Hypocrisy - Virus
2005 Nuclear Blast

Track Listing:
1.  XVI
2.  Warpath
3.  Scrutinized
4.  Fearless
5.  Craving For Another Killing
6.  Let The Knife Do The Talking
7.  A Thousand Lies
8.  Incised Before I've Ceased
9.  Blooddrenched
10. Compulsive Psychosis
11. Living to Die

Line-Up:
Vocals:  Peter Tägtgren
Guitars:  Peter Tägtgren, Andreas Holma
Bass:  Mikael Hedlund
Drums:  Horgh

Website:  www.hypocrisy.tv

Follow The Hollow's Rating:  B+
Overall Rating:  B+

Also be sure to read:
Hypocrisy - In The Abyss by Uncle Meat
Straight To Hell:  A Tribute To Slayer by Shev

Follow The Hollow's Review:
It seems as though Peter Tägtgren & crew are finally back on track.  Maybe they figured that they had exhausted the songs about little green men, or it could have been the addition of Horgh on drums, but whatever it was, Virus was a huge step in the right direction for Hypocrisy.  Notorious for long, dragged out songs with slow, chugging double bass, Virus turns up the heat and the tempo.  Tägtgren's vocals are deeper than some of the recent Hypocrisy albums, and it adds to the heaviness of the music.  Virus balances brutalness and melody excellently; most of the verses on this CD are heavy enough to be considered death metal, and the choruses have enough melody for an In Flames album.

I usually doubt how good an album can be if it is released only a year after a previous album, because I have a tendency to think songwriting may have been rushed with everything going on in the span of a year, but Virus exceeded my expectations and impressed me quite a bit.  It seems as if Hypocrisy didn't really care what they wrote or what people thought about their album, they just wanted to make a killer album that would make themselves happy.

Song summaries include:

1.  XIV - A pointless, 16 second intro, that could have just as easily been added on to War Path.  D
2.  War Path - This song opens up with a great fast-paced riff, and demonstrates Horgh's skills immediately.  The drums are blazing throughout this song, and Tägtgren simply attacks the microphone with vicious vocals.  B+
3.  Scrutinized - A great opening riff, an amazing pre-chorus, and an even better chorus.  Holma's lead work is really good on this track, and Tägtgren's make you want to join him in song.  A
4.  Fearless - Your typical Hypocrisy song, except faster.  While there's nothing exceptional or new on this track, it's a solid song.  B
5.  Craving For Another Killing - One of the heaviest songs on the album.  Horgh's blast beats in the intro are followed by Tägtgren's constant vocal assault in the verse.  The chorus and the solo are nothing less than what you would expect from Hypocrisy; double bass drums pounding, a touch of melody, and some nifty lead work.  A-
6.  Let The Knife Do The Talking - This song starts out sounding like it could be the soundtrack to the derailment of a passenger train, but the drums pick up heavy riff leads into the chorus.  It's all going well until it sounds like a mob of angry metal heads are screaming "KILL! KILL! KILL!" in the background, so I'm taking off points for being unoriginal and cheesy.  C
7.  A Thousand Lies - A boring, slow, heavy song, that drags.  I stopped listening and skipped to 2:56 where there's a nice, slow, melodic break with a couple solos.  But then back to the shitty stuff.  Damn.  I was hoping this song could pull it off, but...  C-
8.  Incised Before I've Ceased - My second least favorite track on the album.  It just seems repetitive, too slow, and doesn't prove anything other than Hypocrisy can play slow songs and fast songs.  The only highlight of the song is the very cool classical-like riff at 1:58.  C-
9.  Blooddrenched - This is Hypocrisy showing they can still do death metal.  And my, can they ever.  Tägtgren's screams are deep growls now, Horgh is still pumping out the blast beats, and the guitarwork resembles Cannibal Corpse.  This song makes me want to put holes in my walls because it's so brutal and raw.  A
10. Compulsive Psychosis - My favorite song on the entire album.  It has something for every Hypocrisy fan, new or old.  The solo is amazing, and without a doubt the best one on the entire album.  A+
11. Living To Die - There it is; the sound Hypocrisy is known for; the catchy guitars, the slow pounding drums, and the choruses that make you want to sing along.  Tägtgren shows great depth while doing low and high growls, and great clean vocals.  The only downside is that it's a bit long.  B
Follow The Hollow's Rating:  B+

Discography (last updated 9.23.06):
Rest In Pain demo - 1991
Penetralia - 1992
Rest In Pain '92 - 1992
Split with Afflicted, Resurrection, and Sinister - 1992
Pleasure Of Molestation EP - 1993
Inferior Devoties EP - 1994
The Fourth Dimension - 1994
Maximum Abduction EP - 1995
Abducted - 1996
Split with Meshuggah - 1996
The Final Chapter - 1997
Hypocrisy - 1999
Hypocrisy Destroys Wacken - 1999
Into The Abyss - 2000
10 Years Of Chaos And Confusion - 2001
Catch-22 - 2002
Split with Kataklysm and Disbelief - 2003
The Arrival - 2004
Virus - 2005
Virus Radio EP - 2005