50%
Uxia—Uxia (2025)
Details
Recorded by Will Maravelas at 14:59 and Reed Reimer at Fable Factory. Mixed and mastered by Reed Reimer at Fable Factory. Released by Fable Factory on 2 May 2025.
For fans of Opeth, Porcupine Tree, Mastodon
Band
- Steve Marek – Vocals
- Reed Reimer – Guitar
- Dave Whitmer – Bass
- Jesse James – Keyboards
- Leigh Underwood – Drums
Tracks
- Sunk (3:55)
- Journey to begin (4:45)
- The cycle (5:52)
- Mirror’s edge (4:47)
- Follower (5:52)
- Welcome holm (5:04)
Review
Formed in 2023 from the ashes of Portentum, Uxia is a Minneapolis-based five-piece with serious creative ambition. Founding members Leigh, Reed, and keyboardist-vocalist Liz Ziegler soon brought in Dave on bass, before Jesse took over keyboards and Steve joined on vocals – completing the line-up that would craft Uxia (2025).
Together they blend death metal, prog metal, film-score atmospherics, and rich storytelling into something bold and textural. With Reed wielding an 8-string guitar, Jesse sculpting orchestral and electronic layers from a full workstation and iPad, and the occasional cello or saxophone colouring the sound, UXIA’s music feels limitless. Recorded and mixed by Reed Reimer at Fable Factory, their debut album is as immersive as it is ambitious.
From the opening notes of Uxia (2025), it’s clear that this Minneapolis collective isn’t afraid to test boundaries. Their debut offers a dense and ambitious mix of heavy progressive metal, laced with both aggression and melody. Drawing influence from Opeth’s mood shifts, Porcupine Tree’s textures, and Mastodon’s rhythmic power, Uxia’s first full-length record feels like a band determined to say something profound – even if the message occasionally gets lost in the noise.
“Sunk” (track 1) bursts in with chugging guitars and a storm of gruff vocals. There’s a primal energy to it – a sense of trying to pull you under – but the melodic sections that surface mid-track hint at the duality Uxia is chasing: chaos and calm, darkness and light. The call-and-response between harsh and clean vocals adds intrigue, even if it doesn’t quite land melodically.
“Journey to begin” (track 2) feels more like the natural opener. Its interlacing riffs – at times almost folky – and unexpected melodic turns create an adventurous, shape-shifting soundscape. There’s birdsong, a bass solo, and a beautifully unsettling shift into growling heaviness. It’s a strange, ambitious journey that keeps you guessing – and that unpredictability might be the album’s strongest quality.
On “The cycle” (track 3), the band dives further into experimentation: arpeggiated guitars dissolve into a crushing riff, then burst into clean vocal refrains that open up the mix like sunlight breaking through cloud. The middle section is pure prog theatre – tempo changes, crashes, and a doom-laden riff that threatens to swallow everything. It’s bold, maybe too bold, but never dull.
Then comes “Mirror’s edge” (track 4), and here Uxia finally breathe. This is the standout moment – a measured, melodic song that unfolds in three acts. The baritone vocal is gorgeous, the build deliberate, and the arrival of Spanish guitar in the mid-section gives the piece warmth and depth. Even when the gruff vocals return, they don’t derail it. This is where Uxia’s vision shines clearest.
“Follower” (track 5) opens with a deliciously rubbery bass line that hints at groove before tumbling into shifting time signatures and an array of contrasting textures. It’s adventurous but restless – too many ideas competing for space. The closing soundscape of a fairground is unexpected, though, and lingers like a surreal after-image.
Finally, “Welcome Holm” (track 6) ends the album in full-circle fashion – a battle between harsh distortion and delicate melody. Its alternation between death-metal fury and noir-like spoken word is oddly hypnotic, as if UXIA are exorcising their own extremes. The duelling solos near the end feel like catharsis.
Across its six tracks, Uxia is bursting with imagination and intensity. It’s not a comfortable listen, nor is it always coherent, but it’s undeniably creative. The band’s experimental instincts make every track feel like a world unto itself – but the downside is that the emotional through-line gets lost.
Conclusion
I wanted to love this more than I did. There’s real potential here – flashes of brilliance, moments of beauty – but also a sense of overreach. Uxia (2025) packs a universe of ideas into under forty minutes, but perhaps too many for its own good. Still, for a debut, it’s an audacious statement that hints at much deeper things to come.
Review score: 50%
Video
Disclosure
MDPR contacted me inviting me to preview Uxia’s forthcoming album, thank you. I have no connections to either MDPR or Uxia. I’m not being paid to review this, but I did get a free digital copy of the album to review which is pretty cool. Many thanks to Zach from MDPR, and to Uxia for continuing to create fresh, exciting progressive metal.