Arckanum - ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ

September 18, 2009

Reviewer: Matt

Sweden’s Arckanum broke out in the mid-1990s with three moderately well-received albums released in as many years.  For ten years then they were relatively silent, releasing only a few songs on scattered splits and EPs, only to return last year with Antikosmos.  Perhaps most notable for the unique philosophy, a fusion of old Norse spiritualism and chaos-gnosticism, of its creator, Arckanum play straightforward sing-song black metal, roughly in the vein of the classic Scandinavian bands, but with emphasis on “epic” romantic melodies and a sylvan aesthetic.  ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ isn’t terrible, but it’s very simple and lacks conceptual depth. 

With the exception of Antikosmos, Arckanum hasn’t really evolved at all since their 1995 debut, and even Antikosmos, with its sinister and more traditionally “evil” sounding melodies, employed an identical songwriting approach.  ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ has the advantage of a strong production, for the first time allowing Arkcanum’s warm melodies to shine through.

ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ reveals its every secret on the first listen.  Most of the songs follow the same formula: three riffs played four times each, a bridge, then the first two riffs played four times each.  The riffs are similar, most typically a melody transitioning from a blast beat rhythm to a rock beat backed by a bass drum roll (or vice versa), and largely interchangeable.  The melodies, though frequently bordering on saccharine, are marginally enjoyable, but exist in a very limited tonal range, especially on the first half of the album.  And though the first half tends to run together, it’s not bad.  The second half, on the other hand, relies predominantly on thrash-inspired riffing, and the songwriting simply isn’t dynamic enough to sustain the listener’s interest on even the initial listen.

One would hope that a project with a unique worldview would express it in a more captivating manner.  Aside from a few songs - “Þann Svartís”  and “Þursvitnir” are the only standouts - there’s not much here to recommend.  If you have a taste for black metal with simple and epic melodies, you might want to check out Arckanum, and ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ is as good of a choice as any.

Release Date: May 29th, 2009
Label: Debemur Morti Productions

TRACK LISTING

1.  Þórhati
2.  Þann Svartís
3.  Þyrpas Ulfar
4.  Þursvitnir
5.  Þyrstr
6.  Þjóbaugvittr
7.  Þjazagaldr
8.  Þá Kómu Niflstormum
9.  Þrúðkyn
10.  Þríandi
11.  Þyteitr

Total playing time:  47:21

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