My thoughts about Exile, the new album from Demon Hunter...

First, don't take this as a review. It's more like a conversation between friends who get together to eat a portion of potato chips, have a drink and talk about their favorite band's new album.


Second, this Demon Hunter that we hear in Exile is not the same Demon Hunter of the other 20 years. Okay, it's the same group that's been together since 2012, only now they're different, daring like they've never done before in their career.


I don't know how 'on their own' now influenced this record, but the truth is that 'Exile' is unmatched on any of Demon Hunter's other 10 studio albums. The closest thing I can say to a similarity with another record is that, as in 'Ovtlive', in this new work the gutturals/screams/etc are less present, more like luxury supporting players. They don't even appear on half of the regular tracks and only on 2 songs do they appear in full, but apart from that factor, 'Exile' is really unique.


Here the band crossed all possible boundaries in their sound and didn't stick to any of them. It has an industrial, punk, progressive, grunge, stoner feel and so on. I venture to say that this is the work where the musicians most put their essences and influences. In each of the 14 tracks (counting the Deluxe bonus tracks) you can see a lot of truth in the arrangements and execution. The band is playing what they want and the way they want, they don't have a pre-defined formula to be followed, the guide right here is the heart and the feeling of sincerity passed on each note.


The conceptuality of 'Exile' is a special factor in its appreciation. Of course, you can listen to their songs separately or in random mode, but their true existence works in the order presented by the band and this goes even further in the deluxe version, with the interludes setting the listener in the post-apocalyptic world that the character Hunter finds himself in. . That's where the true essence and value of 'Exile' lies. It would be amazing if one day a film adaptation of this work were made.


Up there I said that this 'is not the same Demon Hunter that we knew' and in fact it is not, but paradoxically it still is. The guitar tones are in a different and special pattern, moving away from the legacy of the other recordings and entering a new path. Besides Ryan Clark's voice (who is here at the height of his beauty, technique and intonation), the guitar work is what most catches the eye and ear in 'Exile', it seems like another band but still has all the virtue of a Demon Hunter record. It's as if, after the debut album had completed 20 years on 10/22, the band had ended one cycle and started another. A true phoenix that knew how to die, resurrect and come back to life in a more glorious and majestic way.


I spent more than 6 months without hearing anything from the band. Only in the last few days that I did a marathon in the order of the releases made and this helped me to keep all their work fresh in my mind and their constant changes and evolutions and, at least for me, made it easier to understand how - and why - they arrived in 'Exile' as they arrived.


An important fact in these days of immediacy and exaggerated consumerism is that the record is not easily digested, it cries out for more listening and every time you listen to it, you end up discovering one more reason to like it.


This may not be the album many wanted and that's ok, no one is forced to like everything. But it is also necessary to know/understand that those good times of the past never return. Evolution has always been a stony truth for the Demon Hunter and will continue to be... hopefully for another 20 years!


(Originally in portuguese - translated by Google)

Thanks for the review and the reminder of this album's release.  It totally slipped my mind.

I haven't listen yet. Just an observation from afar, I see three guests from secular bands:
01. DEFENSE MECHANISM (feat. Max Cavalera of Soulfly) (03:37)
02. MASTER (04:07)
03. SILENCE THE WORLD (feat. Tom S. Englund of Evergrey) (07:13)
04. HEAVEN DON'T CRY (04:25)
05. ANOTHER PLACE (04:16)
06. FREEDOM IS DEAD (02:53)
07. PRAISE THE VOID (05:30)
08. REVOLUTIONS (05:35)
09. CHEMICALS (06:25)
10. GODLESS (feat. Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest) (04:54)

oldschooldoom wrote:I haven't listen yet. Just an observation from afar, I see three guests from secular bands:
01. DEFENSE MECHANISM (feat. Max Cavalera of Soulfly) (03:37)
02. MASTER (04:07)
03. SILENCE THE WORLD (feat. Tom S. Englund of Evergrey) (07:13)
04. HEAVEN DON'T CRY (04:25)
05. ANOTHER PLACE (04:16)
06. FREEDOM IS DEAD (02:53)
07. PRAISE THE VOID (05:30)
08. REVOLUTIONS (05:35)
09. CHEMICALS (06:25)
10. GODLESS (feat. Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest) (04:54)

Like The World Is A Thorn and Summer Of Darkness (with 2 secular, I Think)

Defense Mechanism is a monster. But I’m a few songs in and I’m finding it kinda dull. It sounds like DH doing modern rock. And I say that as a fan of Outlive.

Been listening to the standard version for 6 weeks and, of course, only now hearing the deluxe (my physical copy of that has yet to arrive). 

It is "wimpy" for Demon Hunter. It is the softest, most melodic Demon Hunter to date. The melodies soar all over this and Ryan has never sounded better but there is very little in flash in the playing. Not one performance stands out aside from Ryan and the guitar sound has never sounded more tame. 

If I listened to the band primarily for how heavy they are this all would be a severe disappointment. While admittedly songs like Storm the Gates of Hell, Crucifix, Jesus Wept, and Ash are all instant favorites when I hear them and that heaviness is a major part of what I've always enjoyed about the band, their songwriting has always been the ultimate hook. Lyrically, musically, they have continued to excel in writing excellent songs no matter what style. I like Heart of a Graveyard, Recuse Myself and I Am A Stone as much as the blazing tracks. That is the primary thing for me. So where does that leave Exile?

I believe Exile is their most well crafted album to date. I was thrown off by every single, not one having the same style and so much of it unfamiliar territory. Yet, listened to as a whole, everything makes sense. I think it will make even more sense as I receive the physical copy and the subsequent Comic Books. The album has a great flow, the story makes sense even without all the extras. The album isn't truly "soft" just soft for Demon Hunter. As LM said above the heaviness and harsh vocals are more of a garnish here. The instruments are vehicles for the song. Every innovation pushes a boundary yet sounds 100% DH all the same. The attitude and message that drive this album is one of the most poignant I've ever heard. It's message has never been more true to the way I feel in this messed up world we live in today. It's not tongue in cheek or over the top. It is serious and clear, poetic. but still making the message loud and clear just the same.

I doubt this will be my favorite Demon Hunter album but I am not disappointed. At first I was taken aback and disheartened, especially after hearing each new single. Absorbing the whole album however has been increasingly satisfying even a month and a half later. Hearing the extra tracks on the deluxe and interludes helps even more.

I hope fans give this the time it deserves and aren't so quick to dismiss it. Few albums of this magnitude are loved immediately. Historically concept, notable ambitious records are regarded with caution and even disdain at first only to be beloved later. Exile, for many, will be just so. For others this could be the point where they drop out. I'm happy to say that the former is the camp I'm leaning hard into right now.

This is my fave Demon album
I like tracks: 2, 4, 5, 7, 9 & 10

Initial review:

This is gonna be an album to digest, as others have mentioned. But my initial impressions are:

It starts off with a couple of strong tracks, but I found the next few to be less compelling. (They might be growers). However, once Revolutions kicks in, the album held my attention through to the end. So, at this point, I think the second half is stronger.

My main critique is that I wish the guitar work was more compelling. It’s often just kinda “there,” which means that the album is strong on atmosphere and Ryan’s amazing vocals, but weak on compelling guitar work for the most part. (There are exceptions. I like the riff in Godless).

Devotion might be one of my favorite songs they’ve ever done.

At this point, I just need to spend more time with it. I can’t see it ever beating the trilogy of Triptych, StGoH, and TWIaT, but there’s enough here to bring me back for sure.

Pethead wrote:My main critique is that I wish the guitar work was more compelling. It’s often just kinda “there,” which means that the album is strong on atmosphere and Ryan’s amazing vocals, but weak on compelling guitar work for the most part. (There are exceptions. I like the riff in Godless).

Agreed. This is definitely a song oriented album and not riff based but it seems like things were held back. A track like Silence the World seems so restrained. Ultimately it works and I've found I love it all but I was surprised when I heard the extra tracks on the Deluxe and they similarly had such simple guitar work. It had to be intentional all along.

For me, even further than that I found that for a band with two guitar players with one of them producing and mixing the whole album and all the talk about tuning down before release, this is easily the most neutered guitar sound the band has had. You'd be stunned to find out they had two guitar players. Godless should have a monster, grimy, thick groove and while you can feel it to some degree, even it doesn't come off like it should but for Ritchie Faulkner's gnarly guitar work as a guest. Patrick and Jeremiah always sound molded together, cut and clipped. Again, I think this was all intentional and ends up being minor for an album with this scope but, even still absorbing it over a month later, I'm still surprised by the choice.

This one doesn't have the stand out songs like other albums, it's almost like an old prog album, made to listen to the whole thing. It's good but I don't see it in their top five for me.

Got it on vinyl for Christmas.

It’s really grown on me. I just had to put aside my preconceptions, but now I dig it.