Published on Jul 13, 1999
When we last heard from the boys in Hypocrisy, Peter Tagtgren
and crew were showing their skills on the live album
Hypocrisy Destroys Wacken Live, a disc that served
unofficially both as a “greatest hits” disc and as a hell of a
welcome for someone who may have never heard this Swedish band’s
work before. I was in the latter group, and after listening to the
disc, I was dying to hear more.
From the “Boy,
That Was Fast” department, vocalist/guitarist Tagtgren,
bassist Mikael Hedlund and drummer Lars Szoke return with their
latest release, a self-titled effort that leaves any expectations
you might have had in the dust.
Hypocrisy is an album that moves from the closest thing one
could call a “ballad” in heavy metal to grindcore that will leave
your neck snapping for days, to more – dare I say it? –
conventional performances. All of this will leave your jaw scraping
the pavement in disbelief – and pleasure.
One side note: The copy I was sent to review was an advance with
the warning, “All songs are unmastered!” You sure could have fooled
me; I hope they didn’t change much, ’cause the sound on the advance
copy promo was incredible.
Tagtgren and crew quickly get down to business on tracks like
“Fractured Millenium,” “Fusion Programmed Minds” and “Static
Inverted Vision,” creating such a rich layer of sound that it
almost seems impossible that you’re listening to a three-piece
band. (It also seems impossible to think that not terribly long
ago, Tagtgren almost pulled the plug on Hypocrisy.) There are times
where the music takes a spooky turn, almost making you feel like
you’re watching a horror film; when Tagtgren’s seven-string guitar
work kicks in, it’s just like the murderer put their hand on your
shoulder. (No joke; I actually jumped at one point when Tagtgren’s
playing started.)
What makes
Hypocrisy such an intriguing listen is that the band can go
from one extreme of speed (the break-neck pace of “Apocalyptic
Hybrid”) to the other (the almost ballad-like “Disconnected
Magnetic Corridors”) and make it all sound like this is the way all
music is supposed to happen. It takes musical skill and solid
songwriting to make such a shift work, and Hypocrisy is a band that
knows how to do both well.
The only drawback to this album – and the only thing keeping the
disc from being perfect in my eyes – is that it’s often difficult
to understand what Tagtgren is screaming about. I don’t know if the
full commercial version of this disc comes with lyrics (my promo
doesn’t), but they would have been beneficial. Even so, you don’t
have to understand every word of the song to grasp the importance
of the story.
I would not be surprised if a lot of metal magazines named
Hypocrisy one of the best albums of the year. However, I
would be surprised if this album didn’t break this band into the
more mainstream knowledge of today’s metal-heads.
Hypocrisy is a portrait of a band who deserve every ounce of
success that comes their way, and is another album that leaves me
wanting to hear more of this group.