Xerath: II (Candlelight, 5/3/11)
Xerath: “Unite to Defy”
[audio:http://alarm-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Xerath_Unite_to_Defy.mp3|titles=Xerath: “Unite to Defy”]In 2009, English symphonic-metal band Xerath delivered an emphatic debut that, according to Wikipedia, intended to “combine film-score composition with syncopated guitar rhythms and crushing metal grooves.”
It’s a spot-on description of an outstanding metal album, but the quartet’s sophomore release, II, is a fuller realization of the band’s potential. Song development, melodic/harmonic interplay, and polyrhythms — each is even stronger than on Xerath’s debut. There are a few intermittent bursts of reverberated clean singing, but none succumbs to cheesy metal trappings. The rest of II is full of Meshuggah-style “djent” intensity, careening single-note guitar riffs, furious drum fills and blast beats, and assailing screams — all joined by eerie symphonic accompaniments.