Progressive death metal has long been fertile ground for ambition, and Fallujah have always tried to stay one idea ahead of their peers. On “Xenotaph”, the Bay Area outfit push further into their identity as sonic architects, blending jazzy ambience, fretboard acrobatics, and polished atmospherics into a conceptually ambitious, meticulously executed record. But does it inspire? Does it move? Or does it simply float?

Coming into this from the memory of 2016’s “Dreamless”, a record that was a curated sonic exhibit, rather than a traditional album, I had hope. That album was bold, and a compilation that showed us a band brave enough to challenge form. What’s surprising is how little that chapter is acknowledged in the band’s own narrative now. Perhaps because, as bold as it was, it laid down a genre template now mastered by bands like Sleep Token, who took the shimmering blueprint and injected theatricality and chaos.

So where does that leave “Xenotaph”? According to the band’s press materials, (which, if we’re honest, read like a ChatGPT-generated list of adjectives), it’s a record that represents rebirth, refinement, and reinvention. And to be fair, musically, there is a lot to admire here. Guitarists Scott Carstairs and Sam Mooradian weave detailed tapestries of sound: whammy-drenched, airy leads intermingle with liquid clean passages and bursts of tremolo-driven chaos. Tracks like “Labyrinth of Stone” and “The Obsidian Architect” showcase this perfectly, walking the tightrope between breathtaking technicality and surprisingly digestible melody.

Opener “In Stars We Drown” is, however, utterly forgettable. It adds nothing of weight and feels more like a soundcheck than a curtain-raiser. But the album recovers quickly. “Kaleidoscopic Waves” offers dreamy textures underpinned by blast-driven urgency, while “Step Through the Portal and Breathe” plunges into sprawling sci-fi grandeur, vocals stretching over angular riffing in a haze of ambient production.

Vocalist Kyle Schaefer is both a strength and a wild card. His range is impressive, veering from harsh barks to celestial cleans, but it may divide listeners who prefer consistency. Fortunately, his delivery suits the album’s progressive spirit. The conceptual underpinnings, a surreal journey through metaphysical realms guided by a deceptive, parasitic being, lend the album an episodic, dreamlike quality, but in truth, the narrative is more of a mood-board than a novel.

Production-wise, Dave Otero and Mike Low bring clarity and balance to a dense mix. While Evan Brewer’s bass sometimes disappears under the gloss, the guitars shine throughout. There are moments when the compression flattens the dynamic range, but the payoff is a consistently immersive soundscape. It’s headphone music, and for once, my thousand-euro hi-fi cans finally felt justified.

The standout track is, without doubt, “Labyrinth of Stone”. It encapsulates everything that makes Fallujah compelling when they’re firing on all cylinders: ambitious composition, rich textural interplay, and a sense of forward momentum that much of the album lacks. Elsewhere, “A Parasitic Dream” and “The Crystalline Veil” offer fleeting moments of brilliance, but also reveal the album’s greatest flaw, a tendency to blend into itself. The details are immaculate, but without contrast, even beauty becomes monotony.

Still, “Xenotaph” is far from hollow. It’s lush, clever, and at times deeply moving. But it’s also emotionally distant, almost too polished. As a listener, I admired it more than I loved it. And yet, I know I’ll return to it. Not for catharsis, but to marvel at the architecture. There’s value in that.

Rating: 7.5/10
Release Date: June 14, 2025
Label: Nuclear Blast Records

Writer: Andy

Tracklist:

1. In Stars We Drown
2. Kaleidoscopic Waves
3. Labyrinth of Stone
4. The Crystalline Veil
5. Step Through the Portal and Breathe
6. A Parasitic Dream
7. The Obsidian Architect
8. Xenotaph