There are two sides of this record that I’d like to elaborate. You probably think that this is inappropriate on RWHAF blog. Well, I’m featuring this record because influential records out of metal might even well constitute the becoming of a great Hardcore record and so playing a role in history. I’m saying  that this is rather Metal than Hardcore. But it brings us to a new level of heaviness and hardness. A level I think that was long ago reached by one band in the 90’s such as All Out War. Let me elaborate this further.

The crossover from Metal and Trash to Hardcore has lead in All Out War to a harder and heavier sound that was undeniably ‘harder’ in that era. When I heard it as a kid, I was amazed by it’s heaviness. And always wondered how they could actually produce that kind of pounding sound and riffage.

Well, now approximately 15 years later I have the same feeling. Although it’s actually against a different background that we need to situate this. XIBALBA brings us an underground metal concept, influenced and crossed over by Beat Down, Doom Metal and Sludge into the hardcore landscape. This might change the face of ‘Hard’-core as we know it. It comes to a point where you either need to adapt to it or leave it.

Although it’s challenging the hardcore listener in my opinion, I would not be afraid of saying some words of criticism too. Maybe it’s not positive enough or maybe it’s not always necessary to reach a higher level of hardness in music. Maybe it’s not always needed to bring the listener to a bigger sensation. Or thinking that hard isn’t hard enough or that it needs to become harder as time progresses.