Customer Reviews

Liberate Te Ex Inferis

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Another awesome album from the kings of metalcore, this band paves the way for everyone who dares to follow. In their newest release 'liberate' picked up where the old one left off. In this album Zao diversifies their songs in a way that most hardcore bands lack, every song has its own edge which keeps you on your heels from the second the first slow instrumental kicks in all the way through kathleen barbera, i wasnt too fond of that last instrumental but it takes alot for me to like songs with no words. The only thing lacking in this album was vocals, dont get me wrong, Dan has the most powerful voice you'll ever hear, just in the past 2 releases "blood and fire, split Ep" His voice had a wider range of tones than in this one. But, dont let that stop you from buying this cd cause as you can see that little problem didnt keep me from giving it a 5, or calling it one of my favorite albums like i just did right then. So if you like their style and havent heard this CD yet then do yourself a favor and add this one to your collection cuz you wont be disappointed!

For those of you who were hoping that Zao was going to go back to their hardcore ways, you're going to have to keep hoping. This album is even more extreme and metal influenced than their classic album "Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest." There are times where it even shows resemblence to Neurosis with the sludgy wall of noise that Neurosis has perfected. Songs #2, #5 and #8 are the best ones in my opinion and the new songs are excellent live as well. I highly recommend this album!!

Definite increase in overall talent and production from last album "Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest". Guitars and drums are firepower on this album. WBAFBR's album had the lead singers voice recorded higher than instruments. Not so on "Liberate To Ex Inferis". The guitars are turned way up, much more power than previous attempt. ZAO is the ultimate adrenaline band, they will start out with an acoustic melody,just when you think it is a hardcore bands attempt at a Green Day song, the vocals detonate and the guitars explode into a mastery of hardcore mayhem. The lead singers voice is frightening. You would think this band is from a hole six feet in the ground. But upon glancing at the lyrics you know these guys are Spiritual Warriors. They will scare you into knowing Jesus. Flat out HARDCORE.

I got this album and i nearly evacuated myself. it's incredibe. Much better recording that WBFBR. The guitars are unbelievably heavy and complex, the drums are solid and brutal. Especially the last song. Two drum kits are awesome. My only problem is the lyrics are really abstract and not a christian as WBFBR.Really dark, it's like a hellfire and brimstone sermon. But still a must buy.

I bought this album (the first Zao album I ever bought) without ever hearing the band. I just heard a few good things about them. I really didn't know what to expect, as I am not christian, nor am I really big into christian music. I did not even know this band was christian when I bought this album. Ironically, alot of the music I listen to is death and black metal from Europe, which is all about Satan and stuff like that. Zao was actually the first christian band I really got into. I am not a person to judge a band on religious beliefs. I am agnostic, so I like to throw those types of things out when evaluating an album or whatever. Anyway, this album is really unique. As I listened to it for the first time, I was struck by a strange dark feeling, one of great pain. This album overflows with sorrow, and it feels more genuine than most metal bands that attempt to generate evil images. the production is not very good, which is something I really did not like at first, but after a few listens, the dark, muddy sounding production actually begins to enhance the downtrodden mood of the album. Musically, this album is very heavy. I am pretty sure these guys are labeled as a hardcore band, but I really think they go way beyond any other hardcore band I have ever heard. I would describe it as kind of a mix between black metal and hardcore. It does not have the neo-classical symphonic melodies used so often in black metal, but the chugging riffs and intense vocals are there. This is an album that really grew on me. I liked it when I got it, but I wasn't amazed. The more and more I listened to it, the greater it got. This album is just insane - one of the heaviest albums ever - and this is coming from a guy who has heard all the albums by bands like Meshuggah, Nile, Cryptopsy, etc... it is just so moody, too. This is a cd every death metal fan should check out, as well as every hardcore fan. It really made me a big Zao fan - I now own all their albums except "Splinter Shards the Birth of Separation", which I will be purchasing soon. Daniel Weyandt is also the most extreme singer I have ever heard - especially on their new cd "Self-Titled", which I think is even a bit better than "liberate..". pick it up - destroy your premonitions. This is one damn heavy band.

1. Circle I Limbo: Intro 10/10
2. Circle I Limbo: Savannah 10/10
3. Circle II the Lustful: Autopsy 9/10
4. Circle II the Lustful: If These Scars Could Speak 10/10
5. Circle III the Gluttonous: the Ghost Psalm 20/10 BEST SONG ON THIS CD!!
6. Circle III the Gluttonous: Desire the End 9/10
7. Circle IV the Hoarders and the Spendthrifts: Dark Cold Sound 10/10
8. Circle IV the Hoarders and the Spendthrifts: Skin Like Winter 10/10 another one of the best songs on this cd
9. Circle V the Wrathful: Kathleen Barbra 9/10
10. Circle V the Wrathful: Man in Cage Jack Wilson 9/10

wow, wow, wow, and wow. the first zao album i bought from zao was "parade of chaos" which i liked a lot, most say it's their worst album, actually, my least favorite is "self titled", but that's neither here nor there. parade of chaos, made me get this album "liberate te ex inferis" or "save yourself from hell" this truly is their best album to date, it is beautifully crafted, using the metaphors from "dante's inferno" to construct, musically, the 5 circles of hell. and truly this is an amazing cd, here's my review.

