energy and out of nowhere, the vocals kick in and all chaos breaks loose. Vocally solid with a harsh shout which borders on scream at times but delivered in a totally audible way, it really grabs hold and the intricate riffs from the guitar are delivered with precision. Effortlessly slipping between simple structured riffs and twisting fills and breaks, the track flows smoothly, never once seeming to lose momentum or the power its delivery gives. Moments of heavy groove give way to blasting fury. The lead work is sublime, flowing perfectly with minimal fuss or regard for the precision and technicality contained within in, making for a real great opening effort.
“Ending” follows up with another twisting styled riff similar to one you might find on a Necrophagist release. The winding almost solo like verse lines with the raw vocals and gratuitous double kick go great and the heavier and slightly slower chorus sections add an extra touch to it, balancing the intricate with the heavy. The shifting feel, from slow to fast halfway through works fantastic. The brutal pounding atonal chords stabbing away slipping into a winding ascending and descending lick before another raw sounding chorus which trails out into a furious drum heavy ending with some real deep and raw sounding vocals. “A Soul Once Lost” has a slightly thrashy quality to its build up initially but the intricate and precise runs of the technical death metal sound quickly force their way in, dominating the track. With incredible precision it will have many fans of this style of music wondering just how to play the quick runs without ruining their wrists or have them simply listening in awe. Despite this technical brilliance, there is a real steady but hard hitting groove to the song fueled by some relentless double kick from the drums and the harsh vocal screams which all combine to make it a real powerful track. Sounding angry but controlled, it slows a little round the halfway point to a dark melodic section with some samples adding a big sound feel. Here is where the drum groove really comes to life and the interplay between the tormented vocals and virtuoso performance on the guitar really makes this one of the stand out moments of the release so far. A flowing lead section follows before some real polyrhythmic riff and lick tradeoffs, punctuated by machine gun like bursts before the revisiting of the intro caps it off nicely.
“Cold” has a tribal feel to it as it starts. With a steadily growing in volume clean guitar line, the intricate arrangements and feel really work well, serving as a slight reprieve from the ferocity of the previous tracks but still showcasing the technical elements of the band. As it kicks in distorted, it’s a lot faster than some of the previous tracks with one hell of a groove to it, perfect for headbanging to. The slight thrash feel comes back again just before the verse and it’s full pelt as the vocals kick in. Raw and powerful shouts combined with some real intense rhythm work provides the perfect accompaniment for the winding guitar lines which cut through and sound great. It’s heavy and intense but not overpowering. Towards the end it eases a little with the bass playing the main riff for a brief period before the final chorus once again, drawing the slight break from the insanity to a close. Thankfully the blitzkrieg in the form of “Setting The Skies Ablaze” takes no prisoners. Full speed ahead, it smashes into you with rapid guitars, bass, blasting drums and some frantic vocal delivery which just pummels you, only briefly letting up for the chorus which has some decent groove buried in it courtesy of the drums once again. Getting heavier after the second chorus, it picks up the intensity, the vocals are harsher and the riffs are more groove laden but still maintain that technical precision required of this sub genre of death metal. Whilst it’s not Dream Theater levels of complexity, it’s pretty fluid and that says just how good and well respected Psycroptic are in the technical death metal scene. The heavy breakdown section with its descending winding riffs and tight pinch harmonics towards the end really ups the groove section and once again, it’s not just about the gain or volume used to make it heavy, but how the music is delivered.
“Ideals That Won’t Surrender” has an ominous tone to begin with. The slower pace with haunting guitar melodies combined with the harsh vocal work has an unsettling edge to it but this is quickly dismissed as it picks up speed into a frantic and highly controlled yet chaotic sounding series of riffs. Heavy and full of groove, the headbang friendly verse has some rapid but flawless vocal delivery and the intricate guitars are only matched by the impressiveness of the drums and the bass keeping everything locked in place. Shifting between ominous and chaotic, it keeps you guessing, never quite letting you get accustomed to it, but at the same time, keeping the intensity up there, never letting it drop once, which is quite a feat, especially as technical death metal can sometimes be stale, something Psycroptic can never be accused of being. “Sentence Of Immortality” is another fast paced intro with some buzzing heavily muted guitars over relentless rhythm work. Vocally, it builds in intensity, from a hoarse yet harsh whisper to some full on hoarse and raw shouting as it progresses and by the 1:20 point, the vocals are back to their usual sound in terms of volume. Coming across as more twisted and tormented, the vocals really add to the intensity of the track and come the 2:10 point, everything changes up again. With an odd element of melody in the hoarse vocals, the guitars take on a more grand tone, giving a big moment feel which builds up great before crashing back into another heavily muted, pinch laden heavy section which transitions back into the haunting melodic section once more to wrap it up.
“The World Discarded” kicks back in with that familiar sound to the earlier tracks of the album, the technically intense and uncompromising approach. Heavy, groove laden and twisting, the music just does its thing with no fuss at all. Vocally its back to the same earlier powerful displays, full of power and some real venom in the delivery. The twisting lead licks into storming riffs really keep it bouncing and actually experiencing this one live was phenomenal. It’s just as intense in the live setting as it is on record. Just watch the video in the link below and you’ll see why anything I write about this track won’t do it the justice it deserves.
Closing the album is “Endless Wandering”. The raw and heavy intro really builds it up and once it kicks in, the great groove and vocal assault combines in a solid way. Relatively straight forwards in the verse, it gets more complicated as the track goes on with the intricate and rapid riffs paving way for a sinister sounding chorus which despite being short, really hits hard. The middle section really changes the sound, a harmonic laden fast riff section and scathingly delivered vocals up the heaviness of the track and as it goes on, the subtle synth backing and chugging guitar fade out brings the album to a close, wrapping up a 38 minute long masterclass in technical death metal.
It’s a tough genre to be a part of. Technical death metal has so many solid acts and in a crowded scene, you have to find ways to be innovative and Psycroptic have managed that. With every track being so different yet feeling familiar, it is so easy to listen to and when they perform live, you can get a measure of how the intensity on CD is given off when performed. Even though this album has been out since mid-March, it’s worth picking up, purely because in a year laden with agressive, heavy and intense grind and death metal releases, a controlled burst of chaos like “Psycroptic” is exactly what is needed to show just how diverse death metal is and how you can be heavy without cranking it up to ten.
(9/10 Fraggle)
Sonic Recapitulation 