In 1992, a virtually unknown Swedish death metal band named "Hypocrisy" debuted with their initial effort, "Penetralia". It was a serviceable, if not especially outstanding, record from another in a seeming flood of Swedish bands hoping to cash in on the success of Entombed and Dismember. At that time, no one could have guessed that Hypocrisy would evolve into the premiere death metal band of our time. Their newest disc, "Into the Abyss", confirms that this band has surpassed almost all others when it comes to mixing all-out brutality with superb musicianship and excellent sound quality. The group has long ago passed by their mentors Entombed and Dismember and now stand on the brink of mainstream success. Ironically, "Into the Abyss" seems to find them reaching back to the past to create their most intense disc since their second, "Osculum Obscenum". Since their 3rd record "Fourth Dimension", Hypocrisy, under the leadership of guitarist/vocalist Peter Tagtgren, has tried to advance death metal by incorporating new musical and lyrical influences. Their songs slowed down and added almost psychedelic elements that conjured a death metal version of Pink Floyd in spots. Their lyrics switched from gore and Satanism to in-depth examinations of UFO's, conspiracy theories, cloning and psychic phenomena. These influences reached their apex with the self-titled "Hypocrisy", which bordered on dullness with too much emphasis on melodic weirdness and not enough of the raw meat death metal fans crave. "Into the Abyss" redresses that situation completely. This is the fastest, most brutal record since "Osculum", yet it does not abandon the experimental nature of the more recent material. Not to mention, it is better written and the sound quality is leaps and bounds beyond the early Hypocrisy material. The fast stuff is vicious but coherent while the slower stuff is more compact and less "gothic" than before. Tagtgren's vocals, which were virtually normal on "Hypocrisy", are almost completely bestial here. The only thing I don't like about them is that there seems to be too much electronic processing on them, leading to a sterile sound. Along with "The Final Chapter", this is the finest record of Hypocrisy's career. Hard to believe that the band that put out "Penetralia" has reached this plateau!

The lineup on this disc is Peter Tagtren, 7-string guitar, lead vocals and keyboards; Lars Szoke, drums; and Michael Hedlund, bass. Hypocrisy fans take note this is a killer album of pure death metal, with enough melody and atmosphere to keep it from being boring. Hypocrisy has reinvented itself yet again, and they are now on the pinnacle of their profession!

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: The Early Years Volume 3 at garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-The-Early-Years.