Xoth – Exogalactic

Written by on 27-12-2023 at 22:49.

Xoth is a technical death metal band from America, hailing from Seattle to be precise. The city where in the ’90s the grunge scene emerged and thrived, with bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. It marked the city as a musical breeding ground. Now, many years later, Xoth is striving to be equally innovative. The band has been releasing music since 2014, in the form of an EP and two full-length albums. According to the band, Xoth‘s music is a cosmic blend of modern black, technical death, and thrash metal. The initial releases were self-produced, and eventually, the Dutch label Dawnbreed Records picked up Xoth, releasing the second full-length album, Interdimensional Invocations, on vinyl in 2020. And now, under the same banner, we’re treated to the third album from Xoth: Exogalactic. The band had received little attention from Zware Metalen until recently, when a cry of despair echoed through the editorial offices: why hadn’t this album been reviewed yet? Shame!

Heavily embarrassed, your editor-in-chief went through the promo list and discovered that indeed, the album was there, having escaped everyone’s attention. And yet, this release could easily find its way into the year-end lists of many metalheads. I don’t doubt that. While Xoth‘s earlier attempts with self-produced full-length albums like Invasion of the Tentacube and the aforementioned Interdimensional Invocations were not quite enough to make a name, this Exogalactic should give the band the breakthrough they truly deserve.

Where Xoth previously showcased impressive instrumental mastery, the production quality wasn’t quite where it should have been. At times, the vocals could be somewhat grating with their raspy tone. However, the talent for crafting riffs and solos was undeniably present. Xoth has a distinctive style of songwriting, where melodic choruses form the backbone of most tracks. While this is fairly common, it’s the way Xoth executes it in their unique manner, notably heard on the second LP. Additionally, the band indulges in technically superior outbursts accompanied by brutal blast beats or progressive passages. There’s plenty of room for individual musicians to solo and showcase their prowess.

This is precisely what Exogalactic delivers, but even better. It’s evident that Xoth took the time to write and refine these songs. The production has seen significant improvement, and the vocals, primarily more guttural, are much more agreeable to my personal taste. Not only that, the vocals display much more variation. It’s clear that the band has taken the best elements from previous releases and elevated them further. Apart from their self-proclaimed musical direction, I even hear hints of power metal and heavy metal tones in this album. With a bit of imagination, I even catch glimpses of Iron Maiden-esque passages here and there. The band brings in a broader range of styles, making it all the more interesting and diverse, although diversity wasn’t lacking to begin with. What a festival of riffs and solos these guys put together! And what I find impressive is that it doesn’t descend into continuous intricate play. The songs are generally well-crafted, maintaining a solid thrash/death metal foundation, allowing the band to retain a certain brutality while also creating space to showcase technical intricacies in a functional manner.

The album kicks off with the track Reptilian Bloodsport, starting off spacily with echoing guitar play. Quickly, it picks up pace, initiating the song via some intergalactic signal. Notably, the variation in vocals here is striking, ranging from guttural to spoken sections and even cleaner parts. The song swiftly moves from one riff to another, transitioning through tempo changes until it slows down, emphasizing heaviness. Towards the end, you’re treated to the true climax of this track. And what an ending! I find it to be a cool conclusion, a cliffhanger that leaves you yearning for the next track.

Listen for yourself:

I hope the above gives you a good idea of what to expect. I contemplated providing commentary on each track, but the first track is truly indicative of what follows. Xoth and Dawnbreed Records have joined forces, and I hope this combination leads to a major breakthrough. It would be well-deserved in my opinion because Xoth delivers a thunderous album here. It shows significant progress from earlier material, sounding much better in terms of sound quality. Moreover, Xoth sounds much more mature. If your year-end list isn’t set in stone yet, this album might just sneak its way in.

Fans of bands like The Black Dahlia Murder, Revocation, Obscura, Bal-Sagoth, and Gorod should prepare themselves.

Score:

91/100

Label:

Dawnbreed Records, 2023

Tracklisting:

  1. Reptilian Bloodsport
  2. Manuscript of Madness
  3. Sporecraft Zero
  4. The Parasitic Orchestra
  5. Saga of the Blade
  6. Reflective Nemesis
  7. Battlesphere
  8. Map to the Stars, Monument to the Ancients

Line-up:

  • Tyler Sturgill – Guitar, Vocals
  • Woody Adler – Guitar
  • Ben Bennett – Bass
  • Jeremy Salvo – Drums

Links: