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Psycroptic: Ob(Servent)
 Ob(Servant) is the fourth release from Tasmania's (yes, you read that right, Tasmania) Psycroptic, another brutal assualt of technical death metal from this talented four piece. Fresh off their stint on the Summer Slaughter alongside Black Dahlia Murder, Kataklysm, Vader, and others, Psycroptic offer up nine tracks of intense extreme metal here, their chops honed and songwriting skills at their zenith no doubt influenced by all the time spent on the road and surrounded by some of death metal's best over the last few years. Each member of the band contributes equally to this one-guitarist Joe Haley pumps out plenty of crunch-o-rama as well as daring, stop-start riffs and fills, his solos acrobatic and tasty, while bassist Cameron Grant & drummer Dave Haley provide jackhammer rhythms that impress on each and every track. Singer Jason Peppiatt growls his way through complex pieces like "Initiate", "A Calculated Effort", and the immense title track like a man possessed, coming across like another lead instrument alongside Joe's churning guitar work. Though the band does drop in some hardcore elements on occasion, for the most part this is solid death metal with plenty of technicality that takes the listener through lots of weaving arrangments complete with thunderous rhythms...case in point the wild "The Shifting Equilibrium", which almost reminds of a more technical Lamb of God.
Fantastic cover art and very crisp production round out this very enjoyable extreme metal release. If you've yet to check out this 'tasmanian devil' knows as Psycroptic, now's the time to do so.
Track Listing
1. Ob(Servant)
2. A Calculated Effort
3. Slaves of Nil
4. The Shifting Equilibrium
5. Removing The Common Bound
6. Horde in Devolution
7. Blood Stained Lineage
8. Immortal Army Of One
9. Initiate
Added: January 29th 2009
Reviewer: Pete Pardo
Score: 
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 2657
Language: english
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Psycroptic: Ob(Servent)
Posted by Ken Pierce, SoT Staff Writer on 2009-01-29 08:33:47
My Score:
Proving that Metal's reach is as vast as the imagination is wide we get the fourth molten slab of material from the Tasmanian export Psycroptic. The band is one that immediately assaults the senses of the listener with a mind-numbing display of extreme technical chops. I had to say that I was impressed by their "Ob(servant)" CD quite a bit and I was amused at this for when I first caught them a couple of months ago I was not particularly impressed. Let me explain how this possibly happened – the guys were second up on a bill that I felt buried much of the talent involved and with the sets blasting by so quickly there was hardly any time for the bands to win you over with the display. That being said I was glad for the spine-tingling that this CD offered because it was really something impressive. The band doesn't seem to follow the standard of many of their Extreme Death Metal counterparts, because they pick up and slow down the tempo a lot more than most others. There is a lot of groove happening between the growling and just when you think the band is going to speed up a little more they instead offer you slight respite by bringing it down about five notches. Across the board the drumming is outstanding and presents some truly speaker destroying double bass drum runs that manage to be the time keeper for the equally blistering guitar riffs. Lyrically the guys are not all damnation and humankinds evils but more along the lines of science fiction and one can read along with the provided lyrics. It was a welcome change because it shows maturity for the genre to change the subject matter once in awhile. Songs like the title track and "Slaves Of Nil" and "Removing The Common Bond" are among the most impressive numbers on the wholly satisfying CD and it's clear that those who enjoy the super technical side of Extreme Metal will find that these Tasmanian Devils are right up their alley. The band finds their number made up of Jason Peppiatt (vocals), Joe Haley (guitar), Cameron Grant (bass) and Dave Haley (drums). One can almost feel the lock between the brothers and this obviously comes from years of working together for the sake of their brand of Metal. Peppiatt is a solid growler but he mixes it up quite a bit on the album by hitting highs and going low as well from time to time. This is recommended for fans of any of the Extreme Metal stuff that puts a little more effort into their executions. Its incredibly fast stuff that might appeal to those that flock to Cryptopsy, Behemoth and Arsis because they are also the bands that have a lot more grit to their content. Nice work guys, I am looking forward to seeing them again with more mental ammunition about them.
The release comes with a bonus DVD that I didn't have for the purposes of examination but suffice it to say this disc features three segments that are delineated as "Making of "Ob(Servant)", Live Footage from Amsterdam 2007 and Live Footage from New Zealand 2007. Lyrics are included in the booklet but with the pace that Psycroptic keeps during the tunes I wish you luck in keeping up.
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Psycroptic: Ob(Servent)
Posted by ??? on 2008-11-21 07:01:29
My Score:
Psycroptic has graduated to a bigger label in Nuclear Blast. This should help in making them a household name by ensuring adequate distribution of name and product. Namely, some tour support in the U.S. (a band first). Certainly, (Ob) Servant is a more groove oriented cd than their last. If Lamb of God kicked it in the ass by about 2 levels you would be getting a strong inclination of the sonics.
Production standards are very high with very good separation and clarity. Even the mix seems to fall where it should be. ARE YOU KIDDING? This is not as common in heavy metal, but the new The Faceless disc edges it out even more. I keep plugging for this site to review that one!
The only disappointment is there are no guitar solos, but the general arrangements will satisfy the taste for something technically profound.
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