Austin’s Xetas first came onto my radar via Andrew Earles’s review of a recent 7″ on Still Single. “I suppose there’s a dominant essence of this that could have been heard in 1995 out of the San Diego scene,” he notes, and that’s a comparison that definitely got my attention. That’s how I came to pick up their new album The Redeemer, which has been on heavy rotation on my turntable and via iTunes for the past week or so.

That mid-90s San Diego comparison goes a long way; if you’re fond of pretty much any band that John Reis or Rick Froberg has played in, you’ll find a lot to like here. But that’s not the only aspect to their sound; I’d say that guitarist D (the band goes by initials only) has a brawnier, more enraged sound, while bassist K opts for the “barely restrained anger” approach. It’s a good balance, keeping emotions high but showcasing a more expansive sound. And the organization of The Redeemer is also a nice touch: each of the ten songs is titled “The [something]”: “The Sentence,” “The King,” “The Deep.” Highly recommended.

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