Paralicyst — Destruction of Sanity Review
Paralicyst is an American old-school death metal entity. On 24 September 2026, Paralicyst released their independent debut EP, Destruction of Sanity. The EP was promoted through ClawHammer PR.
Paralicyst, Destruction of Sanity Review: This review will evaluate every aspect of the album, from its intricate musical composition to its production.
The First Three Sins, The Summary
The First Sin, The Strings/Keys: Crushing old-school death metal riffs, thrashing aggression, blackened textures, and bone-shattering slam breakdowns. The Second Sin, The Vocals: Subterranean guttural growls, piercing high-pitched shrieks, and unrelenting aggression. The Third Sin, The Percussions: Blistering blast-beats, high-velocity thrashing rhythms, crushing grooves, and dynamic tempo shifts.
The Fourth Sin, Overall Discussion
The Descent into Sanity’s Ruin
From the very first second the listener dares to press the play button, any lingering sense of security is immediately stripped away, welcoming them into a suffocating descent across four devastating hymns.
The Architecture of Brutality
Musically, the four colossal hymns comprising this relentless release showcase a varying spectrum of aggression, churning out crushing passages and dynamic shifts in tempo. Yet, despite these diverse and punishing textures, the entire onslaught remains firmly rooted in a traditional death metal framework.
Four Hymns of Unrelenting Carnage
The songcraft expertly channels the blistering, white-hot intensity of old-school thrashing death metal, while seamlessly weaving in subtle yet venomous shades of blackened malice and slamming brutality that keep the listener in a state of perpetual dread.
- The ritual begins with the opening hymn, Conjure The Flames — a punishing hymn that immediately channels the subterranean low-end weight and cavernous vocal’s presence of Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation, while laced with sickening, groove-heavy touches of modern slam.
- As the smoke clears, the second hymn,I Just Want You To Die, shifts the dynamic into more suffocating territory. It drags the listener through slower, doom-weighted passages, heavily reminiscent of Obituary’s swampy misery, only to abruptly tear them apart with sudden, vicious bursts of high-speed thrash.
- The third hymn, Paralicyst, quickens the pulse once more, hitting the listener with a significantly stronger thrash influence that speeds past like shrapnel, yet never compromises its solid, bludgeoning death metal foundation.
- Finally, the release reaches its chaotic climax with the closing hymn, Blood In My Eyes — a faster, utterly frantic assault that leaves no survivors in its wake.
The Blades of Devilmanship
When it comes to the relentless sonic assault delivered by Paralicyst, any notions of restraint or conventional boundaries are entirely absent — this is sheer devilmanship at its finest. Right from the opening moments, the piercing blade of Paralicyst’s devilmanship feels exponentially sharper, slicing through the mix with a visceral intensity guaranteed to peel the flesh right from your bones.
Razor-sharp Strings & Cavernous Torment
At the core of this auditory carnage is guitarist Ray Eversole, whose mastery over both rhythm and lead duties fuels the band’s dynamic compositions. His riff-craft is endlessly versatile, seamlessly shifting gears between blistering, aggressive death, frenzied thrash attacks and bone-shattering slam breakdowns.
Front and centre in this cyclone of extremism is vocalist Mikey Murderz, delivering vocal rage that alternates effortlessly between subterranean low growls and piercing, high-pitched shrieks, imbuing every hymn with an overwhelming sense of guttural weight and unbridled aggression.
Subterranean Force & Percussive Warfare
Lending immense subterranean force to the brutality is bassist Nick Harris, whose thunderous low-end weight anchors the chaotic compositions. Driving the relentless tempo is drummerGreg Kholer, a powerhouse behind the kit who effortlessly commands the rhythm section.
Kholer transitions with brutal precision from blistering blast-beats to sluggish, agonisingly heavy, crushing rhythms, all while maintaining a relentless, high-velocity thrashing momentum.
A Suffocating Sonic Ritual
The production on Destruction of Sanity is heavy, dense, and suffocatingly raw, giving the guitars razor-sharp definition, the drums crushing subterranean weight, and the vocals an unyielding, cavernous presence that keeps the entire fourfold assault violently alive.
The Final Act of Destruction
Overall, Destruction of Sanity stands as a devastating and malicious fruit of art — a relentless, punishing masterclass in old-school death metal, thrashing fury, and slamming brutality. Paralicyst has forged a terrifying, high-velocity world of pure extremism that leaves no survivors.
The Fifth Sin, The Memorabilia
As a passionate devotee of extreme metal, I do not usually gravitate towards traditional death metal, as my musical allegiance ultimately lies within the frostbitten realms of black metal. However, Destruction of Sanity immediately caught my attention and proved to be an immensely enjoyable exception. This record hits the sweet spot for me largely due to its undeniable, crushing influences from death metal royalty: Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, and Obituary — three foundational bands that I hold in high regard.
What truly elevates this release, in my opinion, is the intricate architecture of the compositions. Rather than settling for a standard, straightforward, old-school hammer-to-the-face style of death metal, the band injects a sophisticated blend of technical proficiency, blackened malice, and subtle slam elements.
This creates a much more dynamic and sinister listening experience
The Sixth Sin, The Artwork
Aesthetically, the release nails the visual presentation. The artwork and logo serve as a glorious throwback to the classic, gory, and visceral visual standards of ’80s and ’90s death metal, perfectly complementing the music’s atmospheric brutality.
The Seventh Sin, Disrelish
There is very little to dislike here, save for just one minor grievance: its length. The only true flaw of this release is that it simply leaves you craving more — I desperately wish they had unleashed at least three additional hymns of destruction to flesh out the existing four-track onslaught.
The Hymns
01. Conjure The Flames
02. I Just Want to Die
03. Paralicyst
04. Blood In My Eyes
Paralicyst
Mikey Murderz — Vocals
Ray Eversole – Lead & Rhythm Guitar
Nick Harris – Bass
Greg Kholer – Drums
