XIBALBA - Diablo, Con Amor… Adios EP Review

Xibalba - Diablo, Con Amor… Adios EP (Closed Casket Activities)

Release date : February 17th, 2017

The release of their full length Tierra Y Libertad last year showcased their mastery at merging Hardcore and Metal together was well received. To some, they sounded a lot like Hatebreed. The comparison isn’t false but Xibalba has more Metal in their song structures than the aforementioned band and less cheesy moments. One year later, they are now releasing a three songs EP Diablo, Con Amor… Adios with the songs ‘’Diablo’’, ‘’Con Amor’’, and ‘’Adios’’.

Starting off with a solid song in ‘’Diablo’’ and its heavy riffs and mid-tempo groove we are in the Hardcore territory. While ‘’Con Amor…’’ is a lot more faster and carries an old-school approach with breakdowns and a great presence of the drums as the driving force behind the fast guitar riffs. The third offering on this 7’’ is ‘’Adios’’, a song that could be pulled off a Suffocation album more than from Hatebreed.

In fact, Xibalba is a well balanced hybrid between Death Metal, Hardcore, and even Grindcore at some extension. The production of the album sounds exactly as it should be with the backing of long time collaborator Taylor Young (Nails, Twitching Tongues, Disgrace) of The Pit Recording Studio and the mastering of Brad Boatright at Audiosiege (Integrity, Nails, Harm’s Way). It is heavy, gritty, and it sounds on point.

For those who are still thinking Xibalba are a Hatebreed clone, maybe have some listens to this EP and hear for yourself how they are their own oddity.

8.0