DVD review: Arch Enemy – Tyrants of the Rising Sun: Live in Japan

Being “big in Japan” is one of those industry in-jokes that contains, more often than not, a grain of truth. Much more than a grain in the case of Arch Enemy: Tyrants of the Rising Sun captures them live on stage in Tokyo, in front of a vast throng of hugely enthusiastic Japanese metalheads. You can think what you like of Arch Enemy, of course, but all the evidence shows that they’ve earned their status as one of the leading names in melodic death metal with strong songwriting, awesome instrument skills and great stage presence.

The virtuosity should go without saying, really, considering Arch Enemy were founded by two former members of UK technical death titans Carcass. Michael Amott is still a lynchpin on guitar, balanced out by his brother Chris, and while they may not play with the same chilling and crystalline savagery that Michael’s former outfit made their trademark, there’s no shortage of awesome musicianship on display. Tyrants of the Rising Sun’s quality soundtrack and multiple camera angles let you hear and see fretboard wizardry that’s enough to make you give up hope of ever being anything more than a powerchord hack. Or maybe that’s just me…

The brothers Amott are backed up by a rhythm section that matches their precision while still packing plenty of groove into the proceedings. I’ll probably irk a lot of purists by saying it, but I’m quite fond of melodic death when it’s done right, and Tyrants of the Rising Sun features ninety minutes of exactly that. You’ve got your fierce riffage and double-kick bludgeon, but you’ve also got your big soaring melodies and your epic solo work, carefully constructed into songs that flow with their own narrative sense.

The there’s your screamed vocals, of course – and here one has to consider that, while they have plenty of clout in every other department, having a svelte and charismatic blonde girl on vocal duties can’t have done Arch Enemy any harm in the popularity stakes. But Angela Gossow is no bolt-on pin-up extra – the girl has an impressive voice, gutsy and fierce without losing definition. Tyrants of the Rising Sun showcases her great stagecraft, which is evidently rooted in the fact that she really enjoys her work; she may not be the high queen of between-song banter, but while she’s singing she’s all over the place, throwing the rock god poses, bigging up her bandmates and egging on the crowd – who, it should be noted, exhibit a politeness that is sadly lacking in UK shows of a similar size. A lesson from Japan: you can have a good time without being an arsehole.

The crowd’s enthusiasm is unfeigned; a careful mixing job ensures that the music comes over clear, but you also get the crowd noise… which includes them singing along to the main melodic hooks. Arch Enemy pull out every trick from the stadium metal playbook; a carefully constructed set that flows effortlessly from track to track, featuring a good mix of old and new material plus plenty of chances for everyone to get their moment in the spotlight.

Gossow is the main focal point, of course, but the brothers Amott get plenty of shred-out moments… and Daniel Erlandsson gets to do a drum solo intro to one tune that avoids the cardinal sin of drum soloing, namely going on too long. Tyrants of the Rising Sun shows a band at the top of their game; at this level of the industry, it’s not just about the music any more. It’s about the theatre, the production as a whole… and while watching the DVD isn’t just like actually being there (no video ever can be, after all), it has the advantage of letting you notice all the bits that you might have missed by being crammed up against your fellow fans in the standing area.

The inevitable tour diary/rockumentary bit is filed under the ‘extras’ menu on the disc alongside a few promo videos. We get some footage of Michael Amott reflecting on the fortune of his own writing tastes in music coinciding with those of the Japanese thrash and metal fanbase, Angela talking about the intensity of Arch Enemy’s popularity, and various snippets from everyone about the songwriting process and what they think of Japan.

This is all intercut with the ephemera of touring, from eating snacks on bullet trains to wandering downtown Tokyo, plus topless dudes airdrumming with pink glowsticks, a trip to the ESP guitar factories, and Michael getting caned by Guitar Hero on his own tunes. It’s a bit patchy, really, lacking the narrative of the band’s stage show, but it’s the concert footage that is justifiably front and centre on Tyrants of the Rising Sun – and that’s an ideal accompaniment to an evening on the sofa hiding from the cold weather.