1. intro-holy macaral, this intro is really good, met by a freakish, demonic voice, welcoming you into the cd.
2. savannah-this song starts right off as brutal and as raw as we all love it, with some amazing drumming, and some fantastic guitar riffs that make your head spin.
3. autopsy-this is a great song, played very fast, and is just great, the guitar riffs are swell, and so is the drumming.
4. if these scars could speak-this song is really good, it begins with a soft guitar melody that intices you in, then blows you away with a screamed chorus that drops on you like a ton of bricks.
5. the ghost psalm-this is my favorite zao song in the entire world, it's beautiful, it's great, it's zao!
6. desire the end-this song is ok, worth listening to.
7. dark cold sound-i like this too, it was good to listen to.
8. skin like winter-a lot like ghost psalm, this is an amazing son, with great vocals, great drums and again, great guitar riffs.
9. kathleen barbra-great drum intro/guitar intro, folowed by another guitar melody and some errie talking, then comes the screaming we all love.
10. man in cage jack wilson-great instrumental, with terrifying screams at the beginning

all in all, this is zao's best album, and is my second favorite hardcore album that i own, first being "east west-the light in guinevere's garden" which is also good.

This is the best Zao has to offer. "Where Blood And Fire Bring Rest" comes very close though. Their newer stuff tends to have guitars that are a little too metally (they even throw in a couple guitar solos). And for their older stuff, Shaun Jonas is no where near as good as Dan in the vocal department. This is definitely Zao's best line-up. Mostly because Dan is on vocals and Russ is on guitar (if only Scott would have left instead of Russ).

Now on to the music. It is an incredible adventure to listen to this CD from start to finnish. It is extremely heavy, yet it is really easy to pick out the tremendous talent these guys have. Jesse is incredible (as usual) providing an incredible flury on the drums. Dan's vocals are almost a hissing, growling scream. The guitars are pounding for the most part, but there are a few soft, technical parts. The best songs on the CD are "Savanna", "The Ghost Psalm", "Dark Cold Sound", and my all-time favorite Zao song "Skin Like Winter".

Another thing that adds to this CD is the sound clips from movies. They use a bunch from Event Horizon (if you watch that one by yourself, late at night, it is the scariest movie ever), and another one at the start of "The Ghost Psalm" that I'm not sure where it came from. Also check out the clip from The Prophecy (Christopher Walken is creepy) on "Where Blood And Fire Bring Rest".

This CD is rather dark and creepy, but definitely Zao's best. If you enjoy hard/heavy music, then do yourself a favor and check out this CD. While you're at it you might as well check out their other CDs too.

First off, I have to admit that I'm not a big metal fan. I love hard music, but some metal seems so rushed, so forced, that it loses its appeal. Zao is an exception to this rule. Actually Zao seems to be an exception to a lot of rules. They are brutal, they are relentless, but they have a much firmer grasp of their musicianship than most hard bands. Some of the pieces in Liberate strike me as being almost neo-classical in origin, with complex melodies and haunting strains imposed liberally in their music.

Liberate Te Ex Inferis (latin for Save Yourself From Hell) is a musically journey using Dante's epic poem Inferno as a guideline. Zao takes you through the circles of hell. Although some people seemed to be surprised with the dark images and wistful, eerie lyrics the album contains, they should come as little surprise to anyone who has previously enjoyed Dan's emotional and poetic words on other albums.

The sound is brilliantly timed and shines with a dark beauty that shows off every individual and creative note of the guitars that are capable of treading lightly over the same ground that they previously crushed flat with a virtual sledgehammer. The driving double bass kick is made to sound deceivingly easy, as Jesse plays the drums with typical head pounding skill. The vocals are more varied than Blood and Fire, bringing background whispers as well as talking into the mix with the already noteworthy hardcore vocals.

This album has 2 instrumentals, the sort, powerful intro, and the chilling Man In Cage Jack Wilson. Among the best songs is If These Scars Could Speak, which has a distinctly softer feel to it, and The Ghost Psalm, which is capable of being catchy without sacrificing aggression. Noteworthy too is Skin Like Winter, a track released on the split EP with Training for Utopia. This version is different (minus the hand claps) although both are outstanding.

Although I loved their previous effort, Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest, I believe Liberate succeeds in the few areas where that album left something to be desired. This cd is capable of truly sending shivers down your back.

I usually listen to jazz bands and alternative music, but when I heard this CD I turned hardcore. This is such a great band. I saw them live and it was the best concert I've ever been to. I showed this music to a guy who said, "Christian music sucks", after hearing it all he could say was, "Holy those guys are tough!" I am also a fan of Dante, so the fact that this album includes his points of view makes it even better because there is such great spiritual significance. Most hardcore and metal bands that I've heard deal with the "I'm mad at my parents" theme, but Zao is much deeper than that. There a many things in the CD and on the sleave that mean so musch, like finding out what "Librate Te Ex Inferis" means, and where they got the idea. Reading their lyrics and meating them in person, they seam devoted to God. Their musicianship is great, there ideas are very interesting and ispiring, and their singing is almost un-human(in a good way). I think there are two types of music in the world, music one listens to and music one feels. Zao boarders upon both. Another awsome album by Zao is "Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest."