Fanalo – Fanalo

Fanalo
Fanalo
Fanalo – All instruments
Label: Klonosphere Records
Out: February 28^th, 2025
Playing time: 59:51

Fanalo aka Stephane Alaux is a guitarist from Bordeaux. He has long been a fixture in the Progressive and Heavy Rock scene in his home country. He has been part of the instrumental Metal duo Plug-In since the mid-nineties. He has also labelled himself Fanalo as a solo artist. With this, he released a self-titled album at the beginning of 2025. He was able to inspire some well-known singers for this. However, three of the songs on the album are instrumental.

The album starts with the seven-minute instrumental piece ‘Tribes’. With a scream, percussion and vocal and sound effects. At around a minute long, it’s a bit annoying. But after that it gets powerful, although the guitar riffs seem a bit monotonous at times. The guitar melodies later make up for this somewhat. After an a cappella vocal introduction, ‘Hate 4 Sale’ really rocks off, in the mid-tempo range. The sing-along refrain is very catchy. ‘Why’ starts with banging riffs and is very rhythmic. ‘New Found World’ is one of the songs that is ennobled by exceptional singer Jeff Scott Soto. It’s the finest Classic Rock. The guitar tracks were doubled in the studio, which makes for a very voluminous sound. The second instrumental song ‘Moon’ starts with distorted guitar riffs. Later we hear a beautiful Rock song. Much catchier and less experimental than ‘Tribes’ at the very beginning. However, the overlaid radio traffic (from a moon mission?) could have been omitted. ‘STC’ is a very strange title. Presumably only the master himself knows what it means. Could it stand for ‘Standard Test Conditions’, a term used in photovoltaics? Musically, however, it’s OK. We’re listening to Classic Rock again. We also hear Classic Rock on ‘Die To Live’. The rocking guitars are accompanied by a balanced orchestration. ‘Rebirth’ starts with a strong bass line underpinned by percussion sounds and synths. Later, melodic and rocking guitars join in with the overall sound. In my opinion, this is the best of the three instrumental songs. Distorted guitars are also used in ‘Isolation’. And these, together with the drums, ensure a high and hectic tempo. After starting the album with the second longest song, ‘Rise’ is the longest song at the end. With a playing time of seven and three quarters minutes. And it really gets going again. A very beautiful metal anthem.

‘Fanalo’ is an album with many highs but also a few downs. Stephane Alaux’s guitar playing is mostly used in a song-orientated way and is definitely not used for the artist’s self-congratulation. Of course, there are also some great guitar solos. The vocal performances are also outstanding. Occasionally, however, the sound, vocal and speech gimmicks seem a little annoying. But that doesn’t change the fact that this is a good Rock/Metal album.

Fanalo – New Found World feat. Jeff Scott Soto (Official Audio): https://youtu.be/Kb1fRDt-Cio?si=jbo0pznzZMiYlm40

Lineup:

Fanalo – All instruments

Track list:

• Tribes
• Hate 4 Sale
• Why
• New Found World
• Moon
• STC
• Die To Live
• Rebirth
• Isolation
• Rise