I first discovered Cryptodira in 2014. They were the local openers for my all-time favorite band, Between the Buried and Me, during the Long Island date of the Parallax II: Future Sequence tour. They had just put out An Unmarked Grave, and right off the bat, I was feeling it. Many progressive metal bands have a very similar formula now, either taking the djent thing too far, or indulging a midlife ’70s prog-rock crisis, but Cryptodira are a breath of fresh air: while clearly influenced by bands like Between the Buried and Me and Opeth, they also have a prominent hardcore influence from bands such as Converge and Botch, visible in their passionate and chaotic live presence. Especially around this time, I was a huge progressive metal nerd and starting to get into hardcore, so these guys were perfect for my needs. Last month, the group announced that they have signed to Good Fight Records and were putting out their debut record, The Devil’s Despair. I preordered immediately and listened to the single, “Medusa Misgendered,” which I loved. There hasn’t been an LP in progressive metal that I’ve been as excited about this year as this one.
After a superfluous intro, we are brought into the two-part “Constituted.” The first part, “Constitutum,” is Opeth-infused progressive metal goodness. In a world where much of progressive metal has decided to go shamelessly retro or take a turn toward ambience, it’s nice to see a band keeping it balls-to-the-wall heavy. The song is instrumentally crushing, and Scott Acquavella’s brutal growls are a perfect complement. As the song calms down towards the end, we are led into “Constituens,” which feels more like an interlude than anything. It gets progressively heavier as it goes on, but not much really happens until the last fifty seconds, where Mike Monaco lets out some very hardcore-esque screams before the song picks up and dives headlong into “Medusa Misgendered.” This is a perfect single: in six minutes, it showcases everything the group has to offer, from acidic death metal sections to fast, aggressive hardcore, and even mellow, melodic progressive rock. Drummer Matt Taibi manages to keep everything in pace, shifting from blistering to steady at the drop of a hat. Bassist Jeremy Lewis gets really funky on this track as well, and it’s very noticeable during the song’s quieter moments.
“The Gods of Epicurus” reminds me of Between the Buried and Me in the most exciting ways. It’s pure, triumphant metal that really show off Acquavella’s range, exploring both his gnarliest growls and prettiest singing. From their inception, he has improved as much as Mike Monaco, whose voice has only gotten grittier and angrier. My only qualms with the song stem from its jam sections, some of which sound great, some that sound a little forced and awkward. Nevertheless, I dig this track, and it sets the table very nicely for the ballad of the LP, “Long Belonging.” This is where Acquavella’s clean singing shows its greatest improvement. Clean vocals were never a strong point for the band, but they are absolutely killer here. I cannot stress how well this song works with the context of the LP. Many progressive bands abuse the “soft break,” but this and following track, “In Hell as on Earth,” prove the band’s instincts are better than most. Its introduction is very proggy, but it becomes clear soon enough what the song is all about: Cryptodira are fucking angry. Following a progressive interlude is possibly the heaviest, most pissed-off section of the LP. Scott and Mike’s interplay is visceral and hellish during the outro as Scott growls a few words and Mike finishes with his screams, and the tracks ends in math and noise, passing almost unnoticeably into “The Fascist’s Phantasy.” This song maintains the heaviness of its predecessor while upping the aggression.
“Negation Consumes Affirmation” serves as a more of an introduction to “Negation Consumes Itself,” being a relatively soft track with some female vocals--pleasant, but out-of-character--but “Negation Consumes Itself” is the grand finale of top-notch vocals and stunning instrumentals towards which the album has been building. It transitions seamlessly between smooth progressive rock and dissonant mathcore riffs, and better incorporates the female vocals than “Negation Consumes Affirmation” against a backdrop of softer, more atmospheric metal and in duet with Scott. It concludes with Mike screaming his heart out and a climbing, dramatic outro. As the instrumental builds tension, Mike and Scott duel it out with alternating screams and growls. The track ends with a slow, eerie riff, a fitting end to Cryptodira’s first full-length.
