Exxiles
Oblivion
Nightmare Records
2015
Exxiles, is a symphonic metal band with heavy prog undertone formed by drummer Mauricio Bustamante with members and guests from: Symphony X, Savatage, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Circle II Circle, Communic, Circus Maximus, Stream of Passion, Revolution Renaissance & Spiral Architect. Following his exit from “Reign of the Architect”, Mauricio started working on his new production and multinational band called Exxiles, with some grand concept about feeling estranged and exiled, from things you believe in... possibly some sort of post traumatic way to handle his exit?
At any rate, this is the beginning of an intended trilogy.
Here’s a list of everyone involved in the “project”, because I fail to see, how this is a “band” as the press release maintains: Mauricio Bustamante (ex-Reign of the Architect), Simon Rojas, Noel Martinez, Mike Lepond (Symphony X), Chris Caffery (Trans Siberian Orchestra), Zak Stevens (Circle II Circle), Marcela Bovio (Stream of Passion), Oddleif Stensland (Communic), Wilmer Waarbroek (Ayreon), Gus Monsanto (ex-Adagio), Oyvind Hægeland (Spiral Architect), Mats Haugen (Circus Maximus), David Grey (Lost In Thought), Sergio Agilar (Agora), Antonio Rivera (Solitude) surely an impressive gathering of pretty talented people, but still... unless they are given some great material, all they could do is perform well, on what they are given to work with...
In reality “Oblivion” the release is an intensely percussive, piece of work, with the drums, mixed most prominently, (wow – not difficult to see why) with rather decent but quite pedestrian melodies, that fail to capture the listener in the songs that usually veer on for more than 6 minutes and even the occasional “better tune” like, “Introspective” or “Awakening” underutilizing the singers, like Zak Stevens of Gus Monsanto… etc. It does get better towards the end but overall, it’s so mid-paced, overall, that it just becomes rather boring. Also the somewhat “militarist” themes, of having the army going out in the streets to stop protestors, etc. reads like the “odd” totalitarian agenda of a gun totting republican, which would be funny – if it’s not “overturned” later in the “concept” coming from a person of non-caucasian extraction. Anyhow, all these “racist” and “nationalist” themes are quite “difficult” to address with without embarrassing oneself, in the process... and I just dunno.
At any rate, this is the beginning of an intended trilogy.
Here’s a list of everyone involved in the “project”, because I fail to see, how this is a “band” as the press release maintains: Mauricio Bustamante (ex-Reign of the Architect), Simon Rojas, Noel Martinez, Mike Lepond (Symphony X), Chris Caffery (Trans Siberian Orchestra), Zak Stevens (Circle II Circle), Marcela Bovio (Stream of Passion), Oddleif Stensland (Communic), Wilmer Waarbroek (Ayreon), Gus Monsanto (ex-Adagio), Oyvind Hægeland (Spiral Architect), Mats Haugen (Circus Maximus), David Grey (Lost In Thought), Sergio Agilar (Agora), Antonio Rivera (Solitude) surely an impressive gathering of pretty talented people, but still... unless they are given some great material, all they could do is perform well, on what they are given to work with...
In reality “Oblivion” the release is an intensely percussive, piece of work, with the drums, mixed most prominently, (wow – not difficult to see why) with rather decent but quite pedestrian melodies, that fail to capture the listener in the songs that usually veer on for more than 6 minutes and even the occasional “better tune” like, “Introspective” or “Awakening” underutilizing the singers, like Zak Stevens of Gus Monsanto… etc. It does get better towards the end but overall, it’s so mid-paced, overall, that it just becomes rather boring. Also the somewhat “militarist” themes, of having the army going out in the streets to stop protestors, etc. reads like the “odd” totalitarian agenda of a gun totting republican, which would be funny – if it’s not “overturned” later in the “concept” coming from a person of non-caucasian extraction. Anyhow, all these “racist” and “nationalist” themes are quite “difficult” to address with without embarrassing oneself, in the process... and I just dunno.