Xenomorph Netherverse 2024

[DoktorG]

 

 

Xenomorph Netherverse 2024

Suntrip Records 

 

1 Sinister Contours 9:17

2 Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix) 8:03

3 War In Heaven 8:35

4 Negative Time (-L Di/-Dt Mix) 8:20

5 No Beginning No End 8:39

6 Nebula Of Souls 7:47

7 Subdimensional Anomaly 8:38

8 Abode Of The Damned 8:46

9 Netherverse  8:38

 

So Mark Petrick comes in 2024 with Netherverse, his fourth album and the one to accompany 2023's superb ep "Negative Time". Is it any cop?

 

"Sinister Contours" telegraphs Petrick's self-evident intention: he is for sure following the left hand path. This means a heavily arpeggiated track with a threatening minor melody. There'll be no easy upliftment on this album; and no cheese! But isn't the whole gothic darkness thing quite cheesy? Well yeah, if we are talking Twilight movies with aristocratic pretty boy vampires who bling in the sunlight, or perhaps campy Tim Burton style goth-lite. But we are not talking that here. No easy joy, no happy endings, on this sinister path, but plenty of eerie and other disquieting feelings. A 

"Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix)" is probably my favourite track on the album. Here we seem to be on a space ship on a quest for a new home and we dive deep into a black hole, or something like that, indicated by the "our sun is dying... we are dust" sample and another spaceship sample (Petrick is a master of the appropriate sample - he really tells stories with his samples, which are carefully chosen). We sense here how cosmic Xenomorph's vision for this album is. The production quality on this track has to be heard on a good hifi to fully appreciate it - mindblowing. EPIC! A+++

"War In Heaven" starts off with a simple four-note melody that summons up fairy tale horror, but at the half way mark the track shifts up a gear and achieves take off with sawing synths. The "war in heaven" sample states succintly Petrick's apparent philosophy that the tension between good and evil is the propulsive force that drives the universe. A dance floor monster! A+ 

"Negative Time" is from the accompanying ep of that name. Plenty of pretty tinkles and juddering synth melodies here make for a track that is almost progressive trance - a more mellow track than the ones that preceded it, quite blissed out and dreamy. A 

"No Beginning No End" is an ourobouros in both concept and in big swirling melodies. These melodies do seem like spiralling nebulae. At 3.15 it turns darker with some delightfully chewy bass 303 and then the spiralling begins again, growing out of the darkness. Another epic trancer with massive melodies. Petrick has worked hard on making these melodies as echoing and big in scale as possible. A 

"Nebula Of Souls" - I love this slightly more minimal track. It features mysterious vaporous synths at the start, which are utterly beautiful and uplifting in a creepy way. There's a whap-whap sound that continues throughout, giving propulsion; it builds to a grinding climax and then ends on moody cello - simply stunning. A+

"Subdimensional Anomaly" starts with twinkling synths (lots of those sounds on this album) and then builds towards twisting leads against a stumping beat. There's a lovely sense of calm and observation behind this track. A

"Abode Of The Damned" is as dark as its title, beginning with a sample about a graveyard and its ghosts. There's a great climbing bass arpeggio that kicks things off and then we have minor key choirs so beloved of dungeon synth and black metal and used quite regularly on Cassandra's Nightmare. This track could easily have been from that first album. At the four minute mark the bass goes into double time and here comes the growly acid that slowly morphs into long pads. Yo party people, are you ready to chew your tongue off and lose your shit? I'd love to see what this track would do to a dancefloor. A+

"Netherverse" - the come down track. Vaporous spacey synth, twangy echoes, a slow beat, eventually builds to the expected long and melancholic pads. I'm a huge fan of sloa Goa, but this is not an especially outstanding example, coming across as an unfinished fragment, and is the least good track on the album for me. B 

 

So is it any cop? You betcha it is. What I particularly liked about this album is that Xenomorph has not stood still, unsurprisingly perhaps as so many years have passed. This is a unique lighter and more cosmic album in his discography. Terrifying, eerie, haunting, sinister, at moments, but also full of cosmic beauty, Xenomorph's vision achieves maturity here. It seems that his albums are all quite different, despite there being strong similarities (not least the superb production and sound quality of all of them). I characterise them like this:

