Unwelcome

Author: Primož Novak

Artist: Arsis
Label: Nuclear Blast
Release: year_month
Running time: 36:37
Rating: 4/5

Americans Arsis have been oddballs of a sort ever since their debut, A Celebration Of Guilt (2004). They hit the scene when metalcore was all the rage, Swedish melodic death metal was getting Americanized, and death metal itself was veering into ever more extreme territory. Throughout their existence, Arsis have tried to put together a kind of combination of melody and technicality. They hit the peak of their technical side with the album We Are The Nightmare (2008), which brought Arsis close to plenty of technical death metal bands in the vein of Necrophagist. On the previous album, Starve For Devil, though, frontman James Malone set the extremity aside and brought in a more rock-oriented approach.

Unwelcome was a good while in the making. Malone wanted to put out an album that would win back some of the trust in Arsis. The lineup changed quite a bit while the record was coming together. The talented guitarist Brandon Ellis joined, and Shawn Priest, who had already been playing with Arsis as a live drummer, took over the drum stool.

Arsis haven’t made any drastic changes on their fifth full-length. The music is still technical, fast and melodic. Unwelcome comes closest to We Are The Nightmare, in a way. Partly because of Shawn Priest’s rapid-fire drumming, and partly because of the guitarists’ technically skilled moves and Malone’s unique vocals, which still sound a lot like some kind of black metal screech. There’s a catch, though. This time Malone put a lot of work into the technicality and speed, which pushed the melody into the background. It’s definitely there, but it doesn’t stand out. Whichever track you pick, you’ll mostly get brutality, including on the cover of Corey Hart’s Sunglasses At Night. That cover is where Malone’s love of the eighties really shows. And judging by how original the cover is, Arsis could actually make a pretty fun covers album.

Guitar soloing has always been the eternal treat with Arsis. This time Brandon Ellis chipped in too, adding some freshness to Malone’s unique soloing. Virtuoso soloing runs through the whole album, then. Shawn Priest’s drumming is also worth praising, while bassist Noah Martin never really makes it to the front.

Unwelcome is more than a solid effort. The only problem is that the songs don’t stand out enough because of a lack of catchy riffs, despite how polished they are.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c66W3A8QEhQ

Lineup

James Malone – vocals, guitar

Brandon Ellis – guitar

Shawn Priest – drums

Noah Martin – bass

Production

Mark Lewis (Audiohammer Studios)

Track list