Thursday 29 August 2013

Arcade Eyes - S/T Album Review


Arcade Eyes is an Industrial/Sludge Metal Band from Sweden, France and Germany.

The members are

Stephane Adam – Vocals – (From the band Crown)
Jan Oberg – Guitars, Programming and Additional Vocals – (From the band Earthship)
Andre Klein – Drums – (From the band The Smokin 44’s)

Arcade Eyes is a new band who recently came to our attention at Sludgelord. Mainly because of the excellent talent involved. Check out the members and which bands they are from. Crown, Earthship and The Smokin 44’s. What sort of band have they formed? Well it is a wonderful sounding Groove/Industrial/Sludge Metal battering ram by the name of Arcade Eyes.

Arcade Eyes takes elements from each of the member’s main bands and adds huge layers of heavy distorted groove metal riffs to entertain you with over the next 29 mins or so.

Their S/T debut album is such a fast-paced affair it feels like an illegal adrenaline rush taking over your entire body. First track – Circles of Black Shadows – will show you what to expect on this heavy pounding and thundering album. Industrial based Sludge Metal riffs with excellent distorted vocals from Steph. At fist I felt this was a more funkier track from Crown as it has their Industrial style but that soon changes when the fast paced riffs kick in which add a whole lot of groove to the mix. Arcade Eyes have added excellent noises to their music and it gives them a dangerous experimental vibe I was not expecting at all.

Yeah you can tell from the first track that this album is going to be one seriously heavy hard-rocking affair. It goes into overdrive with the heart-pumping second track – Tales of Greed – another winning track where the band show off their creative geniuses by blending Sludge, Industrial and Groove Metal into something wholly original.

The album follows this ingenious path of crunching Industrial Sludge Metal carnage for the remaining six songs or so. The band still has plenty of tricks to surprise you with. The album is one of the most creative I have heard this year. Arcade Eyes have excelled themselves here and deserve praise for the amount of creativity that has gone into this excellent album.

Third track – Waves of Flesh – is probably the best track on the album as each of the band members drive and vision combine into something powerful and with enough force to destroy anything in its path. You can feel the industrial beats coming at you with full force with screeching heavy guitars adding an extra layer of power for good measure. Steph’s vocals are probably the heaviest I have they have ever been. Credit also has to go to Andre, as he is a one-man wrecking machine here. His drumming is immense.

The next two tracks Iron Tongue and Into the Veil last about two mins each and have a thunderous hardcore edge to them. Arcade Eyes do not mess about here. They play brilliant riffs right from the start with the Industrial based Sludge carnage waiting to cause destruction once again. Fasten your seatbelts here folks, as this is the fastest part of the album. It will leave you breathless.

The last three tracks – Fragments, Soundtrack for Salvation and Embrace the Fire will prove finally, what a great band Arcade Eyes actually are. They throw sonic waves of epic riffs at the listener to rock out to. Arcade Eyes embrace their groove side a lot more here especially on Fragments but still maintaining their hypnotic earlier Industrial Sludge metal vibe.

I think I have gone on long enough here folks. Arcade Eyes is an album you cannot ignore. It is a brilliant and powerful ride into the realm of Sludge Metal that will have you begging for more. I hope we see more from Arcade Eyes in the future as the have made a lasting impression with the Sludgelord team. Though I know, the band will be busy with their other respective bands as well.

The album is brilliantly produced and played by all involved. The sound is heavy, crisp and clear right from the start. It has more than enough punch to cause some much-needed damage to your sound system. Arcade Eyes is a band who definitely deserves your attention now and this album is an essential purchase when it is released in October 2013.

Amazing. End Of.

Thanks to the guys for sending us a copy to review. Arcade Eyes will be out to buy October 2013 via DD on BandCamp and CD from Raddatz Records

Check the Band from Links Below

Facebook
BandCamp