Normally, whenever we deal with musicians in the world of metal who have dense backgrounds, it tends to be that those backgrounds are in other reaches of the metal underground without loads of work put in. But, on occasion, we’re met with an entity that does not adhere to such a trend with extreme metal just the latest of musical excursions that seem as random as they are creative. Coming into the debut album from Labyrinth of Stars, I wasn’t sure what to expect. By all accounts, I wasn’t expecting such a competent and dissonant creation from musicians of background like with what they’re dealing with here as it’s to the point that I’m all but compelled to call this first excursion into the realm of death metal a wild success for those who built it.

It would stand to reason that death metal wouldn’t normally be one’s first dive into the world of metal given a background in wildly different styles of music, but I would never dare deter someone from attempting to do so, for if it’s done right, we could be in for one hell of a performance. With a background that includes dabbling in the worlds of experimental electronic and ambient creations, the dense discography of Lantlôs, producing multiple albums for different bands like Valborg and Asses, and the running of a label, one normally would suspect that the time and creative energy of the people involved would be a full-time expense. Yet, that didn’t stop the birth of Labyrinth of Stars from taking place with it already being a name that demands respect as it’s clear everyone behind the name has far more talent and tenacity than anyone could’ve dared assumed. Albeit not on the same level as contemporaries like Ulcerate, for example, everything that is “Spectrum Xenomorph” is nothing to take lightly. It all comes together gloriously to deliver a vicious experience of death metal that holds nothing back for an instant even as we see the influences of ambient bleed into the dark cosmic presence that permeates the whole sound that Labyrinth of Stars wields with awesome power and competency. From its dimly lit rituals to passages of Deep Space and Time, “Spectrum Xenomorph” has so much more to offer than one would expect out of such a creation, especially from a debut, but it’s clear that there is so much power and passion behind Labyrinth of Stars that it’s clear no sound is safe from their incursions with this simply being the latest.

Deeply layered right from the beginning and overflowing with so much more than what many other competitors in the scene would normally dare to execute in any capacity, Labyrinth of Stars is a name that is not to be taken lightly nor is it something that should be ignored for even a second. It’s already apparent that nothing is safe from the sight of these musicians with all that was delivered with “Spectrum Xenomorph” but the more recent offensive on a scale the likes of which should absolutely get the heads of many turning in supreme, undivided interest.

“Spectrum Xenomorph” releases on September 30th via Translation Loss Records!

LISTEN to advanced tracks from “Spectrum Xenomorph” on Bandcamp here.

FOLLOW Labyrinth of Stars on Instagram here.