Cassandra's Nightmare 1998: cinematic horror trance

Qlippoth 2003: spirit possession 

Demagoguery of the Obscurants 2007: the conspiracy album

Netherverse 2024: cosmic darkness and light

In this fourth album, it seems to me that Petrick goes scifi and reaches for the stars, seeing the dialectic between light and darkness, matter and antimatter, creation and destruction, as the cosmic turbine that powers all. His vision has become epic and fully realised by this point it seems to me in that it appreciates all, including the disgusting and repressed, and values all equally. A divinely balanced cosmic vision. Does such a vision appeal to you? It is a bit early in the year, but I have no doubt that this is already one of my records of the year. Actually, my only strong criticism of this album and the ep is the cover art - weak in both cases. 

Finally, I am inspired to look back over his oeuvre as the body of work that triggered an entire (sub-)genre: darkpsy. You could argue against this notion, pointing out the other great dark Goa albums that helped ignite darker psychedelic trance: Sandman's Witchcraft, Orichalcum and the Deviant Orichalcum and the Deviant, Cydonia Fear of a Red Planet, UX Ultimate Experience, and so on. This would be correct: all played their part. Nevertheless, nothing was nearly as dark and scary as Cassandra's Nightmare and it remains the keystone album. So Xenomorph's latest album deserves to be seen in this wider context as part of the genre that his first album kickstarted. Amazing what can come out of watching a few horror movies and being open-minded enough to meld trance with the gothic, industrial, and metal. ~*~

 

 

[psytones]

Not a review but more of a first impression comment; I was listening to it for free a few days ago on 1 jbl flip 5 bt speaker while making food (not tripping, not smoking, mind you) .. And after my very good impression of his EP a few days before that... I felt bored and unimpressed by it, underwhelmed as I had too high hopes coming into it.. and concluded at it's end that I only felt the album from that little melody (..) and especially from track 6, Nebula of Souls and onwards .. At the last track, is where I turned it off half-ways to sit down and eat. I bet it's much better than my first impression.  

[technosomy]

3 hours ago, psytones said:

Not a review but more of a first impression comment; I was listening to it for free a few days ago on 1 jbl flip 5 bt speaker while making food (not tripping, not smoking, mind you) .. And after my very good impression of his EP a few days before that... I felt bored and unimpressed by it, underwhelmed as I had too high hopes coming into it.. and concluded at it's end that I only felt the album from that little melody (..) and especially from track 6, Nebula of Souls and onwards .. At the last track, is where I turned it off half-ways to sit down and eat. I bet it's much better than my first impression.  

Listen to it again!

[acid-brain]

A long-awaited album by the master of dark goa & psychedelic trance! We got a taster of some of these tracks in Xenomorph's ZNA Gathering 2019 set (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN3N1BEkHB8) and finally five years later the new album is released. However, not all the tracks from that performance, such as the amazing Atrocity Archive, were released on either the recent EP nor this album - hopefully another release is upcoming. Further, a few of the tracks are mixes of existing released tracks with very minor changes.

Why do I love Xenomorph's music?
1) A huge part of why I like psychedelic music overall is its ability to create powerful atmospheres. Xenomorph is almost unmatched at that. His tracks tell stories ranging the whole spectrum of darkness from apocalyptic hopelessness to unhinged lunacy to stony-faced esoterica.
2) Xenomorph's melodies are very strong. Classic tracks like Abominations are surprisingly melodic. The combination of dark storytelling talent with melodic payoffs does much more for me than most later darkpsy.
3) Lastly, Xenomorph kept forging a unique path, each album is novel and just so different to what anyone else was doing at the time. It's no surprise that he's gained many fans with this uncompromisingly creative approach.

01 Sinister Contours

This track's name describes it perfectly. The first half feels like an intro to the moment when the sinister contours really kick in at around 5:00 with tense eastern melodies, croaking acid, and spooky samples. The main lead is brought back in and the tension just ratchets up and up with so many intertwining ominous layers. A build up which we might anticipate leading to a break down actually leads to the addition of an off-beat clap along with an echoing foreboding sound at 6:55. A driving new melody starts emerging and and at 7:45 most layers drop away leaving this new theme. The pressure release ultimately happens at 8:00 when a cheeky goa melody drops! At this point I have a huge grin on my face. Despite how much I love this track, some aspects seem a little overprocessed for my taste, such as the main lead when it first comes in. The break at 6:50, which was previously understated in the ZNA Gathering clip with just the clap added, now also brings in another layer which makes that section a little crowded - maybe my headphones need upgrading.

