Traces Of Human Existence
Exit
•
June 20, 2020
With 4 years now passed since their previous release, EXIT, has crafted their 5th studio album, a blistering and invidious laden collection of tracks revolving around the grittier and more malignant conditions of Death Metal. "Traces Of Human Existence," is as much a sign of the times as it is a reflection of the human condition, a troubling and concerning ideology which manifests itself as some purely unique and powerfully driven music.
Starting with the track, "The Power The Hate The Greed," the album shows its true colors immediately letting the listener know explicitly what's in store for them on their journey through the rest of the LP; the track itself is a melding of different genres and compositional abilities whose essences and influences have been mastered and tamed such that their association with one another sounds both dutiful and natural. In essence, you would be presented with an impossible task attempting to hear the music in any other manner than the way by which the band has presented it. "None Of Our Business," shares the power of its predecessor whilst incorporating a bit more of industrial progressions. "Only Pain Is Real," commences with a sort of Jazz/Easy Listening feel between the strings and the percussion before completely diverging into the expected heavy driven verse, though at that the drums and strings still retain part of their previous identities through the new progressions. "To The Void," an exciting track filled with tension, strife, and discord; the song in itself is relatively straightforward in comparison to the rest of the tracks. Finally, "The Lion's Share," moves in and out of varying rhythms for the verses as the guitars play independent of one another and the drums bridge each section.
The ability of each musician cannot be understated as each is able to not only carve out their own individual niche within the soundscape but as well build off of one another. The bass is powerful, overdriven, and unyielding a perfect match for the soundscape; the drums vary greatly between different genres and influences carrying in elements of Funk, Punk, and Jazz; the guitars are perhaps the most distinguished element of the album as each one is dry panned to a separate channel and build off of one another rather than overlapping in odd fashion-the ability to play polyphonic riffs and leads without causing hindrance upon one another or distracting the listener from the central idea is a rare attribute within the genre; and lastly the vocals are gritty, distorted, and perpetually in-your-face fitting in greatly with the music.
"Traces Of Human Existence" took me by surprise, whilst never before having listened to EXIT I am now a fan eternal of the band; the whole of the album is a melding of different styles of attributes which combine together to form a grand identity something which itself is wholly unique to the band, an identity of which that could never occur anywhere else and for those of us who have an inclination towards the faster and heavier side of Death Metal this band cannot go unnoticed.
9 / 10
Almost Perfect
Songwriting
Musicianship
Memorability
Production
"Traces Of Human Existence" Track-listing:
1. The Power The Hate The Greed
2. None Of Our Business
3. The Final Youth
4. Only Pain Is Real
5. Born To Burn
6. Miserable Life
7. Empire
8. To The Void
9. The Lion's Share
Exit Lineup:
Steve The Methaller - Bass and Vocals
Andyman - Drums
Mart4Finger - Guitars
Beni The Animal - Guitars and Vocals
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