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Cryptopsy - None So Vile review



Reviewer:
9.5

537 users:
8.68
Band: Cryptopsy
Album: None So Vile
Release date: July 1996


01. Crown Of Horns
02. Slit Your Guts
03. Graves Of The Fathers
04. Dead And Dripping
05. Benedictine Convulsions
06. Phobophile
07. Lichmistress
08. Orgiastic Disembowelment

Death metal. The musical genre concerned with death, hatred and anguish. The aural paragon of blood, gore and mutilation. Ever since it was created about 20 years ago, death metal left nothing nasty undealt with; from the repulsive scenery of gory violence to the deepest of mental aberrations, it covered pretty much everything vile, both musically and lyrically, with death being the recurring theme. Not all bands though were able to convey the actual horror of death, but some wrote albums that redefined death in an aural way. One of these records is Cryptopsy's None So Vile.

None So Vile is a death metal album with the brutality cranked up to the max, and that's just about it. The guitar riffs are as savage as a chainsaw to an infant's flesh, but also quite technical, dynamic and always changing. The solos kick ass even more. If you don't agree, just skip to 1:40 on "Dead And Dripping" and jizz your pants on that solo. Beneath the crushing riffs and the blazing solos, the bass pummels hysterically and unrelentingly, adding to the attack of the album. Flo Mounier is an octopus of a drummer, and an astounding one indeed, with his whimsically technical style. Listening to None So Vile with headphones makes you actually feel his drumset is inside your brain. All of this is topped by the screams, groans, growls, etc., of the notorious Lord Worm. His vocals are a love/hate matter, and personally, after having despised them for a long time, I now think they suit the morbid music perfectly.

Together, the instruments and the vocals create nothing but a merciless, brutal aural assault. Listening to it feels like being shelled with every kind of tank ever made, in a good way. Cryptopsy have actually managed to max out the brutality, while still playing with "soul." The guitar riffs craft soundscapes that evoke agony, pain and fear. Moreover, a touch of grandeur is injected at the beginning of "Phobophile" with the usage of pianos, before it turns out into an aggravating frenzy of ferocious riffage and vicious drumming. And my description is just close enough.

With a great, aggressive production, sickening lyrics and ahead-of-its-time death metal music, Cryptopsy have created an opus that influenced many bands for generations to come. Do I recommend it? Of course I do, because this is a death metal classic, and probably an essential album in any death metaller's collection. Go on and listen to it RIGHT NOW, unless you don't want the aural equivalent of being smashed in the face by a mallet* for 33 minutes. Nonstop.

*feels pretty good


Rating breakdown
Performance: 10
Songwriting: 10
Originality: 9
Production: 9

Written by Oaken | 29.09.2012




Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.

Staff review by
Herzebeth
Rating:
9.0
1996 was a good year for Metal Music, Behemoth released their album Grom, Arch Enemy released "Black Earth", Cannibal Corpse found that George Fisher was better than Chris Barnes and released "Vile", Mortician, after 7 years of demos and EPs, finally released their first Full Length album and called it "Hacked Up For Barbecue", and a little Canadian Band Called Cryptopsy Released a great album called "None So Vile".

Read more ››
published 10.01.2005 | Comments (18)


Comments

Comments: 4   Visited by: 101 users
30.09.2012 - 05:46
Rating: 9
infernaldeath87

Great review for a great album!
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24.07.2020 - 20:16
Rating: 10
sgtrobo

Best death metal album ever?
Possibly.
Surprised there's only 1 comment on this one
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25.07.2020 - 06:06
Rating: 9
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by sgtrobo on 24.07.2020 at 20:16

Best death metal album ever?
Possibly.
Surprised there's only 1 comment on this one

2 pages of comments on the album thread and 18 comments on Herz' staff review. Fear not, this received its due notice.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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06.06.2021 - 19:17
Rating: 9
metalriff

Feels pretty good
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