Album Review: Crypta – Shades of Sorrow (Napalm Records)

Brazilian death metal outfit Crypta will unleash their second beast of an album, Shades of Sorrow, on August 4, 2023 via Napalm Records.

If you thought Crypta couldn’t go any harder than they did on their debut (2021’s Echoes of the Soul), you were extremely wrong. The death metal maniacs are back, and have such sounds to share with us.

There’s a sense of gothic horror and inherent sadness to the intro of The Aftermath, but it’s excitement that most will be feeling once Dark Clouds kicks in. Crypta are in a scathing mood, unleashing a cathartic explosion of thrash-infused death that is pure force, in aural form.

It’s a dark and dangerous level of intensity next with Poisonous Apathy, Crypta combining the most savage of vocals with flesh ripping riffs and bone breaking drumming. Before the pairing of The Outsider and Stronghold see Crypta delivering two of lengthier examples of their punishing heavy sound. There’s simply no end to their ruthless attack, be it the vocals or instruments that are dishing out the beating. Even their melody moments are worrisome.

There’s a sense that the beast that is Crypta is feeling renewed and that shows with the likes of The Other Side of Anger and Trial of Traitors. Both are examples of unmitigated and unrestrained carnage. With frenetic explosions of wicked sounding guitars and scornful vocal growls and roars, it’s a pair of extremely heavy tracks.

In between these two, there’s a short haunting intermission called The Limbo, a chance to catch your breath. Before Lullaby for the Forsaken, Agents of Chaos, and Life the Blindfold come along one by one to knock the listener down repeatedly. Three brash and brutal examples of Crypta’s refreshed energy and undeniable drive to be as heavy as humanly possible.

Finally (pretty much) it’s the fascinating Lord of Ruins. A track that gives off some old-school raw feelings but is also a classy example of how Crypta modernise their death metal sound to be downright hooky. The melding of eras is expertly handled, exciting and interesting from beginning to end, it’s a non-stop head-banger. Which sums up the album overall, interesting from beginning to end, including the chilling outro of The Closure.

Crypta – Shades of Sorrow Track Listing:

1. The Aftermath
2. Dark Clouds
3. Poisonous Apathy
4. The Outsider
5. Stronghold
6. The Other Side of Anger
7. The Limbo
8. Trial of Traitors
9. Lullaby for the Forsaken
10. Agents of Chaos
11. Lift the Blindfold
12. Lord of Ruins
13. The Closure

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