Twenty-three years after the release of CRUENTUS' first full-length, "In Myself," the band released its follow-up, "Fake," on Oct. 15. While the first album released by the band was Jazz-fused Progressive Death/Thrash Metal with compositions ranging from three to 10 minutes, "Fake" cuts the runtime of the first record almost in half with songs that are two to four minutes in length. Nonetheless, there are plenty of progressive elements to be found on "Fake."

Adopting a primitive production and a more traditional form of songwriting, the new album is actually very different from their previous work. "Circles" kicks the album off with a voiceover and ambient intro which escalates too quickly into the first verse. While it is not suited to start the album off, it is a great track offering plenty of delicious riffs, and it introduces their almost formulaic writing technique.

The formulaic songwriting is seen in the majority of the tracks. "Everspace," "Spoil the Flesh" and several other tracks share the key songwriting technique of adding a progressive, atmospheric break halfway through the song. This is not a bad characteristic; it's quite the opposite. The atmospheric breaks give the songs another dimension and offer a break from the thrashing body of the music.

Since the band has roots in an older scene, there are plenty of influences from it. On top of that, there are plenty of elements of a modern sound included, as the band has had over 20 years to garner material for this release. "Everspace" has a main riff in the vein of Teutonic Thrash acts like DESTRUCTION and EXUMER while the progressive elements highlight the more atmospheric moments of DEATH's career. There are also nods to OPETH and other modern acts.

"Fake" has plenty of influences as well as an easy flow. "Funambulism" and "Blindness Means Watching" provide more diverse sections among tracks like "Passin' Over" and "Shadows" which are more Hardcore-based. The record boils down to "The Strain" which provides a dissonant and progressive way to conclude the album.

"In Myself" is a very diverse record with unique, Jazz-filed Progressive Death/Thrash Metal, but if you are going into "Fake" expecting the same level of experimentation, you might be disappointed. What is presented on Cruentus' new album is nothing short of traditionally structured Death/Thrash Metal with more Progressive Metal moments than Hardcore moments.

No matter how you look at it, "Fake" is one of the most legitimate records of 2019. The production is raw, the music is honest and more importantly, the music is memorable and intense with an onslaught of rageful riffs.