Psycroptic - The Scepter of the Ancients (2003)^{Release ID: 12314}

Psycroptic's debut album "The Isle Of Disenchantment" was a promising start & a pretty enjoyable listen but they really upped the ante with the follow-up. All of my criticisms of the previous album had been improved upon & the result is a far more polished & engaging package. A stronger Coroner influence in the riffs is enhanced by a much thicker guitar sound than the debuts which was substantially weaker. The vocal performance is more varied & convincing too. Dave Haley's drumming was the highlight of the debut but it's even more impressive on this occasion. He effortlessly switches between ferocity & subtlety & is comfortably the main focal point of the band. 

 Overall this is a much more brutal record than "The Isle Of Disenchantment" but it's also much more complex & technical. The balance they've achieved is quite impressive. There are no weak tracks which makes for a very consistent listening experience. Opener "The Colour Of Sleep" is probably my favourite song but it can be difficult to differentiate between tracks given that there is so much going on & very little repetition. That's certainly not a criticism though as my interest rarely wanes. There's always something interesting going on & at any moment you know that you are only moments away from another exciting Dave Haley blast beat barrage. This is comfortably the best thing I've heard from Psycroptic.