Rock, Metal

Angra - Secret Garden (Japan Limited Edition 2CD) (2014)

2019-08-10T13:23:39Z

Angra - Secret Garden (Japan Limited Edition 2CD) (2014)

CD1:
01. Newborn Me 06:13
02. Black Hearted Soul 04:48
03. Final Light 04:24
04. Storm of Emotions 04:56
05. Violet Sky 04:48
06. Secret Garden 04:03
07. Upper Levels 06:28
08. Crushing Room 05:07
09. Perfect Symmetry 04:22
10. Silent Call 03:48

CD2: Live At Loud Park 13
01. Angels Cry
02. Nothing To Say
03. Waiting Silence
04. Time
05. Lisbon
06. Winds Of Destination
07. Gentle Change
08. Unfinished Allegro
09. Carry On
10. Rebirth
11. Nova Era

Backing Vocals [Additional] – Patrik Johansson, Tony Lindgren
Bass – Felipe Andreoli
Choir – Alessio Lucatti, Alirio Netto, Bruno Sutter, Claudia França, Fernanda Gianesella, Juliana Pasini, Ronaldo Dias
Drums – Bruno Valverde
Guest, Orchestrated By – Henri Wilkinson, Maria Ilmoniemi
Guest, Organ [Hammond], Piano – Maria Ilmoniemi
Guest, Percussion – Eduardo "Cubano" Espasande
Guest, Sounds [Orchestra] – Jon Phipps
Guest, Vocals – Doro Pesch, Simone Simons
Guitar – Kiko Loureiro, Rafael Bittencourt
Performer [Keyboards], Programmed By [Keyboards] – Alessio Lucatti, André Alvinzi, Felipe Andreoli, Kaspar Dahlqvist,
 Kiko Loureiro, Mattias Hjelm, Nei Medeiros
Vocals – Fabio Lione, Rafael Bittencourt

Angra have always been one of progressive power metal’s more enduring and innovating acts, always aiming to push the boundaries of progressive metal from release to release. However, on Secret Garden we see Angra streamlining their sound a bit. The incorporation of Brazilian-influenced music the band are well renowned for are only displayed on the odd occasion on Secret Garden, classic prog power is more embraced here and the album’s run time of 48 minutes sees the band pushing a more reined-in sound.

Chugging guitar rhythms, synth, keyboards and expressive shred guitar work form the sustenance of the album, and prog metal fans will have heard this a hundred times before. But Angra definitely do it as well as the majority of their peers here and the album’s more reined in approach doesn't necessarily mean this isn’t a fairly enjoyable listen. Performances are still accomplished across the board and the song writing is solid. Kikko Loureiro is one of metal’s finest guitarists and he still shows off his chops through the album’s run time, with complementary lead work and technical riff breaks. Angra aren’t afraid to get into the higher tempos on Secret Garden, which is a good thing as a lot of prog metal plods along at the same tempo from start to finish. The album’s second track ‘Black Hearted Soul’ hearkens back to the band’s power metal roots and is one of the tracks that can almost hold up to their best work, it almost wouldn't sound out of place on ‘Aurora Consurgens’. However, the band never matches up the works of their glory years here.

The title track was a nice surprise on Secret Garden, defying conventions for an album title track to an extent. The track is made up of pleasant orchestration and makes the use of the guest vocal appearances well to make the track one of the more memorable cuts on the album. Speaking of which, the band secured appearances from Simone Simons and Doro Pesch, both of whom should need no introduction to any fan of this style of metal. The use of the guests is done well and is a good addition to the album.

If you go into your first listen of Secret Garden expecting Rebirth or Temple of Shadows part two then you are going to be disappointed. However, if you go in with reduced expectations then Secret Garden should provide a fair amount of enjoyment for fans of this style. For people looking to get into progressive metal, this isn't the album that is going to do it. Secret Garden is a solid effort of prog power, but doesn't quite live up to the quality you would expect from the Angra name. In a genre that is home to some of metal’s mightiest acts (Anubis Gate, Dream Theater, Pagan’s Mind etc.), Angra find themselves slumping from sharing a spot in the top tier of this genre with these acts, and finding themselves on a similar level as aspiring band’s in this genre. Secret Garden is a solid and enjoyable release, but not a one I will be reaching out for much in the future. ---Light13, metal-archives.com

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Angra ‎– Ømni (2018)

2018-03-05T13:50:37Z

Angra ‎– Ømni (2018)


1 	Light Of Transcendence 	
2 	Travelers Of Time 	
3 	Black Widow’s Web	(Feat. Alissa White-Gluz)
4 	Insania 	
5 	The Bottom Of My Soul 	
6 	War Horns	(Feat. – Kiko Loureiro)
7 	Caveman 	
8 	Magic Mirror 	
9 	Always More 	
10 	Ømni - Silence Inside 	
11 	Ømni - Infinite Nothing

