The Zenith Passage is a technical death metal band that formed in 2012 in Los Angeles, California. On April 15th of last year, the group released their debut full length Solipsist through Unique Leader Records. Three years after the release of their EP titled Cosmic Dissonance, Solipsist comes through with full force and a solid sound that surely stands out of the crowd. With split second tempo changes, creative interludes and break neck heaviness, this release stands strong with any tech death album.
One of the strong points in this album is the smooth transitions in tracks such as Convergence and The Tenebrous Veil which utilize both jazz influence breaks and soaring leads that don’t sound out of place. Most times when a band attempts this, it usually sounds like part of another song. The track Dreamsphere has a trance inducing feel to it which draws you in and makes the following track Hypnagogia hit you in the face like a passing train.
Now if you were to listen to this without knowing what band this is, you would probably think this is The Faceless’ new album but it is definitely not. The signature riffing by The Zenith Passage is similar to that of The Faceless’ Autotheism, and the start/stop chugging is reminiscent of Planetary Duality. Now with that being said, those are compliments as The Faceless made a huge impact in the tech death scene. This album is how technical death metal should be done and sits up there on top. If you are a fan of Rings of Saturn, Origin, and The Faceless, then this album is exactly what you need to listen to from start to finish.
Overall Score: 9.0/10
Review by Neil Andersen
