A three-piece with one hell of a sound, Arcane Roots may not be a band who you’re currently familiar with, but after listening to their latest 10-piece record, Melancholia Hymns, you’ll instantly fall in love with them. If you’re a fan of huge hitting riffs, colossal vocal ranges and some of the biggest songs of this year, prepare yourself, because this is the album for you.

The madness sets off slowly with ‘Before Me’, an angelic synthesised track which already teleports you to a realm of sonic euphoria. The strained vocals from singer and guitarist Andrew Groves are simply mesmerising and any older fans of Arcane Roots will immediately embrace the warming familiarity of the sound. In true Arcane Roots fashion, the track slowly builds into a kaleidoscopic flurry of colour and noise which makes for the perfect opening to the album and captures the notion of a ‘Melancholia Hymn’ brilliantly, a terrific start which only gets sweeter and sweeter.

From here, the record only takes an increased step towards pure chaos, ‘Matter’ acts as an early single which embodies everything that makes Arcane Roots such a special band. Beautiful harmonies soon burst into one of the heaviest, most detailed tracks I’ve heard this year. The drumming pacing is a work of art in itself bringing together an almost military feel, whilst the underlaying riffs kick in and swerve the track to a new level of madness through the usage of pained screams and heavy distortion. Having seen this band live before and knowing that Andrew is able to perform such riffs without compromising on vocal power is truly a sight to behold and makes the listen just that bit more powerful. Likewise, tracks such as ‘Everything [All At Once]’ take this heaviness to all new levels, getting to points where the album begins to branch into what some could easily mistake as heavy thrash metal! Arcane Roots still manage to hold it together and create a sound which goes un-replicated by any other band around today.

Rather than being a selection of various tracks, Melancholia Hymns acts as a brilliant example of an album which can be enjoyed from both start to finish or as a selective listening process. Every track blends beautifully with the last, some featuring a nice level of continuity all whilst still holding their own unique place and bringing unique character to the album. This variance is yet another key aspect behind what makes this album such a satisfying listen, ‘Curtains’ is an excellent example of how Arcane Roots are unafraid to experiment heavily within their material. The track’s slower introduction and soothing harmonies paints it to be a sombre, intricate song through phased vocals, a clean synth and even some fancy piano work, before the single biggest drop that I’ve heard on any record all year! Honestly, the pure magnitude of this song is not something that can be truly appreciated in mere words. The listen puts you in a pure state of awe as each note hits with the punch of a double decker bus, the track feels as though it almost follows the narrative of a fallen angel’s journey as it slowly drags you through hell itself in an encounter you can’t escape from. The abrupt ending and prolonged minimal outro makes the listen even more harrowing than first anticipated, definitely a somewhat disturbing highlight for myself.

Melancholia Hymns came as a listen that I needed at just the right time. This was an album which I genuinely never wanted to end, it is clear that Arcane Roots know what makes a titanic track without incorporating the unnecessary, a terrific trait for any band to achieve. It would be incredibly easy for me to dissect every track on this record, forget a picture painting a thousand words, every Arcane Roots song could easily double that number! What more could a reviewer ask for?

Melancholia Hymns has almost certainly taken the title as my favourite album of this year and will be one which I will be coming back to over and over again. I would advise anyone on the hunt for something fresh to give Arcane Roots a go, I can assure you that you won’t regret it and will be eager to join the melancholic church as soon as admissions open!

Ben Walker

Website: arcaneroots.com
Facebook: facebook.com/ArcaneRoots
Twitter: twitter.com/ArcaneRoots