Cryptic Shift (formerly stylized as Crÿptic Shift) is an English

extreme metal Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...

band formed in

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

in 2013. They have two EPs and two demos, with their debut album ''Visitations from Enceladus'' being released on 4 May 2020 through Blood Harvest records. In an article for

The Quietus ''The Quietus'' is a British online music and pop culture magazine founded by John Doran and Luke Turner. The site is an editorially independent publication led by Doran with a group of freelance journalists and critics. Content ''The Quietu ...

, the album was referred to as "damn near essential, and proof that ritainhas a valid contribution to make to this new wave of

progressive death metal Progressive metal (often shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven sound of the former with t ...

History

The members of what would become Cryptic Shift began working on writing music together at the beginning of 2010, while they were all in High School. The band was officially formed in 2013 by guitarist Xander Bradley, drummer Ryan Sheperson, vocalist Rob Castle and bassist Hokumu Blitzkreig. The group released their debut demo tape ''Old Chapel Demos'' in 2014, however soon after, Castle departed from the group, leading to Bradley taking on the addition role of vocalist, and the hiring of Henry Parker as an additional guitarist. Around this time, the band underwent what Bradley considers a "reincarnation", where the band began "a new focused sound and much improved mindset". In 2015, Parker departed from the group, being replaced by John Riley. This line-up recorded the demo tape ''Beyond The Celestial Demo'' the same year, followed a few months later by a split EP with Beastial Invasion. On 27 November 2015, their debut single ''Deathcrusher'' was released. The track was then included on their debut EP, released on 1 April 2016, titled ''Beyond the Celestial Realms''. On 3 February 2016, they opened for

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

at Fibbers in

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

. Parker departed from the group in 2017, succeeded by guitarist Joe Bradley. On 28 April 2017 they released they released the single ''Cosmic Dreams''. Their debut full length album ''Visitations from Enceladus'' was released on 4 May 2020 through Blood Harvest Records. ''

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions published by different companies available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' featu ...

'' named it as the 13th best metal album of 2020.

Musical style

The band have been categorised as

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...

, and

technical death metal Technical death metal (also known as tech death) is a musical subgenre of death metal with particular focus on instrumental skill and complex songwriting. Technical and progressive experimentation in death metal began in the late 1980s and early ...

, often incorporating elements of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

progressive metal Progressive metal (often shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven sound of the former with t ...

doom metal Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' ...

noise music Noise music is a genre of music that is characterised by the expressive use of noise. This type of music tends to challenge the distinction that is made in conventional musical practices between musical and non-musical sound. Noise music include ...

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

latin music Latin music (Portuguese language, Portuguese and ) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America, which encompasses Music of Latin America, Latin America, Music of Spain, Spain, Mu ...

and

black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...

. Dom Lawson for

described them as "phenomenal technological astro-death". Echoes and Dust writer Joseph Norman said they are "progressive without being proggy, without being

Opeth Opeth is a Swedish progressive metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. The band incorporates folk music, folk, blues, classical music, classical, and jazz elements into its usually lengthy compositions, as well as strong influences from deat ...

" and "a pitch-perfect balance of death and thrash sensibilities".

stated that are reviving an "early 90s wave of progressive death metal". Echoes and Dust writer Joseph Norman referred to them as the "most innovative, tech-death-thrash band that the UK has to offer" and their debut album as "Death metal teams with the tentacled, extra-dimensional monsters of pulp

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

and space opera, and the weird tales of

Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of weird, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Lovecraft ...

Clark Ashton Smith Clark Ashton Smith (January 13, 1893 – August 14, 1961) was an influential American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction stories and poetry, and an artist. He achieved early recognition in California (largely through the enthusiasm ...

, and Robert Howard". In an article for Metal Hammer writer Jonathan Selzer described their debut album as "a visionary, fully-realised assault on the senses whose preview tracks released so far have already put the underground's knickers in a physics-defying twist". In a

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

article, it was stating that they are "modernizing the best that retro extreme metal has to offer". Their releases often include overarching lyrical themes and stories about

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

and outer space with technical musicianship, elaborate song structures and

death growls The death growl, or simply growl, is an extended vocal technique usually employed in extreme styles of music, particularly in death metal and other extreme subgenres of heavy metal music. Sometimes death growl vocals are criticized for thei ...

