One of the most highly anticipated metal albums of the year, Hypocrisy roars into the metal universe once again since 2009. Four years is quite a long time for this beast to remain silent, but Peter Tägtgren has taken this time to deliver a quality melodic death metal album. I’ve always been intrigued with every single release that has followed one after the other. They have seen many changes from extreme death metal roots to a largely more melodic death metal sound. All the albums have felt pretty unique in their own right, but their latest release really captures a lot of the moments I like best about what Hypocrisy does. They honestly are one of the few death metal bands that I feel the need to stick around because they tend to stay fresh and at the top of their game in almost every aspect.

The video End of Disclosure had me excited for weeks upon the album’s release. It begins with a rather eerie symphonic element before it roars into the chaos that Hypocrisy always initiates with every album. Peter shows that he still remains true to his dark and sinister riffs we all know and love. The first track, End of Disclosure, really sets up how the album will sound as a whole. I have to admit it’s been pretty difficult this week to even think about listening to another record. With other Hypocrisy releases, I have felt the same. I found it difficult to make a switch over to any other music because they always have the tendency to hook me in right from the start.

Hypocrisy is no stranger to speed and aggression. Tales of Thy Spineless rushes out with some seriously hectic drumming, melodic thrash style guitars, and bass that completely destroy the ears. It also remains true to the Hypocrisy sound during the chorus, providing their dark and menacing death metal atmosphere they know best. It’s not the only song of its kind within the album however. United We Fall and When Death Calls are also other notable songs on the album that bring forth a barrage of fast drumming, merciless guitars, and bass.

The overall theme of the album is once again set to the extraterrestrial. The Eye, one of my favorite songs on the album, almost sounds like it could be set to an alien landing. The song’s catchy and strange sounding guitars at the very beginning only set up the listener to something heavier than expected. Once the song gets into a full swing, it was nearly impossible not to blast my speakers to their fullest potential, hook up my guitar, and immediately try to learn from the melodic death metal master himself. When I listened I was very satisfied with pretty much every song laid out in front of me. Probably the most memorable song on the album I feel that needs some mention is Soldier of Fortune. As Hypocrisy has clearly showed in their past and present, they can have some utterly heavy moments. Soldier of Fortune might have the heaviest riff I’ve ever heard Hypocrisy write in a great while. It’s a very hard-boiled riff that I couldn’t get enough of no matter how many times I listened. Following the massive riff, it remains very melodic and catchy to its core.

As I’ve said before about Hypocrisy, they never disappoint. When the original Catch 22 album was released back in 2002, many fans slammed it on almost all fronts. To this day I cannot fathom how anyone could have disappointed with it. It ended up being one of my favorites from Hypocrisy to this day. As for End of Disclosure, it is very enjoyable from start to finish and will leave little for fans to argue about in terms of production and quality.