Cryoxyd confirms its resurrection.
After a short existence in the early 2000s, followed by a long hiatus, the band led by Eron (guitar/vocals), Grégoire Galichet (drums, Dead Season, Deathcore Society), Nekro (guitar) and Nicolas Sanson (bass, Dead Season) unveils its first album, I, with the help of Dolorem Records.
Cowered Under Darken Skies is a fairly classic and refined introduction that offers a brief moment of agonizing tranquility, but it is quickly shattered by Day After Day, the first true composition with strong Old School roots. The jerky style fits perfectly with the raw vocals that strike at a good pace, placing a few sharp harmonics and a polished solo that will eventually slow down the rhythm before letting it rough us up until Dismal Fate and its anguished introduction. The bass/drum duo quickly returns, followed by the guitars and vocals to develop a slower but more complex touch that offers very solid parts to support the leads, then Injected Minds accelerates again to return to the virulent and catchy staccato approach. Once again, we find heady influences and an interesting mastery between two waves of pure violence, but the song exploits its entire length to juggle skillfully between the two before letting Trapped in a Mirror settle in and unleash all its violence. Although the track started off fairly calmly, it obviously doesn’t stay that way for long, quickly offering up a thick rhythm that simplifies to let long leads fascinate us, only to charge forward again towards Effigy of the Unknown, which adopts Death/Thrash patterns and a very piercing sound. Entirely instrumental, the track is still quite catchy, with the guitar punctuating the progression of its prowess, then the vocals return with Ambivalent Feelings, where the more scathing touches multiply under the motivating patterns, allowing the four musicians to provoke furious headbanging sessions before slowing down for the harmonics. The track may be long, but it never drags, just like Bodycell, which follows suit and offers us a rather energetic first approach, although it reveals more haunting moments that contrast a little. However, the track’s second part seems more epic, thanks in particular to the background tones that accentuate the majestic side before moving on to Emptiness of Life, where the sound is darker. The technicality is also on display in this track, which also takes advantage of its length to offer prog-oriented patterns before giving us a final moment of respite with For All Whom Suffered, a short instrumental with a clear, rather soothing sound. Once the interlude is over, we quickly return to violence with Mindless Human Form, a composition that begins quite massively and retains this aggressive, up-and-down style, even during the slowest parts. Unfortunately, the album comes to an end with the melancholic eponymous outro This World We Live In, where the musicians make sure to show off their years of practice one last time to gently ease us out of their universe.
Between technicality, Old School Death Metal and raw fury, This World We Live In… promises us a handful of catchy riffs. While Cryoxyd sometimes tends to overdo the lead parts a little, we can’t help but recognize their effectiveness.
80/100
