Cryptopsy’s latest offering, An Insatiable Violence, is exactly what longtime fans have come to expect: unrelenting, abrasive, and executed with near-surgical precision. Yet beneath the punishing surface lies a band that has refined its approach, mastering the art of tension and contrast to make every blast beat and riff hit with purpose.

The album opens with the explosive “The Nimis Adoration,” an avalanche of jagged riffs and percussive fury that immediately sets the tone. While the intensity is overwhelming, sharp transitions ensure the chaos never devolves into monotony. When the band slows down, the bass cuts through with a sinister thrum, grounding the dense layers of guitar and drums and adding a menacing weight to the soundscape.

Drummer Flo Mounier dominates every track, whether tearing through lightning-fast fills on “Until There’s Nothing Left” or letting hypnotic patterns carry “Our Great Deception.” His presence is relentless and vital, providing some of the most impressive rhythmic precision in death metal today. The sheer stamina required for his performance borders on comical, yet it elevates every track to a level of intensity few bands can match.

Vocally, Cryptopsy still draws inevitable comparisons to Corpsegrinder, particularly on guttural tracks like “Dead Eyes Replace,” but they maintain variety throughout the record. Fry screams and banshee-like wails on tracks like “Fool’s Last Acclaim” provide contrast, creating a layered vocal attack that complements the dense guitar work. Speaking of guitars, the riffs are thick, tuned near subterranean levels, but Cryptopsy balance sheer heaviness with technical dexterity. The chainsaw tone of “Embrace the Nihility” and the lightning-fast solo in “The Art of Emptiness” demonstrate their precision, while stop-and-go dynamics add tension that keeps listeners on edge.

The back half of the album is where Cryptopsy’s atmospheric skill truly shines. “Our Great Deception” and “Embrace the Nihility” open with eerie, slow-building intros before giving way to full-blown chaos, providing crucial breathing room amid the relentless intensity. Closing track “Malicious Needs,” while familiar in structure, ventures into slower, haunting territory that leaves a lasting impression.

If the album has a minor flaw, it’s that the bass occasionally disappears outside slower passages, and some riffs drift into familiar modern death metal territory. Nevertheless, the crisp production keeps every instrument razor-sharp, and the musicianship, especially Mounier’s drumming, ensures there is rarely a dull moment.

An Insatiable Violence isn’t Cryptopsy reinventing themselves—it’s them at the peak of their craft. By balancing blistering speed with eerie atmosphere and surgical grooves, they deliver a record that is punishing, precise, and profoundly satisfying. Few bands in the death metal landscape can match the level of intensity and control Cryptopsy achieves here.

Rating: 7.5/10