The Devil’s Despair is not only one of the best debuts I’ve heard in quite a while, but easily one of the best projects progressive metal in the 2010s has to offer. In a genre filled with bands that are doing anything but progressing, Cryptodira are a step ahead of their peers with their unique musical experiments. There are some moments where I wish they took it further, and I wish the band’s attempts at atmosphere were more substantive (re: “Constituens”), but if you are a fan of underground metal and hardcore, you should not sleep on these guys. This is only their debut record, and they are already ahead leading the pack.
- Alex Brown
After a superfluous intro, we are brought into the two-part “Constituted.” The first part, “Constitutum,” is Opeth-infused progressive metal goodness. In a world where much of progressive metal has decided to go shamelessly retro or take a turn toward ambience, it’s nice to see a band keeping it balls-to-the-wall heavy. The song is instrumentally crushing, and Scott Acquavella’s brutal growls are a perfect complement. As the song calms down towards the end, we are led into “Constituens,” which feels more like an interlude than anything. It gets progressively heavier as it goes on, but not much really happens until the last fifty seconds, where Mike Monaco lets out some very hardcore-esque screams before the song picks up and dives headlong into “Medusa Misgendered.” This is a perfect single: in six minutes, it showcases everything the group has to offer, from acidic death metal sections to fast, aggressive hardcore, and even mellow, melodic progressive rock. Drummer Matt Taibi manages to keep everything in pace, shifting from blistering to steady at the drop of a hat. Bassist Jeremy Lewis gets really funky on this track as well, and it’s very noticeable during the song’s quieter moments.
“The Gods of Epicurus” reminds me of Between the Buried and Me in the most exciting ways. It’s pure, triumphant metal that really show off Acquavella’s range, exploring both his gnarliest growls and prettiest singing. From their inception, he has improved as much as Mike Monaco, whose voice has only gotten grittier and angrier. My only qualms with the song stem from its jam sections, some of which sound great, some that sound a little forced and awkward. Nevertheless, I dig this track, and it sets the table very nicely for the ballad of the LP, “Long Belonging.” This is where Acquavella’s clean singing shows its greatest improvement. Clean vocals were never a strong point for the band, but they are absolutely killer here. I cannot stress how well this song works with the context of the LP. Many progressive bands abuse the “soft break,” but this and following track, “In Hell as on Earth,” prove the band’s instincts are better than most. Its introduction is very proggy, but it becomes clear soon enough what the song is all about: Cryptodira are fucking angry. Following a progressive interlude is possibly the heaviest, most pissed-off section of the LP. Scott and Mike’s interplay is visceral and hellish during the outro as Scott growls a few words and Mike finishes with his screams, and the tracks ends in math and noise, passing almost unnoticeably into “The Fascist’s Phantasy.” This song maintains the heaviness of its predecessor while upping the aggression.
“Negation Consumes Affirmation” serves as a more of an introduction to “Negation Consumes Itself,” being a relatively soft track with some female vocals--pleasant, but out-of-character--but “Negation Consumes Itself” is the grand finale of top-notch vocals and stunning instrumentals towards which the album has been building. It transitions seamlessly between smooth progressive rock and dissonant mathcore riffs, and better incorporates the female vocals than “Negation Consumes Affirmation” against a backdrop of softer, more atmospheric metal and in duet with Scott. It concludes with Mike screaming his heart out and a climbing, dramatic outro. As the instrumental builds tension, Mike and Scott duel it out with alternating screams and growls. The track ends with a slow, eerie riff, a fitting end to Cryptodira’s first full-length.
The Devil’s Despair is not only one of the best debuts I’ve heard in quite a while, but easily one of the best projects progressive metal in the 2010s has to offer. In a genre filled with bands that are doing anything but progressing, Cryptodira are a step ahead of their peers with their unique musical experiments. There are some moments where I wish they took it further, and I wish the band’s attempts at atmosphere were more substantive (re: “Constituens”), but if you are a fan of underground metal and hardcore, you should not sleep on these guys. This is only their debut record, and they are already ahead leading the pack.
- Alex Brown
Archival details
- Original URL
- https://metallifestyle.weebly.com/metal-lifestyle/review-cryptodira-the-devils-despair
- Recovery source
- live-weebly
- Recovery date
- 2026-07-22
- Stewardship polish
- 2026-07-22
- Preservation status
- restored
- Missing assets
- None recorded
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