02 Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix)

A fantastic song already released on the Gamma Draconis compilation. I didn't do a detailed comparison but it sounds like the bassline has been thickened and some minor tweaks have been made (the original track did have poor mastering for some reason), otherwise everything is the same. The storytelling of the sense of melancholia about the dying sun is beautifully expressed.

03 War In Heaven

This one is a cool change of mood and pace, and recalls industrial/EBM artists like Velvet Acid Christ and Hocico when they have dabbled in trance. Less of the high-tech psy leads or Xenomorph's signature menacing atmosphere. The focus is more on danceable high energy with a gothic touch that can actually end up sounding euphoric. The interlacing arpeggiated melodies at 4:00 are absolutely gorgeous!!

04 Negative Time (-L Di-Dt Mix)

Again, it says this is a mix but the version sounds pretty much identical to what was released in the Negative Time EP. The track takes off like a rocket with a bouncy bassline, and at 0:55 comes a massive and absolutely delicious lead. Then a slower response section with more metallic sounds, which finally runs out of energy at 2:40. Suddenly to be replaced by another massive resonant lead, mirrored by a shimmering second melody, I could listen to this section all day as the modulations sound so nice. A series of acid melodies slowly build up the energy back to a metallic section, it's clear we're heading for something big. At 6:40 there's a spine-tingling breakdown leading to a very old-school goa climax!

05 No Beginning No End

Not such a fan of this track personally, feels like it's perched between the styles of the last two tracks. Lots of interesting ideas but not structured with the urgency of previous tracks nor with any real stand out sections. The only dud on the album.

06 Nebula Of Souls

Yet another change of style, this track is more of a slow-burner compared to the others and evokes the mood of hopelessness and weirdness most similar to the Qlippoth album. Intriguing start feels like being in a space station drifting through freezing space. Again the title is fitting. At 3:00 a crunchy growling lead starts to takes the fore. The track builds up in intensity until at 5:45 a sad stringed instrument melody comes in. I can see why for some fans this would be the top pick of the album, it's easily the darkest track here.

07 Subdimensional Anomaly

Time for another more trancey track, but with a pensive mood. Big sweeping pads and a lot of more subtle layers over the top take us all the way to 3:00 where we get a radiant psy lead along with a big snappy snare. The track doesn't evolve in any major way from here but doesn't need to. It's absolutely beautiful.

08 Abode Of The Damned

This one heavily reminds me of Cassandra's Nightmare, still my most loved Xenomorph album. The first half has the twisted horror style with a playful array of spooky squelchy sounds. The second half breaks out into powerful melodies that just get better and better on top of a pumping bassline. The melodies aren't particularly memorable however unlike the previous track.

09 Netherverse

Wow a rare psybient track from Xenomorph, this one also wouldn't have felt out of place as the last track on many oldschool albums. The first half is deeply atmospheric and intriguing, similar to Koxbox's Searching For Psychoactive Herbs. Unfortunately the change of direction that feels like it's coming at some point never does arrive, besides a small modulation near the end. Still an enjoyable track but could have been more.

Overall, there's a large variety of styles here, and at first I think this makes the album as a whole difficult to comprehend. It's harder to fully appreciate tracks 7 and 8 after you've just listened to the nightmare tour de force of Nebula of Souls. After repeated listens I really appreciate the quality of each track and there's only one that I feel is weak. Perhaps the biggest surprise is how euphoric a few of the tracks are, especially Negative Time, one of the least dark songs Xenomorph has produced. But still has that signature intensity and urgency and I love it. I'm a sucker for the big psychedelic leads used and production level is high as you'd expect. I expect the range of styles is due to the long time period this album took to put together, and my only disappointment is we didn't see more new tracks instead of a few minor mixes of existing songs.

[psytones]

On 3/27/2024 at 10:28 PM, technosomy said:

Listen to it again!

Only T7 and half of 8 are ,,neighbour friendly", and the title track by default. O:)

 

[Oopie]

Falls short of the previous level he's held. I'm personally very unsettled with basic/simple type of melody work where a given pattern is repeated to exhaustion. Now that could be a choice as a matter of fact, but I find the sort of solution unimaginative and lackluster. And unfortunately there's quite a bit of that here. 

