As a label Transcending Obscurity have had a great year and an outstanding attitude in pushing new talent so here we are with another debut, this time some funeral doom from the spiritual home of the genre, Finland.

At thirty-seven minutes it is a concise debut, though two of the three tracks are around the quarter hour mark so nothing too outlandish here. So onwards..

‘Reverential Silence’ moves like slow mist and fallen snow. It’s a smooth, bleak sound echoing into the darkness with references to Thergothon and Skepticism both but without the classical poetic feel of the latter, maybe Ahab too at their slowest. They have a nice touch of the delicate acoustic here and there too, sweetly picked before the grey wave once more engulfs it. The vocals are pretty good too in that strange lurking presence manner.

The shorter ‘Transition’ reminds me a little of some borderline dungeon synth/ambient black metal in the way it uses a bittersweet acoustic guitar song to transport you gently, but persistently. A little spoken word may feel a little harsh, perhaps a little lower and softer in the mix would have been better but it does position you as the ethereal music wafts around the space.

‘In A Solace Light’ pretty much mirrors the open song; grey, slow gliding riff that passes through moments of melancholy melody. However this one really sinks in. It has a traction, a subtle strength to the melody that almost imperceptibly but insistently pulls you along. It is what the best funeral doom should do. The unseen undertow in the black river, when contemplation leave you vulnerable to the flow.

There is a lot to like in this debut. It may be that the first track lacks a little presence and motion for me and influences are worn clearly, but ‘Transition’ and ‘In A Solace Light’ with its beautifully judged, heart wrenching end are so good.

No one nails funeral doom straight out of the gate apart from Skepticism and Thergothon but Arche are as close as you can be and they have so much to offer. Better step on board now, they are going to be special.

(7.5/10 Gizmo)

https://www.facebook.com/archedoom

https://archefin.bandcamp.com/album/transitions-atmospheric-funeral-doom-metal