Exoplanet (album)

Exoplanet is the debut studio album by progressive metal band The Contortionist, released through Good Fight Entertainment on August 31, 2010. A remastered edition of the album was released on January 22, 2016.[2]

Exoplanet
Studio album by The Contortionist
Released	August 31, 2010 January 22, 2016 (remastered)
Recorded	2010
Studio	System Recordings, Boston, Massachusetts; Vocal and programming production: Voltaic Recording Studio, Indianapolis, IN
Genre	Progressive metal deathcore
Length	48:14
Label	Good Fight
Producer	Ken Susi
The Contortionist chronology
Apparition (2009) Exoplanet (2010) Intrinsic (2012)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
The New Review	4.5/5[1]

Concept

Guitarist Robby Baca explained:

The three Exoplanet tracks represent the focal point of the album's concept, musically the songs are tied together somehow to show that they are a part of a time line. That’s why — if you listen closely — there are repeated musical ideas throughout. These three tracks are the definitive songs of the album. Part one is a journey outside our solar system. Part two is a journey in between galaxies (interstellar void) and part three is the colonization and failure of human life on another planet. The songs were not originally meant to be consecutive and tied together, but that’s how everything came together, and we rolled with it.[3]

The lyrics on the album focus on space, interstellar travel, and the journey to reach and colonize another habitable planet, hence the title of the album. Four tracks on the album are re-worked and renamed versions of material from their 2009 EP "Apparition", such as the song "Eyes: Closed", which was re-worked and released as "Flourish". The lyrics of the re-worked songs were also re-written entirely in order to fit the overall concept of the album. The remaining 7 tracks, including the three title tracks, are all new material.

Track listing

All tracks are written by The Contortionist.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Primal Directive"	4:02
2.	"Flourish"	6:22
3.	"Expire"	3:45
4.	"Contact"	5:00
5.	"Advent"	3:17
6.	"Vessel"	4:57
7.	"Oscillator"	5:01
8.	"Axiom"	2:25
9.	"Exoplanet I: Egress"	4:12
10.	"Exoplanet II: Void"	3:33
11.	"Exoplanet III: Light"	5:46
Total length:		48:14

Personnel

The Contortionist

• Jonathan Carpenter – vocals, keyboards
• Robby Baca – guitar, keyboards, programming
• Cameron Maynard – guitar
• Joey Baca – drums
• Christopher Tilley – bass

Production

• Produced, engineered & mixed by Ken Susi (Unearth)
• Mastered by Alan Douches, @ West West Side Music, New York
• Additional production & keyboards by Jordan King
• Additional piano by Alex Smith
• Management by Ben Lionetti & Jason Rudolph
• Design & layout by Sons of Nero

References

1. Juliff, Kevin (August 23, 2010). "The Contortionist Exoplanet". thenewreview.net. Archived from the original on August 26, 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
2. "Exoplanet (Redux) by The Contortionist on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
3. Sciarretto, Amy (August 25, 2010). "The Contortionist, 'Exoplanet I, II, III' — Song Premieres". noisecreep.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016.