Arceye are a thrash/death metal band from the UK who are getting ready to release their sophomore album At First Light on August 6. I have spent a significant amount of time with this album (since early June) and have had a love/hate relationship with it. Arceye are a band of solid metal musicians who play a very aggressive death/thrash hybrid in the likes of Lamb of God but there is something about them, and this album that is lacking the long lasting effects of other albums I have listened to this year. There are some really solid songs on this album but my overall feel of it is that it is too long and it is a bit uneven throughout. On the issue of length, if they would have left a song or two out, this album would probably flow better and in turn be a more enjoyable listen but the fact is it is all over the place.
The title track and first song on the album is an absolute burner. With a slow-paced intro, followed by some mid-tempo drumming then right into the main riff of the song, this song goes a long way to show how adept this band can be. But from there this album becomes a mish-mash of styles. From the sometimes death growl to the metalcore screams to the clean singing the vocals and the band are showing that they just don’t know what direction they want this album to go. This is a shame because there is a lot of potential that can be heard on this album but it doesn’t translate well enough through the songs. As I said earlier I have listened to this album for several weeks before trying to put my thoughts down in a review and I believe the reason for my trepidation was I didn’t know what type of album At First Light was supposed to be. Is it a death metal album? Is it a thrash metal album? Is it a metalcore album? What the hell is this supposed to be!
The inclusion of the two instrumental pieces to this album does not help matters either, all they do is extend the running time and test the listener’s patience. The instrumentals 'The Longest Drive' and 'Sirius' are good songs and well performed but they feel out of place. It makes the album seem almost bipolar in its overall feel. One minute I am thrashing out to a song like 'I Silently Wait' and then boom the sweet sounds and arrangement of 'Sirius' kick in and I am left wondering why we had to stop the pummeling that we were enjoying? I will say it again; this album is all over the place.
Look, I don’t hate this album by any stretch but it is not something that is going to stay on constant rotation on my MP3 player. There are a couple of standout songs on it but overall there is not enough stability in the style to keep me interested for as long as this album is in duration. The irony is that the one song on this album that really sticks with me is the instrumental 'Sirius'! It might just be me personally but if I am going to give a band my money I want to be able to really like if not love what I am listening to and I just don’t get that feeling with this album.
Until Later, Peace!
