Arsis | ‘Starve for the Devil’

Arsis, if you’re not familiar with them, are responsible for what’s been some the best melodic Death Metal of the past decade.

Praise will always circle their landmark debut ‘A Celebration of Guilt’ which came out on the excellent Willowtip label, and proved itself a true gem of wind tunnel speed and hook-laden venom. Often immensely technical, forget that Gothenburg brand of guff and instead picture Death in a speed racer style duel with Iced Earth and you’re not too far off the mark.

Backing up this obnoxiously good debut with the frankly untouchable ‘A Diamond for Disease’ EP, the band slowly carved a name for themselves through the American underground in the mid 2000’s, before Nuclear Blast scooped them up and their subsequent output entered more debatable territory.

But as everyone knows, Youtube’s video comments comprise the most mentally deficient corner of the known Internet. Viewing the responses to the latest Arsis video, ‘Forced to Rock’, it’s clear that there’s an almost kaleidoscopic display of outrage regarding exactly what direction Virginia’s finest sons of shred have taken with their latest effort. Clearly it’s stirred up quite a hornets nest.

It’s true there’s a lot in ‘Starve for the Devil’ that’s easy to dislike, as the album expands on this indicative opening single in several ways. Things have slowed down, really considerably this time. Accusations of pandering to metalcore fans no doubt abound, and on first listens, it’s hard to shake the feeling of dilution. There’s just not as much raw power in general, and as such their pure emotive charge is so much harder to tap into on first listens.

Crucially though, while they’re still playing with jaw-dropping musicianship, they never once really sound plastic or phoned-in, which is a feat in and of itself. Perhaps what’s hardest to reconcile with the album is that while on first appearances it gives the impression of cheesy, ‘guitar maestro’ fare, they still exhibit a ability to instill tracks with a slow burning excellence that speaks of good songwriting.

‘Closer to Cold’ is a fine example, sounding like a pretty standard melodeath number on first listens, before the real quality of the crystalline guitar lines sinks through.The album’s slapstick video more than anything showcases how they seem to just be rolling with it now, regardless of how they’re perceived, and let the stupid models and pink guitars be damned.

‘Beyond Forlorn’ is a stand-out, no questions asked. How can that chorus melody be dismissed, with shades of Operation:Mindcrime in the guitar and a vocal refrain that sticks to the mind like glue? James Malone is in vicious form, and the acidity of his vocals being one of the best points of the production. Unfortunately that doesn’t disguise the fact that there are definite duds amidst the track listing.

The fact is that there will be many who view Arsis as having produced their greatest work in the past, and the style of this album will not do an iota to convince them otherwise. While it’s easy to look at the changes from what was such a winning formula with some disdain, the bottom line is that the group have produced what’s broadly a very listenable and enjoyable album, and which simply takes time to appreciate.

3.2 / 5 - Lorcan Archer ::: 07/03/09