METALLIAN - Lyzanxia

Eden - 2001 - Wargram
Mindcrimes - 2003 - Wargram
Unsu - 2006 - Listenable
Locust - 2010 - XIII Bis

Members

Vocals

Phaze 1, One Way Mirror>>FRANCK POTVIN>>Phaze 1, One Way Mirror - Phaze 1>>DAVID POTVIN>>Phaze 1

Guitar

Phaze 1, One-Way Mirror>>FRANCK POTVIN>>Phaze 1, One-Way Mirror - Overload, Phaze 1, One-Way Mirror>>DAVID POTVIN>>One-Way Mirror, Phaze 1

Bass

Eguil Voisin>>Reverence, Seth - One-Way Mirror>>Vincent Perdicaro>>One-Way Mirror, General Lee - Reverence>>EGUIL VOISIN>>Reverence, Seth

Drum

Gweltaz Kerjan>>Indrama - Headline, Scarve, Mortuary, Aborted, Soilwork>>Dirk Verbeuren>>Scarve, Mortuary, Aborted, Soilwork, Yyrkoon, Phaze 1, Warrel Dane, Cadaver, Pulse Of Nebulae, The Project Hate MCMXCIX, Vetur, Abyssal Vortex, Withered Moon, Megadeth, Akroma, Freya, Hespera, Tronos, Testament, Brave The Cold, At The Gates, Kill Division, Devin Townsend, Ninémia, Savage Lands - General Lee>>CLEMENT DECROCK

History & Biography

Lyzanxia is a modern thrash band from Anjou, France dating back to 1996. The band issued two demos, Rip My Skin of 1996 and Lullaby of 1998, featuring bassist Eguil Voisin and drummer Gweltaz Kerjan. The band signed with Wargram for two albums and entered the studio with Fredrik Nordström co-producing. Kerjan, however, injured his arm whilst recording Mindcrimes, which prompted the band to hire musician-for-rent Dirk Verbeuren. This album was issued in the USA by Reality Entertainment (formerly CMC International) in 2004. Subsequently, Lyzanxia toured the USA with Freakhouse and Sybreed. Gael Ferret was replaced by Decrock in April of 2005. The group signed on to listenable Records’ roster in 2006 and toured with Soilwork (which would also hire Dirk to drum). The gang appeared at Metal Days Festival. A later tour with The Accüsed and Crumbsuckers never transpired. A tour with The Haunted and Municipal Waste went forward in 2007. The band entered Dome Studio in 2008 in order to record a new album. Lyzanxia would release its fourth album, Locust, on May 31st, 2010 through XIII Bis Records. Locust was recorded and produced by brothers David and Franck Potvin (One-Way Mirror and Phaze I) at Déclanché Studio (Switzerland) and the Dome Studio (France). The group appeared at Hellfest in 2011. The act was shelved next.

Reviews

LYZANXIA - MINDCRIMES - REALITY
Lyzanxia is a French band with a bias for the famed Gothenburg sound. The band has hired Gothenburg's own Fredrik Nordstrom to take care of the sound and mix of the album and has ensured itself a strong sound to complement the style.
Lyzanxia's sound certainly bears more than a passing resemblance to In Flames and Dark Tranquillity, but the quartet - being French - makes sure it inserts enough individual ideas to merit attention. The potent sound, heavy drum sound, sharp guitar and bass accompany a dual-vocal system. The singers take different approaches one mimicking a lynx in heat (!) while the other goes for a more regular chanting style a la newer In Flames, etc. The former is stronger of the two obviously.
The bulk of the material would appeal to fans of the aforementioned bands, but Lyzanxia is about more than just a Gothenburg copycat. The song Mind Split has a hardcore ambience, Dusk is more melodic and features cool guitars and songs like Time Dealer and Black Side are more involved and heavier. In fact, very heavy metal fans should make an effort to check out Mindcrimes which like the other Reality Entertainment releases is adorned with professional packaging and a video clip. - Ali "The Metallian"

LYZANXIA - UNSU - LISTENABLE
Lyzanxia always seems on the cusp of releasing something great, but ends up both diluting its approach and overdoing things it should not have incorporated in the first place. Unsu is a series of movements in martial arts (and the title track sports a short Oriental melody) and the title for the band’s new album, but sadly it is the former that is the more graceful of the two.
On its new album, the band has once again undergone more than one line-up change and ended up erring on the side of excessive modernisms. The band’s modern thrash metal is decent and heavy. The vocals are extreme and the sound largely heavy. Then there are the problems. Clean chants are a dime a dozen and overdone. The band’s dual-vocal system is not working well for the screams are too scratchy and end up grating the nerves. The drums are mechanical and largely uninventive. One final mistake is the selective inclusion of keyboards for no apparent reason. Of course, the band has not completely lost its Gothenburg influences either. The song Answer Fields, for instance, could have emanated from a Dark Tranquillity album.
Again, this four-piece has so many elements of a good band that it is a greater disappointment than usual upon hearing the many things it does not to achieve its potential. The band must make a stand in either direction before being recognized and made more popular. Soilwork fans will like this album nonetheless. - Ali “The Metallian”

Interviews

Lyzanxia