Vandroya is a new band from Sao Paolo – Brazil and are suprising us with their debut. They will not just appeal to fans of power metal but also progressive metal fans, as they are a band with influences from bands like Adagio and Symphony X . Having formed in 2001 and then released an EP back in 2005 called ”Within Shadows”, they release their excellent full length debut which simply called ”One”.
We listen to more and more metal bands with female vocals which is nice because someone can see that the stereotype “metal only with male vocals” has been exceeded so except track seven which has male vocals, the first thing to notice are the female vocals which fit great to the music. From high soprano squeals to warm soul full breathing sounds, from soft whispering to throaty harsh spitting, Daísa Munhoz can do almost everything in a very convincing way .
Vandroya seem from their first album a very promising band, they combine their skills nicely to compose good songs. From those more straightforward power metal style blasters like “The Last Free Land” to the more technical style of metal “No Oblivion For Eternity” and “Anthem (For The Sun)” where you can hear inspiration from the great progressive metal bands. One of the best songs on ”One” is “Solar Night” which has a Symphony X structured kind of vibe and it sounds really good as the track builds. There are also cultural musical influences to be heard as on “Within Shadows“. Daisa really gets to showcase her voice on “Why Should We Say Goodbye”, the only ballad of the album. The thing to watch out here is how her vocals slowly change as the song goes on, starting off at her absolute softest, and very subtlety working her way up throughout the song, before going full force for the stunning final chorus.
Vandroya have delivered one truly great debut, with a perfect balance of everything I could ask for in a progressive power metal album, with enough speed and epic melodies to please any power metal fan, enough complexity, technical musicianship and creative songwriting to please fans of more progressive music, and an incredible vocal performance that will please fans of female vocalists. For anyone who fits into any of those groups, I recommend this album immediately!
| Track List | Line Up | 01. All Becomes One 02. The Last Free Land 03. No Oblivion For Eternity 04. Within Shadows 05. Anthem (For The Sun) 06. Why Should We Say Goodbye? 07. Change The Tide 08. When Heaven Decides To Call 09. This World Of Yours 10. Solar Night |
Gee Perlati – Bass Otávio Nuñez – Drums Marco Lambert – Guitars Rodolfo Pagotto – Guitars Daísa Munhoz – Vocals Leandro Caçoilo – Vocals on “Change The Tide” |