I hope you haven’t forgotten about Cryptosis.
Following their name change (from Distillator between 2013 and 2020), their signing to Century Media Records and their critically acclaimed 2021 album, Laurens Houvast (guitar/vocals, ex-Face the Fact), Frank te Riet (bass/mellotron/vocals, Omgeving) and Marco Prij (drums, Blasphemy Night) announce the release of The Silent Call, their new EP, divided into two parts.
The Silent Call, the first track of the first part, introduces us to a majestic approach to their complex, crafted style, where frantic riffs, soaring harmonics and virulent vocal parts meet. The contrast between the more ethereal and the more virulent elements almost dissipates during the intense moments that bring them together, notably before a final leading us to Master of Life, a more direct track where the vindictive Thrash roots are more prominent. The combo makes sure to keep its orchestrations and dissonant elements, but we feel that the Old School patterns are leading the charge towards mysterious sonorities before exploding one last time before the second part of the EP begins, made up of two live tracks.
Recorded in November 2022 in Athens, Greece, in the company of Vektor, Prospect of Immortality and Transcendence are respectively the third and fourth tracks on their setlist. We hear an audience already won over and involved in the performance, reveling as much in the devastating fury the band unleashes, as in the calmer and more modern parts that transcend our spirit. Already familiar from the album’s release, the two tracks retain all their power, accuracy and precise interweaving of notes, making them unique and allowing anyone to identify the band without difficulty.
With The Silent Call, Cryptosis shows us that they not only do know how to compose perfectly balanced tracks, they are also capable of playing them in front of an attentive audience. I can’t wait to experience this by myself.
85/100