What is on my plate today is a big slab of death/thrash from England, I'm
currently digesting the band Arceye's
second full length "At First Light"
that will be released in August the 7th through Hostile Media out of the
UK. Upon my first spin of "At First Light" I was a bit
skeptical, to be honest since their brand of melodic death/ thrash is way
modern for my taste. You see I prefer my metal a tad more old school and
not so melodic. But Arceye made me a fan after the first run through of the album.
And they did this by avoiding the biggest pit falls that many of the more
modern bands generally do. And what do I mean by this? well they do not sound like a blatant rip off of
their Swedish heroes. And for this a I applaud them manically, because I think
it is such a breeze of fresh air to hear a band trying to do their own thing in
the confines of their style. Of course these guys do sound Swedish and if
you are a fan of this kind of music, you will have heard this before, and
you more or less know what you get.
But what sets these fine fellow apart from the millions of other bands out there is that their is a flair of black metal in their music. And what this flair is, well that is something I just can't really put my finger on. There is just something a bit more sinister in their riffing and melodies then what you generally get in this style of music. And I think this sets them apart a lot. Sure the music is filled with bouncy death thrash that gets the neck sore and fist raised high up on the air, so don't worry about that.
The musicianship is top notch on this one, be prepared to be schooled, bullied and beaten, for your own nancy-boy playing. Cause whatever chops you may have, these guys are better then you, just like Chuck Norries. I have always been a sucker for killer drumming and on this record the drumming is mental. Both really fast, precise and techy with the good taste of not overplaying it. Drummer Craig Mackay really shines on this one, having beats that shifts from precise break downs, groove, technical parts to high bpm blast beats. In my eyes we have a really well rounded drummer in this package. And the tempos ranges from slow, mid paced to Speedy Gonzales when he stats blasting away.
But what sets these fine fellow apart from the millions of other bands out there is that their is a flair of black metal in their music. And what this flair is, well that is something I just can't really put my finger on. There is just something a bit more sinister in their riffing and melodies then what you generally get in this style of music. And I think this sets them apart a lot. Sure the music is filled with bouncy death thrash that gets the neck sore and fist raised high up on the air, so don't worry about that.
The musicianship is top notch on this one, be prepared to be schooled, bullied and beaten, for your own nancy-boy playing. Cause whatever chops you may have, these guys are better then you, just like Chuck Norries. I have always been a sucker for killer drumming and on this record the drumming is mental. Both really fast, precise and techy with the good taste of not overplaying it. Drummer Craig Mackay really shines on this one, having beats that shifts from precise break downs, groove, technical parts to high bpm blast beats. In my eyes we have a really well rounded drummer in this package. And the tempos ranges from slow, mid paced to Speedy Gonzales when he stats blasting away.
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Al Llewellyn - Vocals & Bass
Dave Roberts - Guitar & Vocals
Luke Durston - Guitar & Vocals
Craig Mackay - Drums & Samples
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One thing that I really dig on this album is the use of acoustic
guitars, they are very tastefully done and every once in a while they come in
sort of unexpected and makes for a great diversion. The album consists of ten
tracks while three of these are acoustic instrumentals. And I must say that they
are killer, masterfully played and hauntingly beautiful. My fav of the three is
the song Sirus, it is a 6 min long
epic, ok to be fair this track does contain more then acoustic guitars, and if
I think about it I think the main guitars are clean electric guitars. This song
is more of a progressive power ballad, but boy is it a killer track. The
"chorus" guitar lead is maddeningly catchy and has stuck in my mind
since the first time I heard it. Great stuff! And while on the subject on
leads, I just must say good work my friends! I would assume that the guitarists
in Arceye have spent many lonely
hours in their chambers practicing their soloing, cause damn! Beautiful, fast
and precise. Top Class.
Beauty meets the beast, and the beast this time around is the vocalist.
Cause this guy got some seriously bestial lungs. A great voice that fits this
kind of music like a hand in a evil glove covered with spikes. The melodies and
vocal lines are expertly crafted and they are hokey and instantly gets your
attention. Even thou the vocals and not that varied they never get boring or
monotomus. And I think that this is quite the feat, since a lot of times when
the vocals are similar all the time stuff gets boring fast. But not on this
one. Again, Top class!!
What can I say about the production, well it is great to put it simple! Not
much to write about it, I have no complaints at all. Ok some more cow bell
would have been nice, but I think that goes for all modern albums. The drums
have great punch and clarity, the guitars are meaty and crisp, the bass is deep
and sounds heavy and the vocals well it is just right in the mix.
So if you are a melodic death thrash aficionado, do yourself a favor and get this album as soon as possible because this one will be with you for a long time, I think Arceye has set the standard with "At First Light" for how modern metal should sound, catchy and brutal at the same time.
So if you are a melodic death thrash aficionado, do yourself a favor and get this album as soon as possible because this one will be with you for a long time, I think Arceye has set the standard with "At First Light" for how modern metal should sound, catchy and brutal at the same time.
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| Tracklisting for ‘At First Light’ is as follows: 01. At First Light 02. The Storm 03. The Longest Drive 04. I Silently Wait 05. Sirius 06. Brother Disarmed 07. Prey Forgiveness 08. Damage Done 09. The Thirst 10. Dusk |
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