Review Summary: Refined contrast and beautiful evolution.
Melancholy is a fact of life. Melancholy characterizes an existence lacking in volition and meaning. Today, reinforced by modern-day nihilism and apathy, melancholy can become a person’s default emotional state, repressing joy and sadness both, leaving a husk of a person.
It is fitting, then, that Melancholia Hymns has the power to release emotion amidst monotony and emptiness. Combining disparate genres into a unique sound, the album equally invokes serenity and anger, happiness and sadness. Lush and layered production provides an eerie reflection of the layers separating human emotion from expression. Just as vocalist Andrew Groves bursts through the wall of sound, so do the triumphs of humanity burst through apathy and separation. The lyrics fit this motif, as Groves says: “I became obsessed with the people who come along throughout history and try to intelligently document and better the issues of the world.”
Vocally, Groves’ performance alternates between pensive and incendiary and back again, consistently evocative. The haunting phrase sung in ‘Indigo,’ “just say the word, I’ll go, if that’s what you’re saying…” begins distorted and unclear, as though emerging slowly from fog. The words gain clarity and are joined by percussion, as if just vocalizing something grants confidence, before fading again into obscurity. Groves also screams, sparingly, in a way which emphasizes the emotion inherent in his words--a tact that served the band well in their EP Heaven and Earth. The result is that while screamed vocals are less common on Melancholia Hymns than previous albums, they often feel more impactful.
The progression in the track Indigo-from clarity to distortion and back again-pervades Melancholia Hymns. The songs give, take, and give again. Album opener Before Me fades in, reaches a crescendo, then fades again. Matter follows up with classic Arcane Roots riffing, then the album wanes into the introspective, beautiful, and interestingly-structured Indigo. And this ebb and flow continues through the tracklist.
Electronic elements lend an affecting, haunting quality and atmosphere to the album’s slower tracks while receding to allow faster tracks to focus more on instrumentation and energy. Math rock influence is constantly in a balance with electronic; some would describe this interplay as cluttered and mismatched and say it detracts from the album. However, the skill with which a balance was struck prevents the music from sounding confused and jumbled. Indeed, one positive effect of combining influences in this way is to make the album an easy first listen which continues to reward repeat spins.
Groves’ bandmates Adam Burton (bass and backing vocals) and Jack Wrench (drums and backing vocals) may take a back seat to Groves himself, but their performances are characteristically strong. The deep rumble of the bass and uptempo drumming on ‘Everything (All at Once)’ both eclipse the vocals and constitute a fast, in-your-face track which eventually reaches breakneck speed.
Fans of Arcane Roots’ old material may be disappointed by the relatively lighter side of the band which Melancholia Hymns represents. Nevertheless, that which Arcane Roots lost in immediate punch was gained in lasting effect. This record may not be as raw in vocal or musical production and sound, but it is at times more impactful and continues to reward perseverance-tracks originally skipped over have, after the 10th listen, the ability to replace early favorites.
Melancholia Hymns is consistently affecting over its 54-minute length, but suffers from some downfalls. ‘Fireflies’ can drag and may suffer from overbearing effects on Grower’s voice and a commitment to these effects. Occasionally the screamed vocals feel a bit low in the mix, detrimentally softening the force of some vocal delivery.
But the album is a triumph nonetheless. Melancholia Hymns can listen like indie rock, math rock, electronic, and hardcore combined. Such a mixture could end disastrously, but Arcane Roots deftly tread the line between contrived and cluttered with the end result of a superb album filled to the brim with contrast and, most importantly, beauty.
