Melbourne’s powerhouse hard rock trio XCalibre are gear-jamming their way back into the spotlight, less than half a year since they delivered their crushing debut album X. Born from the chaos of lockdowns, frontman Dan Marazita, guitarist Vinny Mancuso, and drummer Shane Evans have evolved from regular music warriors into a stadium-levelling force. They have spent years refining a massive sound that hits you right in the gut, and now they are unleashing the ultimate weapon through XMusic: the highly anticipated deluxe edition of that powerhouse debut album.
If you thought the standard version of X was a total monster, this deluxe package turns the volume knob way past ten. It is packed with raw emotion, massive, ground-shaking guitar riffs, and anthemic choruses that demand to be heard live. The band has masterfully mixed classic rock intensity with cinematic scale. Highlights like the crushing single House Of Pain still feel entirely unstoppable, capturing the spirit of fighting back and reclaiming your domain.
The expansion tracks lift this release into legendary status. The brilliant single DEAD2ME hits hard with pure sonic aggression and relentless energy. Other new additions include the single Calling You Out!, an acoustic rendition of Scars and a live, intimate recording of Gravity.
HEAVY sat down with Dan on the eve of the album’s release to find out more, asking what the thought process generally is behind releasing deluxe editions of an existing album.
“It’s about having more content as you go,” he answered. “It’s a different feel. When you go through an album, it’s like a roller coaster. It’s like you’ve got a feeling when you’re sitting there in the background, and the deluxe album is different from the normal album. Because you have those stripped-back songs, it’s a different energy altogether.”
It’s been a whirlwind ride so far for XCalibre, and we ask Dan what lessons the band has taken from the whole debut album cycle into preparation for the follow-up.
“Every time you’re in the studio, you’re just listening to your gut,” he measured, “Not going with what you think is ‘in’. You’re going with what you feel that you know the song deserves and not procrastinating too much on it by sitting with it too long. Sometimes your first idea is the best idea, and you’re always going to go back to that.”
In the full interview, Dan ran us through each of the four new songs in greater detail and explained why they were chosen for the deluxe edition. He recalled the recording process at Matt Sorum‘s studio in LA, as well as the guest collaborations with DJ Lethal from Limp Bizkit and Marcos Curiel from POD.
We spoke about how they approached the album process and what they learned from working with and alongside some of the biggest names in music and more.
