Psycroptic: The Inherited Repression (2012)

Tasmanian Devils Deliver Again

Reviews of technical death metal albums usually include a lot of criticisms. It's too sterile. It's just wankery, without any real songwriting. They can play their instruments, but they can't make you feel anything.

Similarly, reviews of bands from out-of-the-way places usually say something along the lines of, "If they were from (London, New York, Oslo, etc.) then no one would care."

Psycroptic, of course, is a technical death metal band. They are from the ass end of the world, in Tasmania, better known for the Looney Tunes character Taz than anything else. And yet, none of those criticisms can possibly be leveled at them.


On fifth album The Inherited Repression, the Tasmanians deliver once again, reasserting themselves as leaders in a genre that's increasingly overpopulated with followers. Their signature brand of tech-death is unmistakable for its raw, high-energy style. They actually sound like a band playing together, not a Pro Tools-stitched-together Frankenstein, and, most importantly, their songs actually sound like songs. Have they taken any great leaps forward in the four years since their last album? No. But when you hear them, you can't possibly mistake them for anyone else. When you have that going for you, you don't really have to change anything.



The Verdict: Psycroptic are the exception to a lot of rules, and The Inherited Repression is just one more statement to set them apart. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Buy The Inherited Repression