Labyrinth of Stars unveils their debut album.
Formed in 2019 in Germany by the alliance of Markus Siegenhort (vocals/guitar/bass/keyboards, Lantlos), Christian Kolf (vocals/guitar/bass/keyboards, Valborg, Owl) and Dirk Stark (vocals/lyrics), the band signed to Translation Loss Records to announce the release of Spectrum Xenomorph in 2022.
Silence reigns when Star Pervertor begins, but it will be quickly crushed by an as massive as chaotic rhythmic. Black and Death Metal live together under visceral, cavernous and above all very raw screams, creating a real vortex of darkness which will only stop to let Aethereal Solitude take over with a cosmic sweetness. The airy tones are quickly joined by heavy riffs and the musicians’ screams, sometimes completed by ethereal and terrifying leads, which will be followed by the short but crushing Ancient Machines in Authority, a jerky and warlike composition which also reveals darker elements. We’ll notice for example this siren in the background, but the track will give way to Log Gamma – Orphan With An Abstract Face, a strange and cybernetic interlude which lets us breathe before Galactic Ritual comes to strike us in the face. The solid and powerful rhythmic welcomes some dissonant leads to feed the permanent aggression which will continue with Vacuum, the next track, which keeps jerky riffs and unleashed screams, becoming more and more heartbreaking before briefly allowing us to breathe. Dissolving Into The Eternal Nothingness takes advantage of a haunting slowness covered by a wild double kick to feed the oppression managed by airy tones and jerky riffs, but it’s already time for the last track. Entitled Transmission Delta – Exile, the last composition lasting more than twelve minutes, it slowly closes the album with a panel of keyboards, all more oppressive and deep than the others, sometimes accompanied by dark saturation before silence becomes the law.
Understanding the universe of Labyrinth of Stars is a difficult task. Spectrum Xenomorph is obviously a solid and brutal compendium of Black and Death Metal, but dissonance, soaring sounds and oppression bring additional elements to this true musical black hole.
90/100
