Progressive power metal from São Paulo, Brazil! They formed back in 1995, then as Refúgio.
PAPYRUS (1999, 2001) SCARLET/SPV
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Line-up: Alexandre Emanuel Claudio - Vocals, Bass Guitar Paulo Frade - Guitars Douglas Codonho - Keyboard Danilo Lopes - Vocals, Drums |
'Papyrus' is Eterna's second album, but I think it is their first one in the English language. This band play melodic power metal, the European style (or should I say the Brazilian kind?). The songs are very catchy, with loads of riffs and hooks to remember. The music is also layered with keyboards. Paulo Frade is a shredder! He delivers some tasty guitar work, and his solos are very nice indeed. What I like about Eterna is that they seem focused on the songwriting first and foremost. So in addition to being more than capable musicians, they deliver music you will sing along to long after the CD has stopped. Just try and listen to "Da Pacem Domine" and see how fast that chorus will stick you your brain! Eterna also uses two different singers. Danilo sings in a higher range, whereas Alexandre stays in the lower areas. The latter also has the most noticeable accent. And when they sing together, it sounds phenomenal. The only downside to this album is that the first half is really great, but the second half sort of looses my interest. They just packed the best songs first on the CD. To sum it up, this might just be one of the better bands you've never heard.
Killer tracks: Working Man, Longevity, Da Pacem Domine, The War Is Over
THE GATE (2001,
2002)
SCARLET/SPV
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Line-up: Leandro Cacoilo - Vocals Paulo Frade - Guitars Douglas Codonho - Keyboard Danilo Lopes - Vocals, Drums Jason Freitas - Bass Guitar |
review to come
TERRA NOVA (2002) ENCORE RECORDS
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Line-up: Leandro Caçolio - Vocals Paulo Frane - Guitars Rafael Agostino - Keyboards Jason Freitas - Bass Danilo Lopes - Drums and Vocals
* - originally recorded in 2002 |
Eterna have grown as musicians with each release. And I find 'Terra Nova' to be the album that shows the band in full bloom. Their brand of melodic power metal is pretty stereotypical, but as long as most the songs are this good, who cares? It's all about the great feeling you get when listening to the CD that matters! And 'Terra Nova' has plenty of feel good songs. The sing-a-long factor is very high. But this is by no means a prissy album nonetheless. Expect melodic heavy metal with a flare of the progressive. They remind me of bands like Narnia and Seventh Avenue. Good stuff! For some reason they've re-recorded 4 of the tracks from their second album, 'Papyrus', on this album. Not sure why, as they worked well on that album too.
Killer tracks: I really like them all, except for the instrumentals
EPIPHANY (2004) MV8 MUSIC/UNIMAR MUSIC
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Line-up: Leandro Caçoilo - Vocals Paulo Frade - Guitars Rafael Agostino - Keyboards Paulo Henrique - Drums Jason Freitas - Bass Guitar |