Cryptopsy- The Unspoken King

Band:Cryptopsy
Album:The Unspoken King
Label:Century Media Records

This review is really about musical philosophy. Should a record be judged on its quantitative quality, or on its relation to musical works past and current? If you are reading this review you have most likely heard the rumors, the whispering of metal's most venomous curse words: "sell out." Is The Unspoken King a good record? Unquestioningly so. But when judged alongside what we have come to expect from Cryptopsy, it falls far short of the bar, and perhaps even more damningly: intentionally leads one of metal's most brutal acts into softer territory.

To many, The Unspoken King comes as a complete shock. Though a small minority of fans will always complain the newest record isn't another None So Vile, most of Cryptopsy's latest offerings have still garnered praise and acclaim from fan and critic alike. All include the trademark blast beats, time changes, and outright aggression fans have come to expect, culminating in 2005's over-indulgent experimental album Once Was Not. Now, with the departure of infamous vocalist Lord Worm, Cryptopsy suddenly shifts gears into metalcore territory.

Cryptopsy have defended this move as musical progression. While I agree that a band may change their sound as they wish, there may be different opinions on what constitutes progression. In many ways Cryptopsy have borrowed clichéd musical phrases and progressions right out of the metalcore yearbook, constituting a regression from seasoned death metal intellectuals to heart-broken teenage boys. There are moments of genius and fist-pounding heaviness, but now they are all mired in a diet mix of MTV metal videos.

First not all blame is to be shifted to vocalist Matt McGachy. While his screams are far more in the vein of former vocalists Mike DiSalvo or Martin LaCroix, he seems to have an understanding of song flow and intonation that sounds best out of the three of them. However this can little excuse Cryptopsy's biggest offense on this album: clean vocals. And not just any vocals; 100% emo vocals. Pounding your head, turning down the volume emo vocals. Even some metalcore bands don't use these... emo vocals. The beginning to "Bemoan The Martyr" will leave you asking "when will this end?" with almost purposely lengthy clean phrases. The chorus on "Leach" sucks the life out of the song. "The Plagued" is just balls-out emo. And there are several numbers that should simply have never been on a Cryptopsy album, including "(Exit) The Few."

This is not to say the album is a waste. Everything, even the copied material, has that Cryptopsy touch that makes it heavy and disconcerting. Compared to almost every metalcore album yet produced, this would be one of the heaviest and most technical. And there is at least one moment in every song were you will feel like the first time you heard None So Vile.

Unfortunately these moments are few and far between. They end suddenly. Just as you are about to enter the pit, the band shifts gears into another emo chorus. Every song is slower, catchier. One of Cryptopsy's biggest assets, drummer Flo Mounier, has been neutered. While Once Was Not was filled brim-to-brim with maniac blastbeats, thundering rolls, and unapologeticly complex fills, Flo has now been chained down for this album. There are blasts here or there, but they begin to resemble the single tired blastbeat every deathcore band has made their own. Even the jazz fills have been surprisingly truncated, considering the percussion space afforded by Cryptopsys "light direction." The bass, however, takes full advantage. For once Eric Langlois can get his basslines deservingly heard.

Again and again we are thrown hackneyed metalcore devices. You have a little bit of everything, including punky, rock-driven rhythm, random "screamo" style sweeps, stop-and-go discord riffs, and simplified one-chord riffs. To their credit Cryptopsy never goes into a one-chord breakdown, but the driving dynamic behind the music has gone from grime to MTV time.

After an angry response from fans, Cryptopsy posted a track on their myspace called "It's dinner time." It basically said angry fans live in their basement with their mothers. But since these fans were the driving force that built Cryptopsy into the death metal force it is now, what does that say about the band and who they originally targeted their music to? Have they really evolved by looking towards the emotional 14-18 year old crowd? How much longer will the metalcore trend last before the band must evolve again, and next time, what part of their message will be lost?

The reason fans are mad isn't because they hate change. In fact they embrace it: a change from the trendy, mediocre culture they face everyday. This is why they turned to something pure and brutal, that which we now call Cryptopsy. Without that, isn't this merely "just" another album?

"Worship Your Demons" by Cryptopsy. Note that Cryptopsy released this video after a leak of some of their softer tracks appeared online, inciting a hostile fan response. "Worship Your Demons" is one of the heavier songs on the album.