HYPOCRISY
Worship NUCLEAR BLAST
A masterclass in anthemic melodeath from Sweden’s finest
Hypocrisy form a very patient alien welcoming party
FEW PEOPLE ON this planet can make extreme metal as anthemic as Peter Tägtgren and Hypocrisy, which probably explains some why the band are so fixated on finding extraterrestrial life. Eight years on from the last Hypocrisy record, Tägtgren has kept himself busy by releasing a new album with his electro-industrial band Pain and writing, recording and touring with Rammstein’s Till Lindemann in the project that bears that singer’s name, as well as producing records for the likes of Sabaton, Discharge and Immortal. But if you think such a varied workload might have him thinking of taking a leap into the stylistic unknown for Hypocrisy’s 13th album, you’d be desperately wrong.
Since shifting from also-ran Floridian death metal in the early 90s, Hypocrisy have held dominion over their sonic output in a way that would do Motörhead or Bolt Thrower proud. Sure, there’s variation, but it comes with a tight leash that never lets the music stray too far from their obscenely addictive mixture of muscular brutality and snarl-along catchiness. And good gods, is it fucking glorious. Acoustic guitar intro aside, Worship’s title track arrives with the kind of heraldry usually reserved for the end of days (or at least a top-tier stadium gig), with wails of showy guitar giving way to a 200mph thrash attack that makes full use of the band’s buzzsaw low-end.