Hypocrisy
A Taste Of Extreme Divinity

Here is another band that hadn't surfaced for some years. After the last album "Virus," our music man Peter Tägtgren probably wanted to focus more on his side project, Pain, releasing two albums in two years. Now, the 4-year absence is being felt, and it's time to release a new record.

The last record saw a change in the band's lineup with a new drummer, who presented himself worthily, proving to be a capable, if not superior, replacement for Lars Szöke. Besides the lineup change, the last record also saw a change in style, which became solidified in "A Taste of Extreme Divinity," with some exceptions. Namely, the return to more classic themes of Death Metal as were in the first two CDs. In "Virus," this fact was hidden by the cover, while now it is explicitly declared.

I'm a bit disappointed; the closeness to science fiction was the main reason why I love this band, but all in all, it is a well-executed experiment. Musically, they are still themselves, with thrashy and alienating riffs (in every sense) as we can ascertain in the first two tracks "Valley of the damned" and "Hang him high" and "Alive" towards the middle of the album, and breathe a sigh of relief thinking "They're still the same." Many of the tracks are more oriented towards their old style from "The Final Chapter." The vaguely melodic component doesn't go unmissed in songs like "No Tomorrow" the excellent "Global Domination", although present here and there throughout the album. A downside of the album is the absence of one of those fabulous closing ballads, which were practically (almost) a tradition. The highlight of the album is represented by the title-track. Perhaps a somewhat atypical track in some respects, but definitely worthwhile.

Arriving at the end of the album, we find a series of tracks that are a good mix of past styles. "Tamed (Filled with fear)" and "Sky is falling down" may not be the ballads one might expect, but they're definitely an excellent conclusion to an album that is certainly a call to origins, despite the stylistic change of themes, but with an excellent performance on the drums, something that perhaps in past albums was not optimal, but certainly sufficient... Bon appétit to all the fans.