Bionic Swarm was one of my favourite albums of 2021. Technical thrash, not unlike Vektor. A dynamic album packed with great riffs, strong hooks and excellent musicianship. Four years later Cryptosis are back with album number two, Celestial Death.
One of my most anticipated albums of recent years, I’ll come out with it straight away and say my initial impression was one of disappointment, though it has grown on me somewhat since. Whilst still in the cyber thrash territory of Bionic Swarm the most obvious change is the greater dominance of keyboards, especially mellotron. Synths and mellotron were present last time around but didn’t overshadow the razor sharp guitar work of Laurens Houvast. He’s not totally obliterated, but his riffs often (not always, especially later in the album) merge into the barrage of keyboards taking the edge off them. Having said that, though still solid, on the whole they lack the memorability of last time and nothing here blows me away like Decypher, Prospect Of Immortality or Transcendence did.
Having got the negatives out the way Celestial Death is still a fine album and if I’d not previously heard Bionic Swarm I’d probably be singing its praises a lot more. There’s still plenty of good songs on offer like the blackened thrash of Ascending and Reign Of Infinite, perhaps my favourite here. More progressive elements, largely down to the keyboards are on display which never a bad thing as far as I’m concerned. The melodies are still there but require a few more plays to reveal themselves and that melancholic vibe I liked about the debut is still there too as is the excellent musicianship.
You’ve probably grasped by now that I’m not as blown away by Celestial Death as much as Bionic Swarm but all respect to Cryptosis for showing some growth. After my initial disappointment and having had time to digest the album better with repeated plays I’m still happy with and enjoying this. Writing this review helped me focus on its strengths and I’m still more than eager to hear where they go next.