[astralprojection]

you didnt offer a youtube link, i think its pretty common these days to offer a place where you can listen to the album you are reviewing. or is that just me? 

i dont know where to check it out, i dont have spotify or apple music or all that jazz. if i listen to something these days its going to be youtube. the quality there is good enough for me. most of the time. 

here is the whole album. look forward to seeing whats up with it.

 

edit: it didnt take long to realise this sounds nothing like xenomorph. this sounds horrible. i dont even make music anymore and can come up with better sounds than this. wtf. Guess it all went downhill after that terrible "Gamma Draconis" comp. 

[GhostOnAcid]

This album seems to polarize. 😄
For me it is the best new goa album for a long time. It has something of neogoa of the 2000s. 🙂 

I remember we booked Xenomorph for a party here in Berlin in 2014. He played a 2 hour liveset. Most of the crowd get bored of his dark sound. People came to me and ask me when he is coming to an end. I think with his current new music the crowd will dance like mad. Maybe this is the reason his new music is more melodic. And possibly he listen a lot to Filteria and similar in the last 17 years. 😋

Every track here has his own signature. Track 2, 3, 4, 5 are pure killers!! And as a DJ I say this tracks will work very good on the dancefloor.  

8/10!

[acid-brain]

Quote

This album seems to polarize. 😄
For me it is the best new goa album for a long time. It has something of neogoa of the 2000s. 🙂 

Agreed, and I can't understand the negative thoughts above. Especially since there's such a variety of tracks, some of which are so old-school. Adobe Of The Damned reminds me of when I first listened to Cassandra's Nightmare and Sandman's Witchcraft and is my favourite track here. @astralprojectionwe've chatted before about how we both love MFG's Project Genesis sound, you are on a different planet to me if you think Dying Sun is "horrible"!

 

[astralprojection]

On 4/17/2024 at 10:55 PM, acid-brain said:

Agreed, and I can't understand the negative thoughts above. Especially since there's such a variety of tracks, some of which are so old-school. Adobe Of The Damned reminds me of when I first listened to Cassandra's Nightmare and Sandman's Witchcraft and is my favourite track here. @astralprojectionwe've chatted before about how we both love MFG's Project Genesis sound, you are on a different planet to me if you think Dying Sun is "horrible"!

 

It was just my first impression. I haven't even listened to the full album yet but the sound of it threw me off. I'll give it a few more listens 🙂

[Prana4ever]

Yeah, listening the the album now, track 2 is impressive. Track 6 however, getting praise in the reviews but I found that melody in the second half a bit out of tune, sounds like it doesn't fit right, too bad because the track itself sounds very interesting. 
Track 8 is one of the best. 
It's a very good album, though I agree that in some tracks, sequences are too repetitive.
I agree with a comment above regarding samples, Xenomorph has always been a master at this, the samples are always well chosen and positioned a the right moments.
Regarding the mention of Filteria, I am glad Xenomorph is just a better artist in my opinion, he makes tracks that sound more coherent and harmonic, with vision.

[astralprojection]

On 4/17/2024 at 10:55 PM, acid-brain said:

 you are on a different planet to me if you think Dying Sun is "horrible"!

 

i can kinda see where you get MFG from here i guess? But unfortunately the kick+bass ruins it for me

after a few more listens now, i think its not my cup of tea at least. the sounds are way too simple (the music is decent, but sounds not so much). and i absolutely hate the kickdrum and especially the bassline. damn near sounds like 'init patch' of any virtual analog VST, with unison and lots of stereo imaging

 

whats the 2nd best track from the album in your opinion?

[acid-brain]

11 hours ago, astralprojection said:

i can kinda see where you get MFG from here i guess? But unfortunately the kick+bass ruins it for me

after a few more listens now, i think its not my cup of tea at least. the sounds are way too simple (the music is decent, but sounds not so much). and i absolutely hate the kickdrum and especially the bassline. damn near sounds like 'init patch' of any virtual analog VST, with unison and lots of stereo imaging

 

whats the 2nd best track from the album in your opinion?

I can kind of see where you're coming from a bit more now. Some tracks do have pretty generic kicks and basslines. Doesn't bother me though since there's still so much personality everywhere else, and I like the modern production.

