### Xerath: I

#### 12/08/09 || Lord K Philipson

My Global Domination sidekick/second in command/hater of everything, Kampfar, pointed me in this band’s direction and suggested they could be used for some edition of Audio Autopsy. Well, for some reason they never ended up there but I think Xerath’s on to something that is too good to not be included in some form here at GD. You would think, judging from their sound, that they are from either France (Gojira), Sweden (Meshuggah) or Norway (Dimmu Borgir). They are not. Lemme give you a few hints; Acid Reign, Bolt Thrower, Cathedral and My Dying Bride…

Yep, they are naturally from Turkey.

I have been spinning this “I” CD tons of times, both at work and at home, so to say that I have grown very familiar with it is not an exaggeration. Still I have no idea about any song titles or band members’ names – that’s how much I care for details. Sometimes the music just speaks for itself and you are fine with that. Xerath’s definitely a candidate for that treatment.

While most bands from the UK (I was kidding when I said they are from Turkey. Really, I was) are about as entertaining as watching semen dry, Xerath’s managed to cook up a somewhat unique sound (at least considering they are British, you know). They give you 10 songs of incredibly fine musicianship with tons of groove and unexpected parts where excellent orchestral parts and well-thought out keyboards play a huge part in the midst of the mentioned Gojira/Meshuggah and Dimmu Borgir influences. I would even go as far as saying that by combining these three bands – together with their own touch to things – Xerath’s created a sound that eventually ends up being there own, which is weird since it’s actually completely borrowed when you think about it.

The production is ace as well so there’s not much to complain about here. I see good things happening for Xerath and I look forward to their next effort, which I suspect will be something massive considering what they have managed to cook up already on this here debut.

Last off, lemme just say that the female part of “Nocturnum” is almost as awesome as had I created it myself. More of that next time, ok? I’m not asking for it, I’m telling you.

small>PS: A while after this review I noticed I definitely scored this album too low. That mistake is now fixed and the grade’s been increased from an 8 to an 8,5, simply coz that’s how fucken ace this album is.

- Information
- Released: 2009
- Label: Candlelight Records
- Website: Xerath MySpace
- Band
- Richard Thomson: vocals
- Owain Williams: guitars, bass
- Andy Phillips: guitars
- Michael Pitman: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Intrenity
- 02. Alterra
- 03. Nocturnum
- 04. Consequences
- 05. Interlude
- 06. False History
- 07. Abiogenesis
- 08. Reform Part 1
- 09. Reform Part 2
- 10. Right To Exist