The Swedish band darXtar has quite a history behind them. Beginning as a one-man band in 1989, the group has continued to grow over the decades, with 3 members joining during different years of the 90’s, and one in 2003.
Not knowing the history of the band, when I heard title track, “Aged to Perfection,” I believed it to be just your everyday acoustic backdrop and smooth lyrical rock song. As it progressed, the more spacey sounds and violin accompaniment proved me to be mistaken. It is quite an eclectic mix of sounds, but all blend nicely together to give that space rock feel at just the right dosage.
The next track keeps the same pace until the listener is taken into a different dimension with “Mörkret 2.” The deep thrumming of the bass and random sounds of brass instruments, along with an unintelligible few spoken words give the track an eerie vibe. “Tired Nature” takes the listener back to a more mainstream rock sound, and then they are plunged back into space with “Some Things.” Around this time, the album takes on a very Pink Floyd-esque sound.
darXtar’s Aged to Perfection is their seventh album, and also one that took seven years to come to fruition. The album is quite a mellow version of the space rock genre, and while reflective of some of the late 70’s bands, the violin adds a nice, unique approach to the flavor.
The vocals are neither fantastic, nor bad- rather; they fit the music just fine. Being written, produced, recorded and mixed by the band themselves, they were given all the freedom of expression they desired. That being said, I feel they could have been a little more experimental with things; but, if relaxed, idiosyncratic music was what darXtar was going for, then they did a great job.
