Finally a release I've waited a long time to finally get my hands on!
Arseeni is a 3 piece Hardcore Punk / Noisey Metal band from Heinola consisting of members: Reea - Lead Vocals , Jimi - Guitar , Patrik - Drums
And their new EP 'Saastaa' is a three song musical assault on the senses in the best way possible
In total: 8 minutes 55 seconds
1. Polvet Ikkunaan 8/10
Though I am more a fan of the raw sound of the demo that Arseeni has posted on their YouTube channel, I feel like this more polished and well rounded full song still has a lot of punch and energy to it that it hasn't lost from said demo. The intro riff is mean, getting you right in the face with a proper suckerpunch as you start off, the simple three chord intro begins the downwards descent into insanity and screaming to ensue.
Jimi has very clean playing throughout the whole song in what I would describe as a perfectly sloppy accurate, very punk playing and the background solo proves that he is also very proficient in picking up the "slack" of his playing for a more well rounded approach.
Reea, performing vocal duties does an amazing job here, though it's a lot less achey on the throat that the original demo is, her screams and gritty shouting are precise, she doesn't stumble over words, nor does she mince them, letting loose over the already noisy instrumental with a nice kick of energy. And I must say that the lyrics are amazing, the chorus is among the best I've heard from younger bands period and they have an angry poetry to them that is well expressed.
Patrik, the man behind the drum kit does an immense job of filling out the guitar shredding and the screaming of his fellow bandmates, with an amazing mixing job on the drums, the cymbals, snare and bass drum shine through beautifully to show the beatdown happening behind the band, big props for the great double bass playing.
Verdict: 8/10, amazing start to the EP
2. Huuda Mulle 10/10 (Personal Favourite)
This song has it all, groovy rhythms, beautiful melodic singing, great bass playing and a chorus filled pure hatred and melancholy, accurately portraying the anger some people can feel towards others. Definitely my favourite from this release.
The guitar playing on this track is superb, the lead guitar channel provides a beautiful cutthroat like sound that carries the listener down the path to scream their lungs out alongside Reea. The rhythm guitar is what I can only accurately describe as being smashed in with a clawhammer, tight boxy chugs accompanied with the bass gives it a lovely wide boom that really gets a guitarist like me to throw a nasty stankface on and chug along on air guitar. Well done Jimi.
Reea on this track is definitely the rawest I've heard her go across all the demoes and songs I've heard thus far, just hearing her belt out the chorus section on this song makes me want to join along, just grab a microphone and scream out all the aggression that lives pent up within. But she also shows an incredible singing voice fitting of more lovey dovey rock or blues songs, I have to appreciate the versatility and the amazing performance.
And once again the human drum machine Patrik does a lethal job on the kick drums, blasting pure machine guns and delivering an ungodly amount of groove throughout the whole song, I would listen to this song for just the drums alone.
Verdict: 10/10, if anything, listen to this song to get a feel for Arseeni at their grooviest.
3. Laaksos Lomal 8/10
A song about being locked into the psych ward and forced to take drugs? Now that is something I can definitely get behind.
Regardless this song is brutal, the lyrics paint a beautifully fucked up picture of mental illness and some of the stories regarding people suffering from mental illness, or at least the fear that some mentally ill people have.
Reea does a great job on this song of going absolutely mental on the song, her delivery on the track almost rivals 'Huuda Mulle' in terms of aggression, the lyrics are great and like with the last two songs, the band have a knack for making really good screamable hooks to their songs, this song makes me want to jump in the pit and just go crazy.
Jimi, like the last two songs proves he can do an amazing job at keeping the groove up, the guitars set a beautiful atmosphere to the whole song and the chugs are just as they should to my ears. (I'm assuming) his bass playing on the track is also superb, he can definitely handle his instruments well. Instrumentally this band has everything to win me over from the get go, not to mention the beautiful producing on the EP that lets each member shine through in their own way.
This song serves as a great track to end the EP on, infectiously groovy and undoubtedly heavy, this EP is one for the books for fans of heavier punk sounds akin to Harkko or Rytmihäiriö
Final Verdict: I'll give this EP a strong 9.25/10, it is exactly what I wanted to hear from the band's first EP and it even exceeded my expectations, I can't wait to see where they take their soundscape from here and how the band will evolve from this release onwards. I wish the trio all the best for the years to come and a big kudos for such a great release.
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