Xibalba are a band from Mexico that plays a very raw and old school form of black metal and this is a review of their 2007 compilation album "Ancients" which will be re-issued in February 2021 by Nuclear War Now! Productions and consists of "In Lucescitae Tristis Hiei" demo from 1992 and a rehearsal recording from 1994.
Nature orientated soundscapes start off the compilation along with some tribal style percussion a few seconds later which also brings in more of a tribal feeling. When spoken word parts are utilized they are also done in a very ritualistic style before going into a heavier musical direction and the vocals are mostly high pitched black metal screams.
Some of the tracks are also very long and epic in length while all of the musical instruments also have a very powerful sound to them. When guitar solos and leads are utilized they are done in a very traditional black metal style and when the music speeds up a decent amount of blast beats can also be heard.
When tremolo picking is utilized it also gives the music more of a raw feeling along with the music also showing an influence of the Norwegian style which was very common in that era as well as the spoken word parts also returning on some of the later tracks and the songs also add in a decent mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts. The production sounds very dark and raw while the lyrics cover Mayan and Ancient Mexico themes.
In my opinion Xibalba where a very great sounding raw Mayan themes black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this re-issue. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Furor Antiquus" "In Lucescitae Tristis Hiei" and "Return To Outerwisdom". 8 out of 10.
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