review by: Roberto Martinelli

Whether live or in studio, there is no better example of performance and efficiency than Cryptopsy. This French Canadian front runner’s first official live album does a pretty good job of translating the experience of seeing this juggernaut on stage, but does come up short in a couple areas.

Cryptopsy’s musical performance is awesome. The 10 songs played in this set, captured in 2002 in Montreal, are true to their studio form. If nothing they prove that Cryptopsy plays even faster live.

I think I can speak for any fan of technical death that the anticipation of being able to hear one of Flo Mounier’s drum solos immortalized on plastic is reason enough to buy this record. As expected, the solo is impressive, but Mounier is very hard on himself and you know that he must be unhappy with it.

While the sound of the show is clear, it’s a little flat and choked. The songs don’t jump out of the speakers to ensnare you in the music’s whirlwind brutality. There is also something lacking in terms of atmosphere. Certainly the intro of ambient music and crowd noise leads the listener into mounting anticipation, but from there, there’s not a whole lot to draw you into the “I’m there” feeling. Cryptopsy are very cut-and-dried and mechanical on this recording. They go from song to song like on a checklist. The set ends and there is no encore.

New frontman Martin Lacroix is perhaps the reason for this. His in between song interactions with the audience are samey and he doesn’t exude much charisma. We may have been spoiled by the sheer intensity that previous frontman Mike DiSalvo radiated by merely standing in place. Seeing Lacroix live shows that he puts his all into his performance and then some, but he’s got shoes to fill that are perhaps too large for him.

Lacroix was hired as he is sort of a Jack of All Trades, and as such, he handles the material written during the tenures of his two predecessors well, but at 3/4 strength. We’ll have to wait and see how he does with material written expressly for him as Cryptopsy’s frontman to be able to make a better decision. (6.6/10)