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Class 6(66)
Hypocrisy: Penetralia
15/09/09 || Daemonomania
Introduction
There are certain ways that music simply should sound. And for Sweden circa 1992, “Penetralia” is complete and utter perfection. Imagine if every band came out of the aether as fully-formed, as crushing, as immensely and supremely evil as Hypocrisy. It would be like all female children being born and within a year developing into Keeley Hazell. Goddamn. So there’s a story behind Peter Tägtgren’s formation of Seditious (eventually Hypocrisy). Ole Pete spent some time in the fertile death metal crescent of the United States, known as Florida, on a special Satanic visa. He soaked up the atmosphere. He briefly joined Malevolent Creation. Rumor has it that he drunkenly hooked up with Chuck in Miami Beach. Newly consecrated “Evil” Pete returned to his frosty homeland, ready to wreck some necks. At first he did everything himself, but unsatisfied with his own vocals (we all know this would change – “Eaten,” anyone?) Petey Pablo brought one Masse Broberg into the fold. Add another guitarist, bassist, and split the duties of drummer with what might be a machine and what definitely is a real dude. And you’ve got the lineup for one of the most impressive OSSDM debuts of all time.
Songwriting
9. Beautiful stuff. A section may drag on a bit here and there, especially in the bonus tracks added to the end. Still this whole album is crammed start to finish with menace. Riffs are both mired in depravity and demonically triumphant. An unparalleled inclusion of ominous keyboards and arcane samples. Transitions are rarely awkward, and mostly just make the listener want to spin their vertebrae into a twisted mass of bone. Catchy, crunchy, and downright brutal throughout. Oh “Penetralia”, how many great songs dost thou have? Let me count the hits… yep, done. All of ‘em. That was easy.
Production
8. Bass heavy and ready to rock. The low-end is like a huge granite sphere rolling down a path ready to smoosh any fedora-wearing archaeologist dickcheese that gets in its way. The production on “Penetralia” is much more clean and defined than that of “Obsculum Obscenum”, the follow-up. That might have something to do with the fact that I have a remastered version that comes on a gold fucking disc. In case you didn’t get the memo, I am better than you.
Guitars
10. To think that Tägtgren is still pumping out huge riffs 10 albums later is mind-boggling. Way to go you tired-looking bastard. With the help of Mr. Jonas Osterberg one tsunami of deathly distortion after the next engulfs you. Solos are a mix of very good shredding and somewhat painful slower creepy one-note crawls. I’m absolutely in love with the guitar tone and the diversity on display overall. Very much a riff-driven affair.
Vocals
9. Wowsa, Broberg is a beast. Prior to changing his style completely the man could unleash some ground-shaking growls. Not to mention the lyrical content, despite being pretty dumb, is mostly discernable amidst his roars. Pete sings most of the title track and does an ok job, and I’m sure he’s responsible for some of the higher-pitched interjections as well.
Bass
7. Hedlund kicks some ass on here, adding to an already prodigious low end. While there are no specific moments I recall that he pulls out some Les Claypool fishing for sturgeon in the Bahamas type of shizzle, quite a fine job anyway.
Drums
8. Both Lars Szöke and Peter are given drumming credits on “Penetralia” and there is some talk of a drum machine being involved here too. I’m no drum expert, so don’t expect me to be able to tell you which is which. But the drums, whether performed by John Henry or that accursed steam-powered rail driver, certainly complement the music and quite often get me headbanging involuntarily. A blowjob and a dusting of the controls to thee respectively, Szöke-machine.
Lyrics
7. Ha ha ha, there’s a good reason that old Hypocrisy lyrics weren’t printed. You wish for samples, yes?
Think you’ll be reawaken
He thought to be in one
It would be a desire to be immortal
The bloody corpse is rot
Or how about…
Die for me in hell!
So I can get rid of your smell
Last but not least…
So, you think you’re a god!
You’re nothing but a piece of shit
And if I get my hands on you
You will slowly die!
That’s how I like it baby, wouldn’t have it any other way. This just reinforces my theory that at some point in the early 90’s a small school, probably located in Stockholm, was busy teaching big hairy Swedes rudimentary bits of the English language. Not the type of words and phrases that could help you get around a big American city, mind you. No – the type of language that could be applied piecemeal toward creating blasphemous nonsensical lyrics for amazing death metal songs.
Cover art
8. A corridor full of snake tongues, gargoyles, and assorted shit leading to some other wacky shit I cannot quite discern. But which exudes an aura of palpable fear. A little too busy but quite fitting given the album that awaits you.
Logo
9. A change in logo generally means a (doubtlessly weak) change in sound. Seems to hold true here. The old Hypocrisy was evil, licked by flame, and hid multiple inverted crosses. Legend has it that if you turn out all the lights, hold this logo up to the mirror, and chant “to escape is to die” three times absolutely nothing will happen. Spoooooooky.
Booklet
9. My spiffy digipack reissue has a collage of band photos and newspaper articles in the CD tray, a nice intro article from some shartknocker about how great Hypocrisy is in the front of the booklet, a band pic, and the lyrics in all their retarded glory. Very nice.
Overall and ending rant
After years of thinking that “Obsculum Obscenum” was the be-all, end-all of early Hypocrisy, I was surprised and delighted to be proven wrong. And to have my nutsack firmly treaded upon. This is a shining example of subgenre mastery. Diabolus in musica. Hell in a cell. If you wake up with stained sheets after dreaming about “Left hand path”, “Into the grave”, or more specifically the “Privilege of evil” EP then get ready to buy a brand new mattress after being penitraliated. It is that fucken good. Just don’t go in expecting melodeath and aliens. Elsewise you’ll burn by the cross and be left to rot whilst classic Swedeath takes the throne.
- Information
- Released: 1992
- Label: Nuclear Blast
- Website: www.hypocrisy.tv
- Band
- Masse Broberg: vocals
- Peter Tägtgren: guitars, vocals, drums maybe
- Jonas Osterberg: guitars
- Mikael Hedlund: bass
- Lars Szöke: drums
- Tracklist
- 01. Impotent God
- 02. Suffering Souls
- 03. Nightmare
- 04. Jesus Fall
- 05. God Is a Lie
- 06. Left to Rot
- 07. Burn by the Cross
- 08. To Escape Is to Die
- 09. Take the Throne
- 10. Penetralia
- 11. Life of Filth (bonus)
- 12. Led by Satanism (bonus)
