1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Arche was formed officially in 2014 when Ville Raittila and Panu Raatikainen joined in. Before that I had about a three year period of composing and contemplating the ways to get the ideas to manifest. We play music that could be described as Doom Metal or Funeral Doom.
2.So far you have released an ep, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
Organic, dynamic, crushing.
3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Arche is a mirror for my development as a human being and as an artist. So basically the lyrics are important events or realisations on my path. For me Arche marks a before and after on many levels.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Arche'?
The name Arche was taken from a Greek philosophy meaning indefinite substance from which all things are born and to which all things will return.
5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Actually, we haven’t played any shows yet. For now we have been functioning as a studio project.
6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
Not yet.
7.So far the ep has been released by both Faceless Recordings and Third I Rx, are you happy with the support both labels have given you so far?
Graceless Recordings and Third I Rex have both been enormous supporters and truly nice people to work with, and we are happy to work with them.
8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of funeral doom metal?
The feedback has been really good. As newcomers in a genre full of so many great bands it’s amazing.
9.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Ville Raittila is playing bass in Worthless, a Death Metal band recommended for fans of Celtic Frost and Hellhammer, Panu Raatikainen is finishing his studies in music technology and I’m composing music for video games.
10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Our next release (full length) is already written, and it seems to only deepen the exploration of strong melodies and variations, while balancing between minor and major chords. It will be a natural continuum to ‘Undercurrents’.
11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
When writing songs I rely heavily on intuition, so I’m not consciously looking for any influences from other bands.
I’m really into good movie scores and video game music. Of course I love many Doom Metal bands and many other bands on a wider spectrum, but there is something that truly inspires me in soundtracks of some older games that I grew up with.
12.What are some of your non musical interests?
So called Esotericism. Arts in general.
13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
‘Undercurrents’ CD will be out in June and is now available for pre-order here:
https://3rdirex.bandcamp.com/album/undercurrents
Thank you for the interview!
Eerik Kuismin / Arche
