Review Summary: Look away and wake up...
In a lot of ways, ARCHE is the pinnacle of Dir En Grey’s creativity and passion, to a degree where this could be argued as the band’s best work, or at least on par with UROBOROS. This is the band reflecting on their impressive career up until ARCHE’s release. It brings the feeling of their early work together with the stylistic notes of Uroboros and Dum Spiro Spero in a joyous symphony of arrangements and excellent album structuring.
It’s truly commendable and awe-inspiring that the band is still proving themselves when there is absolutely nothing left to prove, they could have thrown in the towel after 2011’s Dum Spiro Spero and reveled in a timeless legacy as one of the most influential and important bands to come out of Japan on an international scale. The band started strong with GAUZE, peaked with Kisou, then peaked again with VULGAR, and yet again with UROBOROS. Dir En Grey has peaked once again on their NINTH full-length LP, and throughout its runtime it feels like they know that... ARCHE has this strange confidence about it. While this same confidence was a bit misplaced on Dum Spiro Spero, this is a band with a vision, and the labor put into realizing this vision is astonishing.
ARCHE has hands-down the best production and atmosphere the band has ever achieved. It’s not as oppressive and dark as something like Dum Spiro Spero, bathing itself in warm, brighter tones. This album, similar to the artwork displayed on its face, is like diving into an ocean, being engulfed by the roaring waves, and watching the sunlight shatter and dissipate as you sink to the depths. This is an album layered with various textures and more complicated arrangements. Vocalist, Kyo experiments with operatic singing styles and has begun to stretch his vocal range to near inhuman levels. Often times soaked in a well of reverb, the vocal melodies burst through the instrumentals.
"This album is being worked on with me thinking about the past and future of myself as a vocalist, more than I have had ever before. That place where the old me and the new me crosses is what is being put into the 9th album 'ARCHE'" -Kyo.
With this quote in mind, it’s hard to shake... especially on the song Magayasou which has Kyo hitting some seemingly impossible notes.
But keep in mind that this isn’t Kyo’s solo project. There’s an ensemble of creative and skilled musicians who have perfected their craft here. Every track on ARCHE displays an immaculate sense of melody, each boasting at least one “oh wow” moment to an always chilling degree. Keys and distant vocal murmurs permeate every track giving every song a MASSIVE feeling. It sounds like the band is playing in the middle of a vast landscape, and this fits them better than any other sound / production ever could.
Songs like Cause of Fickleness, and Chain Repulsion echo the band’s first three albums with their fast pace and Visual Kei / Alt-rock stylings, occasionally delving into the Alt-metal / Nu-Metal of VULGAR for the track Midwife. Dir En Grey experiments on the track Phenomenon which has them showing off industrial elements mixed in with the prog-rock explosions in the chorus. Tousei is one of the album highlights as well as a career highlight, basking in its own beauty as the additional bell-like instruments help to solidify the song’s ethereal, otherworldly quality. The song builds to a haunting climax as Kyo pushes his voice to its absolute limits:
“To the emotions buried deep in my heart...
A gentle smile and pulse...”
Following Tousei is another gem, Rinkaku, which sports some intricate and standout symphonic elements which perfectly transition between riffs, along with one of the best choruses the band has ever created, which is something that can be said about almost every track here. It’s a deeply moving experience beginning to end.
As a whole, ARCHE truly feels like bits and pieces of every Dir En Grey album stitched together and held together by the unique and consistent atmosphere. All of their strengths are fleshed out and on display, making this not only a fantastic introductory piece to the band, but one of the most gratifying musical experiences of all time.
Best Tracks:
-Magayasou
-Rinkaku
-Tousei
-Phenomenon
-Uroko
