From the way they look to the way they sound, there’s never been anything remotely subtle about Max and Iggor Cavalera. True to form, Psychosis leaps in with both boots from the off and proceeds to knock seven bells out of the ears of anyone within listening distance. Opener Insane thrashes like a landed shark, Max’s hoarse bellow babbling about ‘Heaven and earth converge, abortion, embryonic death’ while hurricane-force riffs rage around him. The elephantine Crom, meanwhile, comes with a Vincent Price-style spoken-word segment during its mosh-prepared breakdown, bringing some welcome Halloween chills to the table, and Impalement Execution is aural violence on a grand scale.
The brothers’ project has never matched the innovation of Sepultura, and on this album they seem more interested in celebrating the thrash scene of the 80s, but in terms of raw power and bullish commitment to the form, there’s plenty of cathartic energy to blast away the winter blues.
