Armored Dawn – Barbarians In Black
Album Review by Rainer Kerber
In Heavy / Power Metal from Brazil one thinks inevitably of Angra, Sepultura, Almah or Shaman. For several years, the country in South America has another hot Power Metal to offer export, Armored Dawn from the southeast located city of Sao Paulo. In 2016, the debut album Power Of Warrior” was published, which caused at least in South America for a lot of excitement. The musicians had therefore already in foot in the door for the conquest of the rest of the metal world. Concert tours with Megadeth, Symphony X and Rhapsody ensured a considerable international reputation. I got to know the band when they were touring with Fates Warning last year. With their second album “Barbarians In Black” Brazilians now bring out the big blow. With their epic Power Metal they want to play in the hearts of the fans.
“Beware Of The Dragon” starts with a short intro before the Brazilians really get going. Striking is the vocals of Eduardo Parras, who sometimes sounds like a sprechgesang but still looks melodic. His timbre is also unique. Cannot be described, you just have to hear that. That Armrored Dawn have two excellent guitarists in its ranks, is already evident in the first solos. And at “Bloodstone” the tempo still picks up a bit. Banging but melodic riffs with forward driving double bass, filigree played guitar solos. Oh, I already said that. These stylistic elements simply belong to Power Metal and are (almost) used all the songs on the album. Sometimes epic, like “Men Of Odin” with beautiful melodies, sometimes mercilessly straight forward rocking (“Chance To Live Again”) or soulful with the power-ballad “Sail Away”, there is a lot of variety on this album. Shortly before the end, “Survivor” is still a mixture of happy-sounding hard rock with West Coast influences. And at the very end you can hear the rocking title song “Barbarians In Black”. Here, the listener gets fully kicked his ass once again.
The album was mixed and mastered by Seeb Levermann. And the signature of the Orden Ogan frontman is clearly felt. With the powerful sound much emphasis was placed on melodic sound. The compositions on the album are varied and offer a great listening pleasure over the whole time. That’s Power Metal par excellence. With their second album should Armored Dawn manage to emerge from the shadows of their great compatriots and their fan base continues to increase.
Lineup:
Eduardo Parras – Vocals
Timo Kaarkoski – Lead Guitars
Tiago de Moura – Lead Guitars
Fernando Giovannetti – Bass
Rafael Agostino – Keyboards
Rodrigo Oliveira – Drums
Label: AFM Records
Out: February 23th 2018
Duration: 39:36
Track list:
- Beware Of The Dragon
- Bloodstone
- Men Of Odin
- Chance To Live Again
- Unbreakable
- Eyes Behind The Crow
- Sail Away
- Gods Of Metal
- Survivor
- Barbarians In Black
Rating 9/10
MHF Magazine/Rainer Kerber
