Anyone paying attention during my many ill fated music album reviews will know they typically only have a tertiary association to horror. Practice makes perfect, so I rarely turn down a music review request. I can't say I have ever heard anything quite like Xiphos' The Age of Alexander, it may not be horror but it is extremely history based (something I am also interested in). The music style didn't appeal, but I appreciated this was something a little different.
This is the fourth production in Xiphos' Illo Tempore collection, with this one being based roughly around the time period of Alexander the Great. Each of the ten tracks revolves around a different notable person from this time period, starting with the 'King of Kings' 'Artaxerxes' and going through a variety of different ones, including of course 'Alexander'. The general vibe is the same, the three person group use classical orchestration, with keyboards, and a vocal style that is half singing and half oration, usually telling a story about the person who the track is about. Due to this, I found I couldn't really do anything but listen to the music, as I wanted to hear the words and understand the tale being told. There are a bunch of different styles, the sombre 'Phocion' is slow and mournful, while 'Timoleon' has more of a military sounding vibe to it as examples.
I thought The Age of Alexander wasn't a bad album at all, but the genre and style of music didn't gel with my preferences. This is a cool concept, and speaks to the history geek in me, but maybe an acquired taste. Head to the BandCamp page to learn more.
SCORE:
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