CRYPTOPSY
"Whisper
Supremacy" (Century Media; 1998)
Reviewed by Christopher J. Kelter
Cryptopsy is Canada's contribution to the technical, brutal death metal
scene. Hailing from Montreal, Cryptopsy is a storming blast of grinding aural madness. With nary a moment to recover
between songs, "Whisper Supremacy" forces the Cryptopsy sound into the crevices of your brain
with eight relentless tracks.
Cryptopsy's fluency in whiplash-inducing frenzy is evident in crushing tracks like "White Worms"
and "Serpent's Coil." However, words like savvy, nimble, and agile can be used to describe
Cryptopsy's adroit musical style - witness the musical histrionics of "Loathe" and "Flames
To The Surface" and you'll easily understand Cryptopsy's skills.
What I find to be most interesting is that the drum tracks are stellar. Let's face it, drum tracks aren't a
facet of music that is often talked about - that should change with the drum tracks here. For
example, the drumming on "Faceless Unknown" is something to behold.
Even the vocals have been recorded with great care - double-tracking and inventive mixing help the
vocals stand out. The lyrics, too, are well above average for the death metal and grindcore scene. All
are part of the well-rounded package that is Cryptopsy.
"Whisper Supremacy" was produced by Pierre Remillard with help from the band.
Cryptopsy is Mike DiSalvo on vocals, Jon Levasseur on lead guitars, Miguel Roy on rhythm guitar,
Eric Langlois on bass, and Flo Mournier on drums and backing vocals. Ex-vocalist Lord Worm
makes lyrical and background vocal contributions to "Whisper Supremacy."
Visit http://www.cryptopsy.net for more information.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 1999 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights reserved.