Abode of the Damned is fantastic. Negative Time gives me MFG vibes with the relentless energy, big spacey sounds and euphoric climax.

[Jon Cocco]

Xenomorph - Netherverse (2024)
Suntrip Records 

1.  Sinister Contours
2. Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix)
3. War In Heaven
4. Negative Time (-L Di/-Dt Mix)
5. No Beginning No End
6. Nebula Of Souls
7. Subdimensional Anomaly
8. Abode Of The Damned
9. Netherverse

It's so interesting to read the comments here. I found the the Negative Time EP (2023) fairly monotonous, lacking the visceral, dynamic energy of Mark Petrick's previous albums. A brief recap, Cassandra's Nightmare (1998) was like Goa chapters in a horror film. It took risks and showcased a new approach to Goa. Qlippoth (2003) was more mature and provocative. Demagoguery of the Obscurants (2007) was a concept album reflecting the uncompromising, tragic [old world] vision of the elites (the dark ones via cabal) phases ending with Nuclear Winter. Years later, Xenomorph singles began appearing on Suntrip comps. Petrick's style was more contemporary, less hard edged, technical, more melodic and smooth. It was with Suntrip that I felt something powerful, raw, daring, and organic just did not cross-over that made this artist so brazen, unrestrained, and impressive. Fast forward to Netherworld (2024), the first main album by Xenomorph in 17 years.

1.  Sinister Contours starts with a strong kick drum, dark atmosphere, sound bits and synths that remind me of Demagoguery of the Obscurants (2007) to some degree. I like the dark Goa (sound/melody) work, though structurally the beat and bass line feel a bit repetitive. The synth via transition in the third minute open the door for more creativity, grit, and development, the latter fairly simple programming-wise. The tone is good, and I like the contemporary, modern approach to dark Goa here. I like how the middle act breathes before introducing oriental sounds and samples, adding intrigue. This segments felt a bit repetitive to me when crossing the seventh minute, and could have benefitted from more complexity via mixing and variety in arrangement. The last act gets more interesting via end of the seventh minute, but I felt the repetition in ideas before and after. Even the last minute is less than stellar. I feel like the artist could have incorporated more, surprised us, and evolved the second into third act, as well as the second half of Act 3 more tightly. This is a solid song that lacks the power of the opening track, Prognosis on Demagoguery of the Obscurants (2007), and I like it.  B

2.  Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix) is MUCH BETTER than Sinister Contours IMO, and my top, if not one of my top favourites here. I LOVE the ominous opening, the raspy samples (that somehow work with the), atmosphere and synths. I LOVE the space astronaut sound accent effects (end of first minute), and the sound/melody work is excellent. The song gets richer, more tasty and delectable as it progresses. This is a great example of duality, rather than pure dark-evil-- combining darkness with light. Then a key change at 3:30, and the song does possibly the most beautiful, transformational thing I've ever heard from this artist to date, completely elevating the journey into cosmic, transcendental realms of growth and development before sliding back into the dangerous void. Sure the beat and baseline are pretty standard, and I'm okay with that. It's everything on top of it that's riveting and so unexpectedly strong, evocative, and enjoyable! This (more balanced in duality) song is so innovative, catchy, and welcome from what I'm used to hearing from this artist. It's less hard hitting (beat-wise, synths, grit) than his other songs, and I'm okay with that. Even a transition in the fifth minute gifts us more jewels via sound/melody work. Maybe the second half of the last act could have emphasized more edgier synths, but I'm nitpicking. This is such a well done song. It's imaginative and beautifully helmed from start to finish. Excellent track!  A-

3. War In Heaven is a return to harder hitting, darker content a la Sinister Contours. I notice some cross-over sounding synths early on that remind me of  Demagoguery Of the Obscurants (2007). The sound/melody work is crisp and energetic, complimented by a voice sample, though somewhat simple in arrangement. The music improves. I love the blinking little synth effect at 4:03 (wish that reprised later) and how a voice sample transitions us to catchier elements. This has a jumpy (danceable) synths, and I love little dynamic progressions via 5:12. I'm a sucker for catchy transitions to new surprises, sound/melody work, good mixing, and like the nostalgic albeit contemporary synths approach. The last act brings everything together, like a dark albeit less dark (than previous albums) nod to his third album coupled with melodies had A Nightmare on Elm Street had a Goa song. That said, I feel as if the music is just a bit restrained in power, rawness, and delivery-- as if the artist is fairly reserved from unleashing more fiery power. I thought this delivered stronger than the opening, and I enjoyed the smooth, fluid production and delivery.  B+

