Firmly at the frontline of their genre for over two decades, Tasmanian Technical Death Metal outfit Psycroptic are set to unleash studio full-length number nine, The Pulse Of Annihilation, and as always, it is an excellent release.
Psycroptic – The Pulse of Annihilation
Release Date: 17 July 2026
Words: Jools Green
The element which consistently makes them stand out for me has always been guitarist and principal songwriter Joe Haley’s compositional and playing style. It is complex, uniquely distinctive and immediately recognisable.
But at the same time, I never underestimate or overlook the brutal dynamism in the drum department from Joe’s brother and co-founder, Dave. His playing style both complements and bolsters the guitar work superbly and builds on their sound’s brutal edge as always.
“The Pulse Of Annihilation is pretty much the culmination of everything that has come before,” Joe says. “As with past releases, we never force anything stylistically and just let the songs manifest of their own accord – maintaining progression while remaining very much Psycroptic. Because of this, I feel this is our most epic, thrashing, technical, while grooviest release yet.”
Another aspect that benefited the previous release, Divine Council and continues on The Pulse Of Annihilation is the return of Origin’s Jason Keyser as guest vocalist. This adds a greater dimension and contrast to Jason Peppiatt’s vocals as well as adding texture to the overall sound, as Psycroptic continue to challenge themselves and push their capabilities with every release.
As it opens, the first track, Ashes Of A New Dawn, is chillingly engaging and powerfully dark. The intro sets the scene, then rapidly makes way for an instantly recognisable trademark Psycroptic style riff pattern. It is densely crushing throughout, with the dual vocals utilised to maximum effect. Overall, a stunningly good start to the album.
This is followed by the album’s first single, Gathering A Venomous Herd. This is about as fast and intense as it can get in the riff department, but maintains that famously engaging Psycroptic bounce, something that could easily be lost in such a fast piece. It is guaranteed to set your head spinning with excitement.
After a reflective opener, A Sword Of Me builds in steady increments, the twin vocals forming a dialogue effect and the bursts of spiralling riffs exuding technical excellence.
No Time For The Weak is a sharp, driving piece that packs a punch, and again, you get a strong definition of contrast between the two vocal styles. A superbly phrased piece.
Opening again with a reflective, slightly exotic intro, Our Pillars Fall builds on and out of that opener, rapidly becoming a complex offering with heady riffs that twist and turn, spiral and repeat. The more melodic, reflective chorus midway and towards the close breaks the piece up nicely and adds variance and extra interest.
After the opening drum battery, Annihilation Pulse harbours a slightly thrashy undercurrent. But gradually the technical riffing gathers strength, spiralling out in bigger and bigger flamboyant and powerful bursts. I like the vocal layering here as it builds on the depth and atmosphere of the piece superbly.
No Blade Of Grass comes in fast, dark, and intense, with the vocals delivered again in a two-way dialogue effect to the greater part. A fast-paced and punchy offering.
Penultimate piece To Embrace This Curse continues to forge forward in a similar fast, dark, and intense vein to that of its predecessor. It really comes into its own in the second half with the fluid melding between chugging and complex technical passages.
I love the dark, haunting build on the final track, Forging The Crown, rapidly elevating to frantically intense swathes of technical riffing. Here, the well-phrased vocals burst through with dramatic impact, contrasted with dramatic drops where the vocals course over with more of an acerbic fluidity to their delivery. The close reflects the dark, haunting opening.
Maintaining control and continuity, The Pulse of Annihilation was produced once again by Haley at his Crawlspace Productions studio.
The cover artwork, which I love, is by Belial Necroarts. It is unnervingly ominous and visually descriptive. The aim, to which I think it succeeds brilliantly, is to “mirror the themes of tension, collapse, and calculated devastation woven throughout the record.”
Psycroptic released The Pulse Of Annihilation on 17 July 2026 via Metal Blade Records. It will be available as a CD, limited edition vinyl in a choice of five colours or as a digital download and is a superb listen from start to finish. For more details, visit MetalBlade.com/Psycroptic.