Bass – Felipe Andreoli
Choir – Alirio Netto, Bruno Valverde, Claudya França, Felipe Andreoli,
 Georgia Mello, Gus Soularis, Livia Dabarian, Rafael Bittencourt
Drums – Bruno Valverde
Guitar – Marcelo Barbosa
Guitar, Vocals – Rafael Bittencourt
Keyboards – Alessio Lucatti (tracks: 1 to 3, 5 to 8, 10, 11), Nei Medeiros (tracks: 4, 9)
Orchestra, Arranged By – Francesco Ferrini (tracks: 1 to 4, 6 to 10), Ronaldo "Cordas" de Oliveira (tracks: 5, 11)
Percussion – Dedé Reis (tracks: 2, 3, 6, 7), Tiago Loei (tracks: 4), Wellington Sancho (tracks: 5, 8 to 10)
Vocals – Fabio Lione

Change does not appear to affect Angra. They survived a massive schism around the turn of the century and now Dave Mustaine has hijacked longtime guitarist Kiko Loureiro for Megadeth, they still manage to put together another great album. Most of the current line-up already proved that the (largely) Brazilian band could still pump out great progressive power metal, as ‘Secret Garden’ was the best metal album of 2015. Now that ‘Secret Garden’ has put Angra back on the map, ‘Ømni’ shows the band stretching their boundaries a little. The results are slightly less memorable, but a very rewarding listen nonetheless.

Much to my surprise, Loureiro’s replacement Marcelo Barbosa is an integral part of the album, having contributed significantly to the songwriting. Sole founding member Rafael Bittencourt gratefully profits from the possibilities his guitar partnership with Barbosa provides as well. As a result, ‘Ømni’ ends up sounding less European-tinged power metal and more like a progressive metal album with very distinct world fusion overtones. Angra never shied away from putting their South American roots on display, but it seems like partnering with Barbosa gave Bittencourt the courage to dive deep into crossover opportunities, providing the basis of the most interesting moments of ‘Ømni’.

That does not mean that there is no place for power metal on ‘Ømni’. In fact, the album starts out with two fairly traditional, euphoric power metal numbers, with ‘Travelers Of Time’ being the more contemporary take on the genre and ‘Light Of Transcendence’ the more old school one. Even these tracks sound fresh though, as Angra always had a way of rubbing up against clichés, but never fully engaging. On the metallic side of the album, ‘Magic Mirror’ is great, but ‘War Horns’ is the true winner. Darker and heavier than Angra usually sounds, it is an intense listening experience, on which Loureiro guests.

Despite all this familiarity, ‘Ømni’ is best when it surprises. The semi-ballad ‘The Bottom Of My Soul’ has a very folky basis and some beautifully heartfelt vocals by Bittencourt, while ‘Caveman’ has some chants in Portuguese and Latin-flavored drums and percussion alternating with the stomping riff work and Fabio Lione’s mighty voice. The complete fusion of all styles can be heard in ‘Ømni – Silence Inside’, in which we can hear everything from subtle bossa nova touches to virtuosic progmetal without ever sounding disjointed. If anything, the song has a supreme build-up. ‘Black Widow’s Web’ may come across as messy, but is too enjoyable a dark progster to complain. ‘Insania’ contains some of Felipe Andreoli’s best bass work yet.

All in all, ‘Ømni’ presents quite a unique mixture of styles which leaves you wondering why this combination is not attempted more often. It is a great progressive metal album that may not be as easy to digest as ‘Secret Garden’ was, but will probably prove to be more durable throughout. ‘Ømni’ is one of those albums that slowly reveals its small secrets over repeated listens. In addition, it is the ultimate evidence that Angra still has its artistic merits more than two and a half decades into their career. Anyone who wishes to hear how versatile the guitar can be in a metal context, should give ‘Ømni’ a spin. ---Agonymph, metal-archives.com

“ØMNI” jest koncept albumem zbierającym krótkie opowieści science fiction rozgrywające się w tym samym czasie w różnych miejscach. Motyw przewodni historii, opowiadanej przez podróżników w czasie, jaskiniowców, czy wojowników, oparty jest na pomyśle, że w 2046 roku system sztucznej inteligencji zmieni procesy ludzkiej percepcji i umożliwi świadomą komunikację z ludźmi żyjącymi w przyszłości. Koncept albumu wiąże się z historiami zaprezentowanymi na poprzednich płytach Angry (“Holy Land”, “Rebirth”, “Temple of Shadows”) w jeden system o nazwie “ØMNI”, którego nazwa po łacinie oznacza "wszystko". ---magazyngitarzysta.pl

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