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Much like black/thrash, death/thrash is an overcrowded genre these days and, while a lot of bands do it well, there's a kind of a rut in the scene as they more often than not sound too much alike. So, it's a breath of fresh air when something comes along and sounds different from the crowd, and that is the case for Messiah's new album, Christus Hypercubus.

This Swiss outfit is no newcomer, having formed way back in the 1984, and listening to this, they still have a lot to teach the younger generations. The brutality is front and centre on this one, all delivered with a good amount of speed and with harsh vocals that come out sounding as abrasive and razor-sharp as the blazing guitar work, and the drums aren't left behind either, a little more forward in the mix than most of what I've been listening to lately, and that's a good thing as the maniac bashing the skins is pounding at high speed and gives all songs a hell of a lot of added punch. The song "Speedsucker Romance" sticks a lot as it is more of a ballad than anything else. A death/thrash ballad. Bring out the wine and light up that candle. Well, this is not your average "ballad" as the harsh vocals are still there and the music is dark and heavy (and then some), very slow ("Speedsucker..." uhuhuh) and kind of mesmerizing. Good luck not having the chorus stuck in your head after one or two listens. I've listened to the album quite a bit and this song sticks out so much that it still catches me off guard because that's really not expected considering the speed of the rest of the album. I didn't like this much at first, but now it oddly feels like it belongs on here "Please Do Not Disturb...While I'm Dying" is also slow, but more of an interlude at less than 2 minutes—you can miss it if you blink, except maybe for the last few words.

As a whole, the album is wrapped in an atmosphere that mixes brutality and anguish, with some tracks that are bound to make you react or think; it's not just a speedfest, but a rather a somewhat complex album for the genre. Christus Hypercubus stands out from the crowd and is certainly worth checking out for death/thrash fans, especially those who overdosed on all the same-y albums that have been flooding the death/thrash genre in the past few years.