Produced by Jesse Higginson and Arcane
Released: September 21
As unfair as it can be to accuse one band of sounding like another, sometimes there’s just no denying it. In the way that Airbourne sounds like AC/DC and ‘neath sounds like Opeth, Brisbane’s Arcane sounds like Pain of Salvation. Being compared so immediately with such a prominent band in their field can have its drawbacks, but really only if your interpretation is second-rate.
Therefore, Arcane don’t have too many problems, because here is an extremely well-played and well-crafted concept album of melodic progressive metal that would easily stand beside any other album by any better known band of their ilk. Indeed, if there’s a major difference between the two bands, it is that Arcane’s concept clicks much easier than those of PoS, and isn’t cluttered with that band’s odious pseudo-intellectualism. This isn’t to suggest that Arcane don’t make intelligent music; far from it. It’s more like a comparison between Umberto Eco and Richard Dawkins – one no less intelligent than the other, but one is far more readable.
One of the album’s best tricks is that it doesn’t include a lyric sheet, thereby forcing a greater level of concentration on the listener to follow the story of Acolyte Zero, a man obsessed with May 26. Such a theme is dark, of course and with their sweeping arrangements, Arcane match the music to the words. Their hour-long drama mixes in flute-like melody lines in rousing folk-metal sections such as during “The Malice” and, very late in the piece, throw up some clashing, truly heavy riffs in the latter half of “Asylum: Acolyte Zero” and each main movement is broken up with an interlude piece. The highlight is the majestic “Fading”, the twelve-minute centrepiece that represents Zero’s final tipping point. Arcane fills it with dark and luscious melodies and harmonising guitar and keys, a signature of their sound.
Like Voyager's album, Arcane’s Chronicles of the Waking Dream is clear proof that Australia’s progressive metal scene is the equal of that found anywhere.
Released: September 21
As unfair as it can be to accuse one band of sounding like another, sometimes there’s just no denying it. In the way that Airbourne sounds like AC/DC and ‘neath sounds like Opeth, Brisbane’s Arcane sounds like Pain of Salvation. Being compared so immediately with such a prominent band in their field can have its drawbacks, but really only if your interpretation is second-rate.
Therefore, Arcane don’t have too many problems, because here is an extremely well-played and well-crafted concept album of melodic progressive metal that would easily stand beside any other album by any better known band of their ilk. Indeed, if there’s a major difference between the two bands, it is that Arcane’s concept clicks much easier than those of PoS, and isn’t cluttered with that band’s odious pseudo-intellectualism. This isn’t to suggest that Arcane don’t make intelligent music; far from it. It’s more like a comparison between Umberto Eco and Richard Dawkins – one no less intelligent than the other, but one is far more readable.
One of the album’s best tricks is that it doesn’t include a lyric sheet, thereby forcing a greater level of concentration on the listener to follow the story of Acolyte Zero, a man obsessed with May 26. Such a theme is dark, of course and with their sweeping arrangements, Arcane match the music to the words. Their hour-long drama mixes in flute-like melody lines in rousing folk-metal sections such as during “The Malice” and, very late in the piece, throw up some clashing, truly heavy riffs in the latter half of “Asylum: Acolyte Zero” and each main movement is broken up with an interlude piece. The highlight is the majestic “Fading”, the twelve-minute centrepiece that represents Zero’s final tipping point. Arcane fills it with dark and luscious melodies and harmonising guitar and keys, a signature of their sound.
Like Voyager's album, Arcane’s Chronicles of the Waking Dream is clear proof that Australia’s progressive metal scene is the equal of that found anywhere.
- Glimpse
- The Seer
- The Malice
- The First Silent Year
- Secret
- Fading
- The Second Silent Year
- May 26
- The Third Silent Year
- Asylum: Acolyte Zero
- Whisper
Rating: 87%
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