Archaios
The Distant

Originating from the Dominican Republic, Archaios have been walking the death metal path for around eighteen years. It’s absolute madness to think that these guys have been making music since 1994 (albeit with a couple of line-up changes here and there), because they all still look about twelve. But it just goes to show how music has played such an important part of their lives, getting into it early on in life and still going strong now. Having released their debut – Out Of The Shadows – in 2006, Archaios are only now just on the verge of releasing the follow up. The Distant hits on Dark Canvas Records on 11/11/11 and I urge you to check it out. Have a little look at their website to hear a preview of what The Distant is offering. You won’t regret it. And if you do, I might have to fight you.

You might be asking yourself why it’s taken so long for this band to release a second record. Let me tell you, it’s not through want of trying. Having garnered fairly decent critical acclaim for their debut, Archaios found it difficult to raise enough support from labels in order to put out any more new music. The extreme nature of their sound being at odds with their countries conservative government, the band finding themselves at the center of a censorship campaign against metal. The Dominican Republic is more famed as a beautiful holiday destination rather than a hotbed of metal talent, but Archaios are here to change that.

They are the first band from their country to have a record released by a North American label, and Dark Canvas are really getting behind this group. Slated to tour the States next year, again the first band from the Dominican Republic to do so,they’re blazing a trail for other such bands to break the barriers set up by the nation to which they belong.

The Distant is forty-five minutes of pure death metal worship. Paying tribute to genre greats yet infusing it with a passion and creativity of their own, Archaios throw out blinding riffs that are just the right side of widdly and place them in combat with some astounding drumming. Blasting those beats like it’s going out of fashion, Johandy Ureña is like some kind of machine. I wouldn’t be surprised if he fell off his stool quite often due to sheer exhaustion.

It’s not all this mass of intensity though, oh no. Because The Distant has moments reminiscent of that scene we all know and love – the early 90’s Gothenburg metal scene. Bands such as In Flames (when they were good), At The Gates (still good) and Dark Tranquility (a massive influence on the group). Keyboard filled passages standing on a par with any of those melodic death metal bands and rising above on a wave of a synth induced apogee on “Approaching Of My Demise.”

Title track “The Distant” starts out all low and dirty, hammering drums and rumbling bass. Vocalist Ramsey Delarge growling his way through the track like a man possessed. And if you’d been through what this band have had to deal with in their history, then you’d be angry too. But Archaios aren’t here to be pissed off and annoyed and wallow in self-pity. No. Archaios are here to tear your face off, to prove that they deserve this new found glory and their place in the metal world. They are using their struggles to fuel the music in the best possible way. By absolutely slaying.