Review: XP8 – 'Two Of Three: Albedo'

XP8
'Two Of Three: Albedo'
2393 RECORDS

The second of the Italian duo's Alchemy lands to continue the hard dance assault instigated by its predecessor 'One Of Three: Nigredo'. The second EP in the series of three once again blends elements of ebm, edm, dubstep and trance across five tracks, which conceptually explore the second stage of the alchemy process involving the washing away of impurities. It also has the distinction of being the band's penultimate release, deciding to call it quits once the series reaches its conclusion with part three.

Each track here is ready and set to get bodies on the dance floor. Opening with 'We Felt Nothing' XP8 are on classic form with a hard and relentless beat set to some great synths and sing-a-long lyrics. While 'The Gift' slows things down a little with its heavy dubstep bass setting the pace it continues the dance friendly manifesto of the previous track.

'Heatwave' sees the band really getting interesting. Slow and sensual it even breaks out some guitar work for a dark and sexy slithering track. 'A Greater Goal' then returns back to the dubstep bass of 'The Gift' but brings some nice metal riffing into the mix for a very refreshing take on the bands sound that is just begging for at least one live performance. As with '… Nigredo' the EP is rounded off with a remix. This time Avarice In Audio work their magic on 'Inside Their Heads' breathing new life into the track.

This is another solid release from a band at the top of their game and producing some of the best music in their discography. Which makes the fact that this is the second to last release planned all the more bitter-sweet. XP8 are aiming to go out on a high, but its a shame they're leaving us at all when they still have releases like this to offer.  

Posted in: music,two of three: Albedo,XP8