4. Negative Time (-L Di/-Dt Mix) starts strong. We get a synth lead that breaks through like a tidal wave (beautiful effect) at 0:57 followed by more complexity. The first act is catchy, though repetition starts to sink in just before things shift at 2:40. We reach an interlude at 3:30 via voice sample that sounds like Lance Henriksen in one of his many intriguing character roles. I like how the tone grow darker in the fifth minute. The song's synths remind me of the third album to some degree. The third act merges fresh ideas and some really good melodies. The end of the sixth into seventh minute feature nice key changes, though the music here grew conventional. Nonetheless, I admire the dualistic rather than being dark-evil approach. I think there could have been more of a finale (climax) towards the end, as the final moments aren't as memorable. I like this song and found it better than Negative Time on the EP.  B+

5.  No Beginning No End starts promising. I like the sound at 1:07, the dark undertone, the synth at 1:30 and the grittier sound at 2:35. This segment soon grows repetitive though until 3:18 where we transition to 3:30 (my favourite part) before more layers pile on. The forth and fifth minute's pile on and this is where I start to lose interest. The sound design sounds so conventional, repetitive, and uneventful. A voice sample transitions the third act, energy picks up via climax, but the arrangement sounds too similar and lackluster. More fire, grit, variety, complexity, evocative provocative feels and ideas would have been amazing here. The song feels like it needed more refinement, re-writing, or being replaced by something stronger. Is it me, or does this feel rushed? I'm not saying it's bad, but decent to FAIRLY good is the best thing I can say about it.  B-

6. Nebula Of Souls starts great like a dark fantasy. I like the atmosphere, enchanting sounds and synths. The first act builds nicely. Little squiggly sounds mingle with soundscapes in ice-cold moving atmosphere. There's a recurrent synth that works. It grows delectably grittier, rougher, more aggressive, and less restrained as the song progresses. That said, the song follows one set path, direction, and conceptually, is pretty one-dimensional. But it packs some of that rough edged rawness I miss. Again though, the structure and sound design grows repetitive, albeit more powerful and emphasized, and I feel like we needed this... something with more visceral and aggressive. Why not add this intensity to a more dynamic, varied, and elaborate storytelling chapter? Doing so could have produced an album selling super song. In Act 3 the synths fall to the back as slow ambient notes carry this across the finish line, and while I appreciate the change, I feel like this was an opportunity to incorporate something more exciting and revelatory to spruce up the finale which otherwise feels somewhat melancholy and anti-climactic, especially after the welcome, harder edged albeit predictable structure/drection.  B

7. Subdimensional Anomaly opens with soft ambient, inviting us into the ominous fold. The bass line here actually stands out for once. I like the evocative feel, synths, key changes, especially the synth lead in the second minute. It's excellent and accentuated by soundscapes following a voice sample that initiates stronger energy. Now we're gliding across the dark terrain. The music is good, though a little more involvement via arrangement would have spiced up the forth minute. The second half maintains the catchy synths, coupled with another voice sample. This opens the door to those punchy synths that remind of of Mark's third album (works well here). The song's less intense approach is well placed. Another complimentary synth joins ambient notes in the last act, reflecting sadness and contemplation. I think the second half of Act 3 could have developed a little more, creating more intrigue like the song's first two acts, and I admire the artist's more pensive, thoughtful direction.  B  

8. Abode Of The Damned as with Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix) showcases stronger storytelling throughout. The first act builds intrigue, acknowledging the underworld (the Great Below) conveniently excluded from modern academia, as it does not fit in with established associations, hence fiction-fantasy / folklore / conspiracy / advanced ancient civilizations, technology, Shiva, Krishna, etc. The first act is dynamic, offering a variety of tighter sound engineering. The second act has more grit and energy, a thumping beat. I love like the tone, evocative feels, gritty synths, distinguishing acts, and voice samples. But the second half of Act 3 could have stood out more, and the sound/melody work I found catchier in Dying Sun. All in all, this is easily one of the best songs on the album, and my favorite after Track 2.  B+ / A-

