October 17, 2009

Hypocrisy - A Taste of Extreme Divinity

Reviewer: Kesh

Sweden has some very strong, well-built exports: Volvo, Saab, Ikea, and a metal scene that seems to churn out an endless stream of brash metal bands, hungry to prove themselves. Hypocrisy is one of the forerunners of that scene, having blazed the way every year since the band’s founding in 1990.

Hypocrisy’s twelfth full-length album, A Taste of Extreme Divinity, is solid, catchy and probably one of the best albums of 2009. Very much in the vein of “typical” Hypocrisy albums - it is very melodic and well constructed musically. Thankfully, the band’s founder Peter Tägtgren with the help of Mikael Hedlund and drummer Horgh have looped back around to the themes found on earlier albums, veering away from sci-fi inspired themes and returning to the bands roots in the dark and evil side of life.

While there seems to be no set theme for A Taste of Extreme Divinity like there has been on past albums, the album still works, leaving you satisfied, like a well cooked and filling meal. This album reminded me of why I fell in love with Hypocrisy the first time I ever heard them. I found it harder and harder to actually review this album with each listen because all I wanted to do was listen and headbang. This album kicked my ass, and it may well be on my top ten list for the year! My advice for you is to go and buy this album. You won’t regret it.

A Taste of Extreme Divinity track-by-track:

“Valley of the Damned” - This track is classic death metal at it’s finest. Blasting beats, melodic, charging guitars and lyrics that make you want to just throw yourself into the pit and beat the crap out of a perfect stranger. I can very easily see “Valley of the Damned” becoming a mosh pit classic with any venue exploding once the opening guitar riffs start. This track - if not the entire album - will be considered a classic in the years to come.

“Hang Him High” - When you hear the sound clip at the beginning of the track: “Assassin… Sounds so exotic… I was just a murderer.” You know you are in store for something brutal. While “Hang Him High” is a little slower paced than “Valley of the Damned,” there is no skimping on brutality and it is still pretty fast paced and intense. The use of movie clips only adds to the track, some bands overuse this, but it is my belief that Tägtgren’s seemingly unnatural skill at producing good albums, his own or otherwise, keeps him from over using this almost exhausted practice in music in the 21^st century.

“Solar Empire” - This is one of the songs where they head back into sci-fi turf (as far as I can tell - it could be interpreted differently by others). It can also be taken as a comment on modern society and technology. The song is heavy, like a weight around your neck threatening to snap it if you move in the wrong way. The pace is fast, and riffs are catchy. Movement is a must as with many songs on the album, but I’m not sure if I like it as much as other songs on the disk.

“Weed Out the Weak” - This song came out of nowhere, and made me do a double take, thinking the band had gone thrash. It charges in, takes over and makes itself at home. Its machine gun pace and war-like feel makes this one, another one, I can see a crowd exploding into a writhing mass of moshing bodies. With a slight slow down for a breath of air, Hypocrisy then proceeds to build back up from each, resuming the assault to “Weed Out the Weak.”

“No Tomorrow” - “No Tomorrow” slows it back down, giving a much needed break from the fast pace the album has set to this point. The song is still catchy and fits in very nicely with the rest of the album as a whole. It doesn’t feel as strong as the preceding songs on the disk. Almost a let down after a song like “Weed Out the Week.” I’m still loving it though.

“Global Domination” - Another slowed down track that picks up slightly as the song moves along. It builds up and becomes heavier and a little bit faster by the end. This track also utilizes the movie clips again, just enough for “flavoring” the song and keeping its nice and easy pace. Again, not one of the better songs on the album, but still enjoyable and a great Hypocrisy song!

“Taste the Extreme Divinity” - The boys pick the pace back up again, after lulling you back into a false sense of security that the audio attack was finished. The paraphrased title track, “Taste the Extreme Divinity” essentially picks back up where “Weed Out the Weak,” gradually building back up to the shredding guitars and blasting drum beats the album has dished out to this point. If you can make it past this point with the album without needing to hit the pause button on the player, you are made of some tough stuff.

“Alive” - With a pace like “Hang Him High”, and a chugging, train like rhythm. This song can be added to the pile along with the other “catchy” tracks from A Taste of the Extreme Divinity. It’s mid-paced, again, to deceive the listener into a false sense of security. Again, not one of my favorite tracks on the album, but still very solid.

“The Quest” - A very slow (comparatively) song. Just because something is very slow, doesn’t mean it’s not extreme. “The Quest” proves this point. With all the brutality and violence found on tracks on other parts of the album, it stands on its own as far as keeping the pace of the album. While it could be said this song is almost excruciatingly slow compared to the rest of the album, it keeps up with the other songs, in that it supports the theme of the album. Not every "classic" song in Death Metal is intensely fast and makes your heart pound.

“Tamed (Filled With Fear)” - Faster than “The Quest” but not as strong, “Tamed (Filled With Fear)” is very melodic and the guitars are killer, but overall, I’m not very happy with this song. It’s the only one that Hypocrisy has offered with A Taste of Extreme Divinity that I feel as though I want to hit the “skip” button on the player. It’s the weakest song, but it still holds up thematically with the album. The track’s only saving grace.

“Sky’s Falling Down” - When I fist saw the title of this song, my first thought was of the children’s fable of Chicken Little. While it has nothing to do with that child’s tale, it has everything to do with stuff falling out of the sky and knocking you off your feet. Very cut and dried as far as theme goes, “Sky’s Falling Down” makes an excellent close to the album, creating a path for when the album starts back over again and begins anew with “Valley of the Damned.”

Release Date: October 23rd, 2009
Label: Nuclear Blast Records

TRACK LISTING

1. Valley of the Damned
2. Hang Him High
3. Solar Empire
4. Weed Out the Weak
5. No Tomorrow
6. Global Domination
7. Taste the Extreme Divine
8. Alive
9. The Quest
10. Tamed (Filled With Fear)
11. Sky’s Falling Down

Total playing time: 50:09

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