Review of Cryogen - Premonition

As far as bands that I’ve never heard of go, Cryogen is one of the better ones. It’s a little hard to stick the music of these Denver, CO fellows into a simple little genre box. I want to just deem it death metal and call it a day, but it’s not really death. Maybe that’s the production swaying me, with a muddy distortion, especially when they play fast. The riffs alternate between melodic death melodies and thrash. Sometimes they sound as if they’re playing a breakdown, but without the urgent feel of a real hardcore moment. This is probably because they don’t leave the strategic pauses between the chunky riffs. Premonition is not pushing the boundaries of metal, and yet Cryogen just sound like Cryogen to me. Lets just call it melodic death/thrash and move on.

The songwriting is generally mature, but has a nagging hollowness to the sound. The guitars sound as if there are two of them playing, but I rarely hear any differentiating rhythm guitar, nor is there any bass that sticks out. I almost get the impression of a three-piece, guitarist, singer, and drummer, trying to sound more numerous than they are. “War Crime” is a good tune – some tremolo-picked death riffs, driving verses and solid melodic soloing. The vocalist takes a back seat for much of the song, and that’s fine, as I find him to be a little too hoarse, while striving to be harsh.

“Corrupt Vision” is the hit of the album, a full notch above the rest. Thrash is the name of the game here, with a main riff that sticks in your head and air guitar fingers. The chorus has a strange Nile feel to it, utilizing underused note progressions. The soloist shreds righteously, then back to the verse, as the ol’ reliable songwriting format of V-C-V-C-solo-V comes through as always.

Cryogen is the kind of band that should have a loyal local following and would be a worthy show-opener. However, I sense a reluctance to think outside the box, as the song structures are predictable and some of the songs get repetitive. The potential is there to lift their band to the next level, as the musicians can certainly play, they just need to bring their A-game.

Release Details

Cryogen

Premonition

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