A brutally beautiful new album from ExxoStack brings out an unbelievably tight and precise metal sound that blends with all kinds of outstanding synths and ambient keys that build everything into these soundtrack feeling pieces of music that portray an intricate and powerful style.
The Terramygdala album is brimming with killer guitar and drumming that is coated with keys and synths that blend in and at times become the focal point of tracks.
Everything about this album is impactful and hits like whiplash as riffs and trudgery hit hard but very melodically.
The songs aren't without crazy breakdowns and vast cinematic soundscapes, but it all comes together so quickly and with so much speed and energy that it's almost intimidating.
This record boasts some of the most mind melting metal I've heard maybe ever.
You get sections that feel peaceful and uplifted and the next second you get ripping guitars and metal drumming that blows your mind.
The record has a wonderfully inventive feel and approach, and these guys are the type of band that couldn't quite do it without every element in each song.
The cool thing is, it's just one man doing just about everything.
It's like flying at warp speed through a rainbow of heavy metal and hard rock awesomeness and it's something that's so damn good you just might quit playing guitar all together.
Any fan of melodic heavy music would love this from top to bottom and it makes you wish you could see them live in person to see if they tear it up with the same precision that they have on the record itself.
So yeah, this is one for the book and with such a massive masterpiece of an album, we wanted to have a chat with ExxoStack to find out where this all came from and what may be next for the project.
Here's what happened.
RAG: Okay so let's start with the Terramygdala album. This record has a super tight prog metal feel to it! Where did this album come from?
- Thank you. Terramygdala is ExxoStack's Debut Full Length Album that was released on April 15th, 2022. It is heavier and more Prog-oriented than the band's earlier demo releases from 2020-2021 and is intended to set the tone for the majority of planned future releases.
Terramygdala is a culmination of influences derived from a variety of styles of music, with a touch of modern pop sounds added as a creative texture. RAG: So how did this all begin for you ?
- ExxoStack was conceived by multi-instrumentalist Jonathan Gabriel Jr. in early 2016, starting out as a solo outlet intended to create music that transcends the confines of the Metal genre. The band has plans of evolving out of a solo project into a full live band in the near future. RAG: Who is in your headphones right now?
- Modern Day Babylon, Periphery, Veil of Maya, Incubus, and some 90s rock and alternative, including New Age Music such as Vince DiCola, Enigma, Enya, and Yanni. Classical Music is playing in the car while driving. RAG: What inspires you to write a song?
- Past experiences, daily life encounters, current obsessions, etc, and even music from other artists also inspire the songwriting process. RAG: I'm hearing some great styles on this record. Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
- This record is heavily influenced by the sounds of Modern Day Babylon, Animals as Leaders, Veil of Maya, Periphery, Polyphia, Erra, and the like. Some technical passages were also inspired from songs from The Faceless, Ever Forthright, Corelia, Necrophagist, and even a few favorite classic Black Metal and Death Metal bands like Emperor and Cryptopsy. RAG: What are you doing when you're NOT working on music?
- Currently as the sole Member of the band, Jonathan works full time as a Pharmacy Technician. RAG: Would you say live performances are a big part of what you do?
- Most of the writing process is done while keeping in mind that the songs will be performed live. Until more band members arrive, the focus would be to create material to release. RAG: What can your fans expect from you in the near future?
- New Albums have been planned for and are currently in the works. And ExxoStack is set to start performing live, and hopefully go on tour in the near future! RAG: Before we go, what would you like to say to fans of the music?
- We hope that our songs would resonate to a lot of people and spark some inspiration in all of their endeavors and struggles.