UMUR
"Monuments" is the debut full-length studio album by Macedonian death metal act Aeon Arcanum. The album was released in October 2011 through Alatir Promotions.
The music on "Monuments" is death metal with some at times semi-progressive ideas and flair for melody. But that´s actually not what I thought upon listening to the first track on the album called "Dyshoria". "Dyshoria" is a full blown melodic doom/death metal track and while there are certainly other heavy doomy riffs on the album that track does set itself apart from the rest of the songs on the album. Fortunately Aeon Arcanum are not a one-trick pony and they master all styles they explore on the album. Melodic lead guitar themes play a big role in Aeon Arcanum´s music. The leads are melancholic and darkly beautiful. The rythm section is really well playing and make quite a few shifs in the songs, from doomy slow beats to blast beats. The growling vocals are convincing and well executed.
upon conclusion "Monuments" is a very impressive debut album by Aeon Arcanum. The songwriting is on a very high quality level, the musicianship is excellent and the delivery convincing. The only issue here is the sound production, or more precisely the drum production, which has an artificial digital sound that doesn´t suit the rest of the music very well. Still this is a quality release fully deserving a 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating. Listen and learn kids. This is how you make an effectful entrance to the scene.