After releasing the classic death metal album,
None So Vile, Lord Worm left Cryptopsy, leaving a two year gap before their next album. Cryptopsy changed their sound with
Whisper Supremacy, bringing in new vocalist Mike DiSalvo.
Cryptopsy
Mike DiSalvo - Vocals
Jon Levasseur - Lead/Rhythm Guitars
Miguel Roy - Rhythm/Lead Guitars
Eric Langlois - Bass
Flo Mournier - Drums and Backing Vocals
Lord Worm - Backing Vocals on "Loathe" and "Cold Hate, Warm Blood"
Although Cryptopsy were always technical,
Whisper Supremacy is generally seen as the beginning of their technical era. With the departure of Lord Worm, the band started to head in a different direction. The production, for starters was a change. The production of the previous two albums had been getting progressively thicker, but
Whisper Supremacy had the thickest yet, so thick that it was almost muddy. The music here is much less riff based with Flo Mournier's drumming generally dominating the mix. The mix is almost solely drums and vocals with the rest of the music blending into the background. That said, when you do listen to the riffs carefully, they are as great as ever and some of the best Cryptopsy riffs ever are belted out on this cd. In many areas, Cryptopsy are as great as ever on
Whisper Supremacy. However, there are a few problems which hold it back from being as great as it's predecessor.
The real issue with
Whisper Supremacy is Mike DiSalvo. It's not that he's a bad vocalist by any means. It's just that he's not a very good death metal vocalist. Were he in a Hardcore or Metalcore band, he would fit right in. However, on a Cryptopsy album, it just doesn't really work. The lyrics of
Whisper Supremacy are pretty much standard death metal fare, though Lord Worm does lend a hand for the tracks "White Worms" and "Cold Hate, Warm Blood". Though he left to pursue his teaching career, it's clear that Lord Worm doesn't exactly want to be gone forever. As well as writing lyrics, he throws in some backing vocals for "Loathe" and "Cold Hate, Warm Blood". Flo Mournier's drumming is as technical as ever and faster than seems humanly possible. Songs like "Emaciate" are both incredibly brutal, while being incredibly intricate. Jon's guitar solos are a real highlight and while they seem pretty standard, they are executed to absolute perfection. An underrated part of Cryptopsy has always been the bass work. Underneath it all, Eric does some really crazy bass work, throwing in slapping here and there to great effect. While slapping generally gives a funk feel, Eric's slapping sounds more like the smacking an instrument on a concrete floor. All in all,
Whisper Supremacy had the potential to exceed even
None So Vile. However, with Mike DiSalvio on vocals, that goal is not possible until Lord Worm returns.
Pros
Cool production
Insane drumming
Technical and well thought out
Cons
The vocals
A bit hard to hear everything
Typical death metal length (31 minutes) may be offputting
Reccomended Tracks
Emaciate
Cold Hate, Warm Blood
White Worms