. In an interview for Distorted Sound, vocalist Xander Bradley stated that "There's sci-fi sound FX, a ton of solos and plasma. There's also an extremely in-depth accompanying space adventure tale told within the lyrics, artworks and beyond". The story told on 2020's ''Visitations From Enceladus'' even having begun on 2017's ''Cosmic Dreams''. An article for Toilet ov Hell stated that "Thematically, while science fiction has always had an undeniable presence in death metal it's now more vital than ever in a time when the genre is starving for a path forward beyond tongue-in-cheek shock-n-shlock tedium without having to abandon the grim, foreboding atmosphere that carried it for years" Elements such as guitar hooks, abrupt tempo changes, atmospherics, melodic passages. dissonance and harmonies are commonplace. They have cited musical influences including

the Faceless The Faceless are an American technical death metal band from the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles. They released their debut album, ''Akeldama'', in November 2006, and a follow-up, '' Planetary Duality'', in November 2008. The band's third ...

, Vektor,

Atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

Martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

Gorguts Gorguts is a Canadian death metal band formed near Sherbrooke, Quebec, in 1989. The band has gone through various membership changes since its inception; its only constant member has been guitarist-vocalist and co-founding member Luc Lemay, wh ...

Death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

, Obscura,

Revocation Revocation is the act of wikt:recall, recall or annulment. It is the cancelling of an act, the recalling of a grant or privilege, or the making void (law), void of some deed previously existing. A temporary revocation of a grant or privilege is c ...

, Pestilence,

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...

, Atrocity

Morbid Angel Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida, formed in 1983 by guitarist, primary composer and sole remaining original member Trey Azagthoth, vocalist and bassist Dallas Ward, and drummer Mike Browning. Widely considere ...

, Dead Brain Cells, the Chasm, Timeghoul,

Sadus Sadus is an American thrash metal band from Antioch, California, active from 1985 to 2015, and reunited in 2017. Originally a quartet, the band's sound fuses thrash metal with death metal, featuring highly technical musicianship. They are know ...

and

Nocturnus Nocturnus, currently Nocturnus AD, is a Florida death metal band formed in Tampa, Florida, in 1987 by the drummer and vocalist Mike Browning (ex–Morbid Angel). History Formation Nocturnus was formed in 1987 by drummer and vocalist Mike Brown ...

, and stated their lyrics are influenced by the video games ''

Dark Souls is a dark fantasy action role-playing game series developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. Created by Hidetaka Miyazaki, the series began with the release of ''Dark Souls (video game), Dark Souls'' (2011) and has ...

'' and ''

Bloodborne is a 2015 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. The game follows a Hunter through the decrepit Gothic, Victorian-era–inspired city of Yharnam, whose inhabita ...

''. Distorted Sound writer Danny Sanderson described them as "the UK's answer to Death" and as well as "Mixing together the best of classic thrash and death metal, and coupling the progressive leanings of Atheist and Gorguts with the stunning musicality of the likes of

Control Denied Control Denied was a progressive metal band formed by death metal musician and Death co-founder Chuck Schuldiner. History Background Schuldiner, in a 1993 Terrorizer interview with Borivoj Krgin, mentioned that he had entertained the possibili ...

and the aforementioned Death".

Discography

''Visitations from Enceladus''

Track listing

Personnel

Cryptic Shift *Xander Bradley – guitar, lead vocals *Joss Farrington – guitar *John Riley – bass *Ryan Sheperson – drums Additional personnel *Jack Helliwell - recording, mixing *Damian Herring – mastering

Other releases

;EPs *Split EP with Beastial Invasion (2015) *''Beyond the Celestial Realms'' (2016) ;Singles *''Deathcrusher '' (2015) *''Cosmic Dreams'' (2017) ;Demos *''Old Chapel Demos'' (2014) *''Beyond the Celestial Demo'' (2015)

Members

;Current *Xander Bradley – guitar (2012–present), lead vocals (2014–present) *Joss Farrington – guitar (2020–present) *John Riley – bass (2015–present) *Ryan Sheperson – drums (2012–present) ;Past *Rob Castle – lead vocals (2012–2014) *Hokumu Blitzkreig – bass (2012–2015) *Henry Parker – guitar (2014–2017) *Joe Bradley – guitar (2017–2020)

Timeline

References

{{reflist Rock music groups from Leeds English death metal musical groups English thrash metal musical groups Technical death metal musical groups 2013 establishments in England