Album of the week: Hypocrisy - Worship

 

 

For the idea behind the album of the week, go here. (It is becoming more like the album of the month, but I'm defiantly carrying on as best as I can. ;-))        

Hypocrisy is one the bands of Swedish melodic death metal along In Flames, Dark Tranquility, At the Gates & Amon Amarth that I grew up with as I got into more extreme metal. Among those, I've always had the most affection for Hypocrisy (and Amon Amarth) among the bands mentioned above as they always had a somewhat different and distinctively spacey sound and to this day I still think that records such as "Virus" (!), "The Final Chapter" or "The Arrival" are among some of the finest melodic death metal records ever produced. As my musical taste expanded and my passion for other genres outside of metal grew stronger, I (as with many other bands) lost touch with Hypocrisy, which is why I decided to pick up their most recent release for this week's album of the week.

So, what do we have here? To be perfectly frank, we do not have same amount of memorable songs as on those albums mentioned above. There are a few songs which definitely lack the urgency or intensity to stick with you and rather fall in the category "filler" (e.g. "Dead World", "Brother of the Serpent", "Another Day"). The songs also tend to follow the same pattern, visible already by the more or less equal length of each song (4–5 minutes). Here a bit of variation would have been much appreciated.

The records really hits its stride with the slower, more moody and melodic songs. "We're the walking dead" is a highlight, an epic stomper as only Hypocrisy can do them. The same goes for the absolutely catchy refrain of "Children of the Grey" or the slow anthem "Bug in the Net", which evokes memories of songs such as "The Final Chapter" or "Living to die". Another highlight (throughout the record) are Peter's growls - they sound powerful and fresh considering how long he's been in the business.

So, no, Hypocrisy does not invent the wheel again on that one, and they of course don't have to as there is a formula in place with which great songs can be written. But is the album hitting this high ceiling of former records? In most places, in all fairness, one has to say no. Still, there are tracks that show that Peter hasn't forgotten to write a great song.

Standout tracks: "We're the walking dead"; "Children of the Grey" (just for its catchy chorus); "Bug in the Net"