"ARAPACIS-System Deceive (Notemusik)
ARAPACIS always knows to surprise me in a very positive way. The eight new songs on this 5th album are worthy of about forty minutes of rock and metal of a very high level. They start “System Deceive” with the title track “System Deceive, a nice rocker with the harsh voice of Shelle Macpherson cranking it out loud. The mid-piece with innovative drum parts by Marc Retson sounds very cool. And the mood change, that comes thereafter could very well be from a band like RUSH. There are a lot of exciting things happening here and there’s never a dull moment. Shelle’s voice is very pleasant to listen to and on bass guitar they cleverly used the skills of RAVEN frontman and bass beast John Gallagher (Hello John, good to hear you on this amazing album!!). When I think of RAVEN, that mood change reminds me of the one they used on “Tyrant Of The Airways”, which I think is one of the best RAVEN tunes ever recorded! The guitar part from Jerry Fielden is the cherry on the cake here. What an amazing start! “Streets Of Anger” is on next, which is another rocker with a nice natural flow and that raw voice of Shelle. The guitar solo comes from Steph Honde. “Extinction” starts with wild growls of Shelle. Not really a death grunt, but more a brutal growl, that shows the anger. The slow pace completes the dark atmosphere around it. And now for something completely different with the fast rocker “Trespasser”. The wild guitar part is breathtaking and the fast rhythm sometimes reminded me of GILLAN in the early eighties. Another nice surprise unfolds itself in the “Lady Lonely Blues”. ARAPACIS is not afraid to walk away from the paved road and here they show that they can also play the blues, including a harp part of Rick L. The raw, harsh voice of Shelle is very suitable for a side step like that. “Engines Of Despair” has got a DEEP PURPLE kind of keyboard intro. And once again a surprise pops up with the use of a saxophone in this song, which is a revolutionary and very innovative thing to do in the metal scene. The instrument gives it a swing and a drive, that feels very good. After that, we are lost in a “Labyrinth”, which is a song where three guest singers show up. A carousel of several voices make you feel that you’re wandering around in a maze of sounds. Responsible for that are David McGregor, Tom ‘Thodrekr’ Guevara and Isanielle Enright. And if you ever wondered what “The Unknown” sounds like, then you’d better tune in to the last song on this album. The unknown is instrumental, I never knew that. It sounds a bit Indian and creates a laid back and serene atmosphere. You could use that for yoga exercises or meditation. Obviously, there’s a lot of variation here, what makes it an excellent album to listen to and highly enjoyable. The band line-up is Jerry Fielden on guitars, keyboards and mandolin (in “Trespasser”), Shelle Macpherson on vocals, John Gallagher on bass and Marc Retson on drums. Website: http://www.arapacis.com. [8 points] (Toine van Poorten) Metal Maidens Holland"