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Exitus have been through a lot of shit over the years. For starters, they didn't even get to release any material during their initial run in the late '80s and early '90s due to military service, and it took nearly two decades for them to reform and release their debut EP, the killer little gem known as Undead. You'd think it would get easier from there, but the band went through a near complete lineup change since then, which is compounded by the tragic loss of bassist Richard Urbanec due to serious illness. That kind of tragedy and instability spells death for many bands, but as tough as that all is, Exitus are tougher, and their first full-length, Liebyrinth, is all the proof you need.

Musically, this still works in that Bay Area sound with obvious influence from Exodus, Testament, and even Slayer. That means this is still crushingly heavy thrash with meaty riffs, spot-on solos, intense gang shouts, and that hard-to-define hunger and ferocity that you can only call thrash. The new lineup kills it with tracks like the Kreator-esque "Final Solution (...of Existence)", the neck snapping "Destroy the World," "World Error," and "Ruleout," and they even manage a kick-ass cover of Pro-Pain's "Only God Knows." I will note that new vocalist Petr Kupka is a bit of a weak point, belting out a barked/shouted style that takes some getting used to and even then is merely OK, but that can't hold back the old-fashioned fury that the rest of the band dishes out. Highly Recommended.