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Arcanar - The Dusty Sovereign review



Reviewer:
7.8

3 users:
6.33
Band: Arcanar
Album: The Dusty Sovereign
Release date: 2007


01. Intro
02. The Shadow Of Oneself
03. Without Changes
04. Etude #1
05. The Dusty Sovereign
06. I Could Be Different
07. Etude #2
08. Insomnia
09. Arcanar

Some genres really don't go along with each other, I used to think that mixing Death and Doom was a bad idea, then Arcanar appeared at my doorstep and made me think twice, this is definitely one of the most interesting albums this year!

This is also really hard to digest though, the band plays Death/Doom metal while tapping the vein of Amorphis and Novembers Doom, the music is actually quite fresh as most of the time you'll be hearing acoustic passages and mild solos that are in one word uplifting and by far intriguing, but it's impossible not to notice the influences this band has, the main scheme comes in the form of melodious intros+Death Metal+gloomy atmospheres and more acoustic passages; the truth is, even if we have seen this formula before, the band manages to keep the music flowing with intensity and aggression and it never gets old or boring, a good way to show their songwriting abilities and good extra features.

The hard thing for the band will always be to impress both Doom and Death Metal aficionados, they are also smart enough to draw a line and they definitely fall more into the Doom category to catch the dark-wave's people attention first; the album, as soft as it is, has a very versatile approach and it is not even partially made to suit just one mind but many, it doesn't really matters the way or how you absorb the music, the main thing is that you will do it and that's about it.

Overall this is a very good album, everything from the creepy layout and the top-notch production fits with the music; in the end it all comes down to one thing, taste, if you can handle a lethargic album with many Death undertones, then you have here the greatest specimen from Russia.

Best Tracks: "The Shadow Of Oneself", "Insomnia"


Rating breakdown
Performance: 8
Songwriting: 8
Originality: 7
Production: 8

Written by Herzebeth | 16.10.2007




Comments

Comments: 1   Visited by: 9 users
16.10.2007 - 17:12
annodomini

I have this album almost a year and its briliant this one of the most Doom albums i am listening. Try amber tears
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