ARCANE ROOTS RETURN WITH NEW SONG
Copyright: Miguel Santana Da Silva
After a eight-year silence, Arcane Roots has officially reformed. The band celebrates their return with 'A Wave, Across The Sea,' their first piece of new music since 2018. A six-minute masterpiece of shifting dynamics, the track serves as a bold reminder of the technical breadth and emotional power that defined the band's legacy.
The single marks the start of a "full circle" partnership with Big Scary Monsters (BSM). In a poetic twist, the band joins the roster just as the label celebrates its 25th anniversary, a milestone for the very label a young Arcane Roots once dreamed of joining.
Following their 2018 hiatus, the members of Arcane Roots drifted into vastly different lives across the globe. However, the pull toward a reunion remained. This rebirth sees the band evolve from a trio into an expanded lineup, featuring the return of founding member Daryl Atkins and the addition of Icelandic composer Bjarni Biering.
Vocalist and guitarist Andrew Groves reflects on the reformation: "When we disbanded the band in 2018, it was always with the understanding that we could return one day under better circumstances. Founding drummer Daryl Atkins & myself had long been looking for a way to continue creating together, after him needing to leave Arcane Roots in 2015. Our busy work schedules had other plans however and it wasn’t until a chance meeting with Icelandic composer Bjarni Biering, after relocating to Iceland in 2019, that we struck upon the unlikely songwriting partnership that we have today. Within a short time we felt we had something to share and began to set the stage to see if this could become the supergroup we’d all dreamed of. We’re still exploring that to this day, that excitement & challenge commands absolutely everything we do and it feels completely limitless right now."
The band’s live return will be anchored by two major 2026 festival exclusives: 2000trees and ArcTanGent.
At 2000trees, the band will headline the Axiom stage on Friday night (July 10th), followed by a special stripped-back performance on the Forest stage the next day. Warm-up shows are expected to be announced soon via the band's mailing list and Discord.
Regarding the choice of venues, Groves explains: "If you were going to ask me where I would want to present such a pivotal event in our lives, 2000 Trees & ATG would be the immediate retort. They have always served as both a source of raucous celebration and loving home-away-from-home for us. We’ve always given our all to make Arcane Roots the very best it could be and now this rebirth feels like we’ve only just scratched the surface. There is nowhere more fitting for us to share our new findings with."
'A Wave, Across The Sea' was premiered as the Track of the Week on the BBC Radio 1 Rock Show on January 26th. Fans can listen back to the premiere via BBC Sounds.
