Hunters And Prey - Angra

Temple Of Shadows - Angra

Holy Land, this time based around the earthly and supernatural exploits of an eleventh-century crusader seeking to topple the Catholic church, Temple of Shadows is arguably Angra s finest album but still suffers a little from over-ambition. Where Holy Land contrasted Native Brazilian tribal instruments with the symphonies of their European conquerors, this 2004 album evolves from straightforward fast, heavy and loud power metal to increasingly epic and orchestral heights in the second half. Rather then being part of the overall concept, it seems that this was done more to ease newcomers into the band s progressive tendencies gradually, and it works very well. This ...

Freedom Call - Angra

Inspired by the breakthrough success of their ambitious Holy Land release, Angra released this fairly mediocre cash-in E.P. to make the void between albums slightly more profitable and interesting. Containing two new songs following their established style, three pointless remixes, a couple of lacklustre recordings from an acoustic session and a reasonable Judas Priest cover, this has all the makings of a rushed B-sides album but thankfully doesn t try to pass itself off as a full album, though a trimmed single losing the guff would have been stronger (and less collectable). Angra are one of the most distinctive and interesting power metal bands out there, but this ...

Holy Land - Angra

1492 discovery of the gargantuan American landmasses. It isn t a harshly political or conservationist release, and in fact tells the story from both sides lyrically as well as musically; Angra s incorporation of prominent orchestral and tribal elements are juxtaposed in almost every song to reflect the pioneering grandeur of pre-Renaissance Europe and the natural beauty of the Native Americans, with Angra s core band members leading the proceedings from the centre. Like most Angra albums, this varies wildly from catchy, speedy, irresistible power metal to piano-led ballads with no trace of rock in sight, and the balance between all elements is kept painstakingly even. ...