9. Netherverse is an ambient-influenced downtempo number. The first half... we're floating in space, atmosphere. No beat. Not much happens. A synth arrives in the second minute as I start to grow impatient, hoping things are going to get going. A slow kick drum enters the third minute. It's okay albeit plodding. Again, I wait for this to turn into a powerful, downtempo gem, but the interlude in the forth minute leads to more of the same. There is a nice key change to the tune in the fifth and sixth minute (IMO the best part of the song), but other than that, not much happens. The song ends just as it begins to show potential in what could have been Act 2, but is rather the second half. I wish the artist developed this into a more powerful, memorable downtempo/Goa gem. In the end, it feels underwritten and underdeveloped. I was left wanting more.  C+

CONCLUSION

So few solid dark Goa albums seem to release now days that I want to savor what I like about this forth album until something better comes along. Its been 17 years since the last Xenomorph album. Mark's work has grown more contemporary since releasing via Suntrip. If you like this style coupled with some cross-over elements from his third album, you'll probably like this. I like it more than his Suntrip comp singles, and find numerous tracks ( 2, 3, 4, 5, 8  ) enjoyable, while others (5, 9) feel like write offs, fairly underwhelming. There are a few repetitive moments in numerous songs in that could have been tightened up. This is a dark Goa album that's less ambitious, less technical and meticulous, less hard-hitting and punctuated, less dynamic, less brazen, provocative, unpredictable, powerful, gritty, and risk-taking. Yet it has that all to some degree. It's smooth, very melodic (at times), danceable, to some degree conventional, and easy to digest. The album didn't exceed my expectations. Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix) impressed me the most if had to choose one song. I like that Mark Petrick's style isn't saturated in the bleak, nihilistic dark/evil of his previous albums. Times have changed. We evolve. Well some of us anyway. That said, I feel like more work could have been invested in some of the tracks, including (more specifically) producing more edginess in the second half of Act 3's which feel similar (a bit repetitive) to the first half of Act 3's. This happens in a few non Act 3 places as stated, but around that, for the most part, the album is pretty solid. His previous albums felt more organic, raw, determined, rough, chaotic, explosive and unrestrained, and I miss that-- the powerful magnetism that one blew me away, the technical wizardry, the moments of dark surrealism, awe, and inspiration. Innovation. Netherworld (2024) showcases healthy, dualistic sound/melody designs, and plenty of good/great songs. It's just simpler where I wish it was more involved. The more mainstream friendly approach arguably feels more Xeno-lite (not to be misinterpreted with light). I would have loved more complex, catchy developmental arrangements, sound designs, variety in baselines, beats, textures, details, accents (well accents are generally simple). The praise: "work smarter, not harder" probably makes more sense after 17 years, but how can one not compare the 4th album to the third and second considering they represent some of the best dark Psy/Goa albums ever released? The artist set the bar so high that not even he can top it. My suggestion is give this a couple listens and decide for yourself. I like to listen to an album enough to be able to identify the songs to the point they form an identity to the names, but that's me. One way of seeing it... we could have NOT gotten a forth album at all, and now we have something to talk about, which at least brings more energy to the forums. Also thank you Mark Petrick and Suntrip Records for making a new Xenomorph album happen after all these years. While far from what I consider superb, there IS some superb work here, and plenty solid work in general for me to enjoy. Cheers

Favourite tracks - 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8
Least favourite - 5, 9 ... the latter could have been so much more satisfying with more time in development.

B

Stream the full album on Suntrip's YouTube

 

[astralprojection]

On 4/20/2024 at 10:14 AM, Prana4ever said:

Regarding the mention of Filteria, I am glad Xenomorph is just a better artist in my opinion, he makes tracks that sound more coherent and harmonic, with vision.

nope, xeno is not a better artist than filteria. you can tell pretty easily by the sounds crafted. Xeno seems to not care much about sound design, while filteria would spend a year on a kickdrum.. And as far as vision go, i mean, comon. Filteria basically invented neo goa. 

  

On 4/25/2024 at 4:13 AM, acid-brain said:

Abode of the Damned is fantastic. Negative Time gives me MFG vibes with the relentless energy, big spacey sounds and euphoric climax.

abode of the damned was pretty nice. well mixed. but sound design leaves alot lacking.

negative time didnt remind me much of mfg.. but the 2nd half of the track was allright!