PSYANIDE hailing from Thessaloniki, Greece were formed in 2012. They play a mixture of melodic Death Metal and Groove Metal. So far, the band released one EP and one full-length album. Their sophomore album “Vertigo“ has a length of about 51 minutes. It was released via Italian label WormHoleDeath, which has many Death, Thrash, and Gothic Metal bands among their current roster.

 The album starts with a short tension-building pre-lude to “Vertigo”, which is a powerful track with thunderous riffing at mid-tempo and plenty of double-bass drumming. The vocals are growls covering most of the guttural range, but mostly between the medium to higher end. It is a head-banging track, the majority played at a sluggish rhythm. There are only a few changes in tempo and rhythm during the track. Altogether, “Vertigo” is a strong opener for the album. “Empires Down” continues with the tempo and rhythm but with more subtle twists in rhythm. The riffing is crushing during the verse parts, while the melodies are dark, epic, and with melancholic features during the chorus parts. The track clearly focusses on the melodic framework. The break is introduced by a series of screams and a short blast-beat attack, leading to a short but contributing lead guitar solo. “Inertia” starts with a short guitar-driven instrumental transitioning into a mid-tempo verse part. While the riffing is devastating throughout, the melodies are again dark and melancholic at times. Highlight of the track is the devastating break at a slightly higher pace and with plenty of grooves added to the mix. “Inertia” is one of the best album tracks. “Fading” slows down the tempo a bit at a stomping rhythm with thunderous riffing and crunching basslines. The track follows familiar album patterns with almost hammering verse parts, and chorus parts with grim melodies. The break changes the track textures completely as it is played at crazy pace and transitions back into the verse part. There are a few twists in tempo and rhythm during the second half of the track and PSYANIDE smartly circle back towards the rhythm of the verse parts.

 “Future Tense” continues with the album sound as a mixture of heavy and powerful verse parts ad more melodic chorus parts. Altogether, “Future Tense” is more towards mid-tempo. The break has an extended and repetitive start leading into a short lead guitar solo. Highlight of the track are the vocals as Dionysis Klokas can transport the emotions to the listener. “Present Perfect” delivers a long-expected change in sound as the verse parts are blisteringly fast introduced by short blast-beat attacks. However, the track falls back soon into well-tried territory with slow and melancholic chorus parts. Highlight of the track is the contributing lead guitar solo. “Time” starts with a guitar-driven instrumental part introducing the main melody. The verse part is a mixture of measured tempo and faster parts. The riffing for the verse parts is again powerful and punishing, while the melodies are chilling during the chorus parts. Despite the similarities in the song textures compared to the other album tracks, “Time” sounds heavier than most songs.

 “Human Republic” is another fast track at least during the verse parts with flesh-ripping guitar riffing and a lot of double-bass drumming. Tempo slows down during the chorus parts. Highlight of the track is the break which includes a Deathcore inspired breakdown with punishing and devastating riffs. “Error” maintains a high tempo during the verse parts, where the melodic framework is orientally inspired. The track is arguably the most crushing, aggressive, and heaviest album track as the melodies are not driven by darkness and melancholy. “Error” is surely my favorite song on the album. The album finishes with the punishing “Oleka”, which is a mixture of verse parts at a measured tempo with crushing riffs and plenty of double-bass drumming and faster chorus parts with grim melodies. There are many twists and turns in tempo including a few down-tempo parts. Highlight of the track is the extended lead guitar solo. “Oleka” is a good way to finish the album.

 The new album of PSYANIDE has its ups and downs. “Vertigo” is a decent mixture of Death Metal and Groove Metal including a few other Death Metal styles. Highlights of the album are the riffing and the vocals. However, often songs and song structures are one-dimensional and predictable, leading to an album where a few songs are exchangeable. On a positive note, the final part of the album is the most interesting one as the last three songs are more versatile compared to the rest of the album. The album is well produced. “Vertigo” will have its share of fans, however, in my opinion, the songwriting needs improvement to make future albums more memorable.