{"id":715747,"date":"2026-07-28T17:13:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T17:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/715747\/"},"modified":"2026-07-28T17:13:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T17:13:09","slug":"review-psycroptic-the-pulse-of-annihilation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/715747\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Psycroptic – The Pulse of Annihilation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Published by Cory<\/a> on 2026\/07\/282026\/07\/28<\/p>\n

\"\"Artwork by: Belial Necroarts<\/a><\/p>\n

Style: technical death metal (harsh vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Decapitated, Gorod, Revocation<\/a>
Country: Australia
Release date: 17 July 2026<\/p>\n

If you give \u201cpredictable\u201d a negative valence, you arrive at \u201cstale\u201d\u2014but put a positive spin on it, and you get \u201cdependable.\u201d Aside from the few bands with careers of continuous reinvention, many veteran groups end up falling on either side of the predictability line, with varying degrees of listener consensus. To give a few Subway examples, most here would agree Soen have found their way solidly into the \u201cstale\u201d camp<\/a>; Allegaeon might get a more mixed response (\u201cdependable\u201d is my vote<\/a>), while Revocation are generally lauded for consistency<\/a> despite nearly twenty years spent clinging to their trademarked sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What about Tasmania\u2019s premier tech death quartet, Psycroptic? With their ninth LP, The Pulse of Annihilation, the boys unleash an album that sounds an awful lot like the last several. Following their 2004 sophomore release\u2014the early technical death metal classic The Scepter of the Ancients\u2014Psycroptic shifted toward a slightly less brutal and more melodic style replete with serpentine, almost thrashy riffs and core-tinged vocals shouting energetically over agile rhythmic switch-ups. And in that direction they\u2019ve continued since the mid-aughts. The group\u2019s sound is immediately recognizable and relatively unique in the saturated tech death scene, but has it grown stale over the last couple of decades?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

For me, the answer is a resounding \u201cNo!\u201d Brothers David and Joe Haley, on the drums and guitar respectively, play with a connection I\u2019ll never grow tired of. Joe\u2019s riffs mix a tasty blend of rhythmic root notes and marathon-length runs that cover the entire fretboard in headspinning patterns. David, meanwhile, knows exactly when to play in lockstep, when to blast off or kick with inhuman speed, and when to sit back into infectious mid-paced grooves. The two instruments couldn\u2019t be more harmonious. Look no further than the first minute or two of album opener \u201cAshes of a New Dawn\u201d\u2014Joe\u2019s razor-sharp tone and intricate lines slice you up while David moves fluidly between deft cymbal work, ferocious blasts, and ride-driven beats that get the shoulders shakin\u2019. The two might be at their collective best, though, in the dizzying pre-chorus of standout cut \u201cOur Pillars Fall,\u201d making child\u2019s play of ridiculously complex rhythms and striking just the right balance of mirroring and diverging from one another. Complementing the brothers is Todd Stern on bass, providing audible low end and ripping some runs of his own, and Jason Peppiatt\u2019s emphatic vocals, which only seem to get better with each album.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although The Pulse of Annihilation is pretty much par for the Psycroptic course, that doesn\u2019t mean it lacks sufficient depth. Clocking in at nearly seven minutes, the uncharacteristically lengthy \u201cOur Pillars Fall\u201d begins with moody clean guitars, exotic percussion, and even some synth, piano, and choral texture\u2014and its chorus is massive and melodic, backed by choral and synth touches similar in feel to those in the intro. Sure, nothing here is groundbreaking or entirely new for Psycroptic, but extra elements like these appear throughout the record and work nicely with the group\u2019s heavily riff-based style. More predictably returning is a total lack of solos\u2014an oddity in the tech death world\u2014but the playing is so wild in moments like the chorus of \u201cNo Blade of Grass\u201d or nearly all of the insanely technical closer \u201cForging the Crown\u201d that I hardly notice, and certainly don\u2019t care. The way the band meanders effortlessly from passage to passage, at once both frenetic and completely natural, is something to behold. The musicianship and tight songwriting are indisputably top-notch, and at an action-packed thirty-nine minutes, The Pulse of Annihilation doesn\u2019t risk overstaying its welcome.\u00a0<\/p>\n

An observation rather than a complaint, Psycroptic are ultimately a band with an extraordinarily high floor but a fixed ceiling. They\u2019ve honed a signature sound that fits nicely among technical death metal\u2019s upper echelon, though they never transcend their peers. The Pulse of Annihilation does nothing to take the band over the top, and it likely won\u2019t sway those who aren\u2019t fans, and that\u2019s completely fine: the record will still spend plenty of time in my ears this summer and beyond. The riffs are sharp, the rhythms are addictive, the performances are excellent across the board, and, a true compositional feat, each track\u2019s myriad, wandering parts always meet up with natural ease. If these Tasmanians decide to keep releasing albums like this one without end, I\u2019ll gladly follow along until annihilation\u2019s pulse finally erupts.<\/p>\n

Recommended tracks: Our Pillars Fall, No Blade of Grass, Forging the Crown
You may also like: Retromorphosis<\/a>, Carnosus<\/a>, Ouroboros
Final verdict: 7.5\/10<\/p>\n

Related links: Bandcamp<\/a> | Facebook<\/a> | Instagram<\/a><\/p>\n

Label: Metal Blade Records<\/a><\/p>\n

Psycroptic are:
\u2013 David Haley (drums)
\u2013 Joe Haley (guitars)
\u2013 Jason Peppiatt (vocals)
\u2013 Todd Stern (bass)
With guest:
\u2013 Jason Keyser (Origin) (backing vocals)<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n