I was commenting directly at the static method the OP asked about, and at static methods in general.

Understood -- but why assume that Cyclomatic Complexity or Interface Complexity *must* be analyzed statically?

As a measure, complexity is a very bad indicator of anything useful. Some, (most) systems are complex by their very nature.

I understand that metrics are often abused, but that doesn't mean they're useless.

It would be foolish to try to maximize one metric without considering the tradeoffs -- as shown by your experience of driving down CC while allowing LOC to mushroom... But being able to compare several different implementations on the basis of multiple metrics seems helpful.

The most reliable car, is one without an engine. It's less complex, but is it "better"?

Of course you should include "do the tests pass" as one of your key metrics.