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Arcanum Sanctum - “Ad Astra” - Reviewed By Necromance Magazine! Saturday January 23 2021, 3:45 PM

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Arcanum Sanctum - “Ad Astra” - Reviewed By Necromance Magazine ! check it out here at this link: http://necromance.eu/arcanum-sanctum-rus-ad-astra/

The melodic death metal band ARCANUM SANCTUM is created in October 2004 in Komsomolsk-on-Amur (Russia). His debut album “Fidus Achates”, released in 2010 by More Hate Prod, was succeeded by “Veritas Odium Parit” in 2012, released this time by Buil2Kill Records. The new album by Vadim Nalivaiko (guitar and voice), Kirill Kulinitchev (bass), Roman Rysyev (guitar) and Danil Galles (drums) is entitled "Ad Astra" and was released on August 28, 2020, 8 years later from your previous job.

"Ad Astra" is an album dedicated to Soviet science fiction in all respects: the lyrics are based on the works of science fiction writers and the music is influenced by the soundtracks of science fiction movies. Tonally, he follows the melodic path of his previous works using numerous layers of keyboards and the passionate and heartbreaking voice of Vadim Nalivaiko. The visceral impulse of his early work is still present but is almost always tempered with a feeling of sad melancholy. The highlight of “Ad Astra,” and especially notable on its most powerful tracks, is its strong thematic backbone. The songs are usually medium paced but manage to have enough changes to keep them from getting boring.

The LP starts with an instrumental prelude, “Wanderers in Space”, a very melodic sound recreating a futuristic atmosphere to give way to “The Quest”, where we will be able to hear the chorus of Anna Khitrova at the beginning. The clean, throaty vocal mix on “Down to Earth” is perfect for me with those melodic synths in the background; ultimately they create a very catchy track. The synthesizers are still as memorable as they have been since “Fidus Achates”, they are present in just the right amount and without overwhelming, blending with the rest of the instrumentation. There are some scattered clean vocals that add something to the mix that makes me wish there was more, I love Vadim's voice and the good work he does.

There is not a weak track on the album, the catchiest and most memorable moments and riffs are spread throughout its 32 minute length. "Ad Astra" is full of overflowing nuances of creativity where melancholy and vitality find a unique balance. - 9/10 - Necromance Magazine

Russian melodic death metal band with Soviet sci-fi movie soundtrack approach. After two well-received albums of catchy uptempo melodic thrash-death metal with traditional harsh vocals the band decides to step aside from the beaten path and explore new grounds.This exploration turns into a breathtaking journey through space and time. The band finds its inexhaustible source of inspiration in the past. It's not a secret that things we encounter as kids leave the deepest traces in our souls. By a twist of fate all members of ARCANUM SANCTUM were born at the end of a so-called Golden Age of Space exploration and caught its echoes in a form of sci-fi books, movies, cartoons and associated soundtracks popular in their childhood. Still exciting and inspiring for the band, this theme determines the new direction its music takes on the new album.

For fans of Dark Tranquility, Amorphis, Omnium Gatherum

Formed back in 2004 in Komsomolsk-on-Amur (the Far East of Russia) as a brainchild of Vadim Nalivaiko , ARCANUM SANCTUM have remained the adepts of melodic death metal throughout the years. With the debut recorded using a trial-and-error method in their home studio due to the absence of any more or less professional recording studios in the city the guys reach satisfactory level of quality. Actually, “ Fidus Achates ” – the debut album of ARCANUM SANCTUM finished in January of 2009 – is the most proficient metal record made in their region back then. On this almost completely Russian-language album (except for one song –
“ Shadowed ”) released by MORE HATE PROD . in 2010 and warmly welcomed by fans and the press (Surprise of the month at www.metalreviews.com in August of 2010) the band takes traditional melodic death metal to heart and combines this sound with elements of technical thrash metal and contrasting deep melodic instrumentals – as stated by the press the dynamic switch between aggressive melodic death metal and both acoustic and keyboard instrumentals is this album’s most captivating aspect.

Having no stable line-up yet inspired by warm reception of the debut, Vadim decides to focus on composing the new songs for the follow-up album. " Veritas Odium Parit " is released in December of 2012 by BUIL2KILL RECORDS under the auspices of the legends of technical death metal – SADIST (Italy). The album gets positive reviews worldwide. According to the musical critics, “ Veritas Odium Parit ” raises the band to a new level and proves its versatility and maturity – the songs are very melodic, complex and found the converging point of aggression and technique with progressive touch. Enthusiastic about the band’s progress, new members come on board even despite the 1150km distance between their hometown and the base-city of the band – as is the case with Nikolay Kondratyev (drums, FALLCIE , ex- DEHYDRATED ). With the new line-up ARCANUM SANCTUM participate in MADE IN KOREA metal festival ( Seoul, Republic of Korea ).

Soon after the band gets in touch with Mort prod. (China) and schedules a China tour for May- June of 2015. Along with playing shows in the Far Eastern region and preparing for the tour, Vadim develops a totally new album concept with a challenging approach to composing. After the China tour the musicians decide to focus on new material occasionally playing some local shows. The new album is dedicated to the Soviet science fiction with lyrics based on the works of the Soviet sci-fi writers and the music significantly influenced by the Soviet sci-fi movie soundtracks and such bands with progressive and non-trivial approach, like AMORPHIS and DARK TRANQUILLITY . The English language of the lyrics opens the worlds created behind the "Iron Curtain" to those who is not familiar with the Soviet school of sci-fi devoid of shopworn alien invaders and apocalyptic prophecies, while the deep and majestic growls and confident clean singing of the new vocalist Ivan Beschastny embody spiritual and physical strength of the men of future.

After a long, both physically and mentally demanding process of composing and recording the album is mixed and mastered at Unisound AB by the famous Dan Swanö . The CD titled “ Ad Astra ” is self-released by ARCANUM SANCTUM in summer of 2020.

Album art and track listing below!

Arcanum Sanctum Ad Astra coverart.png

1. Wanderers in Space 01:36
2. The Quest 04:39
3. Pack Rat 04:28
4. Down to Earth 03:06
5. Ad Astra 04:21
6. A Perfect Place (to Hide) 05:07
7. Solaris 04:00
8. Under the Alien Sky 05:07

ARCANUM SANCTUM.jpg