Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Arcana 13 - Danza Macabra (2016)

If you like doom, you're going to find something here in Italy's Arcana 13 who are obviously inspired by horror greats like Luciano Fulci and Dario Argento. According to the press leaflet I have here, the band sort of considers their style to be like a soundtrack of sorts to movies like The Beyond or Inferno (the latter of which I have, so I can actually test that out if need be) which I can certainly see plausible. Obviously they've been influenced by Goblin as well, so much so that they covered the famous “Suspiria” theme. These guys are actually made up of members of Mnemic, The Modern Age Slavery and Void Of Sleep among others, bringing a surprising mix into this occult doom act.

Vocalist and guitarist Simone Bertozzi really makes his presence known here as well, not just in his pleasant clean vocal tones, but also in his seventies inspired riff-matter, which can sometimes take a turn into obscure horror territory that was half-borrowed from Goblin. To be honest, much of this band owes it's existence to acts like Goblin as well as Coven and other early occult rock bands that really helped to pave the way for this kind of creepy music.

Danza Macabra is the kind of record that really can get stuck in your head, just like any good rock album I feel, and that's one of the main reasons why I decided to review it. To me, these proggy infusions bring in a lot of structure to the material and what I'd more or less consider “damn good playing” in general. That can also be coupled with fantastic solos and just an overall terrific doom product. That being said, Danza Macabra doesn't feel very evil and it doesn't feel very dark, or very grim. There's definitely a horror influence, but like Ghost, I find it truly pleasing to listen to in it's catchy, pop-rock friendly nature. (“Land Of Revenge” is a good example of this.) If you're looking for the kind of scary good time that I'd definitely recommend to fans of Ghosts and Goblins, then look no further than here.

(8 Tracks, 52:00)

8/10

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