Finland’s Arche present their first long-player, Transitions.

Arche is a two-piece funeral doom band comprised of E. Kuismin (guitar, bass, keys, vocals) and V. Raittila (drums, backing vocals). Their first recording was released in 2015, the EP Undercurrents. The earlier music is very memorable and impressive. Even so, the new album is a major step up in terms of composition and delivery. There are three songs on Transitions.

“Reverential Silence” builds anticipation with its gradual, self-assured entry. The music is not cavernous, but it is insular – like walking through a valley with steep cliffs on either side of you while the sky is open above … a dark sky. It is a beautiful lullaby to demise. Reassuringly wan in its final panels, the doom is delivered here with great elegance.

“Transition” is the shortest of the trio at six and a half minutes, and yet it carries nearly as much weight as its fellows. Quiet, almost tentative initially, the acoustic guitar that leads the way is enthralling in its sentiment. It is a virtuous intender but not necessarily a beneficent one. In other words, sometimes doing what must be done has terrible consequences.

“In A Solace Light” begins with a more familiar funeral doom framing. The massive riffs are softened a bit by their extensions, but they are not weakened. The tone is melancholy, deep and absolute. The vocals are disembodied, coming from nowhere and everywhere. Are they seeking or are they merely being? An absolutism could be applied in the cold distance, and that is perhaps where the throbbing truth lies. The dark beauty of this music is overwhelming. Recommended.

Transitions is out now through Transcending Obscurity Records. In the US, Bandcamp is a good place to pick up the album in its many forms, and the merch that goes along with it.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://archefin.bandcamp.com/album/transitions-atmospheric-funeral-doom-metal

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/archedoom

Transcending Obscurity Records, https://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/

© Wayne Edwards