Hypocrisy
The Final Chapter

THE REVIEW

I want to clarify that this is my first review, so it will be full of errors and inaccuracies, especially in style. I tried to give my best.  

The undisputed masterpiece of Peter Tagtgren. This album fully encapsulates the spirit of Hypocrisy, from their devastating beginnings to their later psychedelic phase. The album is characterized by a perfect mix of aggression and melody, and it's precisely these qualities that make it so fantastic. The album features the relentless alternation of a fast track and a slow, melodic one. Technically speaking, the work of the three Swedes is excellent: Peter alternates growling and screaming perfectly, and even from a guitar point of view, he doesn’t miss a beat. Mikael's bass lines, even though not highlighted much by the production, are quite original, while Lars's drumming is, as usual, precise, but it should be noted that it’s always inferior to many death metal drummers, a difference particularly noticeable in the fast tracks.  

The album begins with the violent and chaotic Inseminated Adoption, which offers no respite to the listener, followed by the slow and psychedelic  A Coming Race characterized by a beautiful melody. Dominion is the classic devastating Hypocrisy track, in which Peter unleashes an amazing scream. The melodic Inquire Within surprises with its introduction of guitar and sitar, while Last Vanguard, Trought the Window of Time and Evil Invaders follow the same lines as Dominion. The dreamy Request Denied features a beautiful solo split between classical and distorted guitar, Shamatheur has a devastating mid-tempo and absolutely granite-like guitars, all seasoned with psychedelic and oppressive melodies. Adjusting the Sun is the masterpiece of the album: melodic just right and very technical, especially from the guitar standpoint, with a truly remarkable blazing solo. Lies follows the path of A Coming Race. And finally, there’s the alienating The Final Chapter, a true masterpiece of melancholic melodies.  
The lyrics, like those of Abducted, talk about UFOs and alien abductions, all told from a human perspective, from the emotions of the abducted.     

Ultimately, it is a beautiful album, a cornerstone of Swedish death metal and yet independent from the entire Scandinavian scene. Hypocrisy is great for this, having managed to create a personal style in a scene overcrowded with very similar bands like the Swedish scene of the '90s.