Hibria is back, and to mark this return, Abel Camargo , guitarist and founder, and his new stage partners decided to close the Opinião bar for a unique night. The show marks the band's return to the stage, now with their seventh album, Me7amorfosis , in explicit reference to the radical transformation in the quintet's lineup.
However, the kings of speed metal are proving that changes like these can be part of something bigger. It's a given that the most important Brazilian bands (except for Krisiun ) suffer total lineup changes at the peak of their careers, and with Hibria, it was no different.
After a victorious career, a long discography, and a lifetime of excellent reviews and world tours, 4 of the 5 members left the band from Rio Grande do Sul for good. Since then, the musicians have made it clear that they remain friends, and on Friday, July 22nd, the revamped Hibria takes the stage to reaffirm its new lineup and at the same time celebrate the restart among the "Hibrian" brothers who have been in the band for the last 20 years. The band also announced that tickets would be 2 for 1, double the beer, that the shows would start much later than usual, and finally that Opinião would continue until 5 am. And it was a success: a full house!
The band also announced that they would have opening acts, which ultimately turned the night into a mini-festival, which went on while a heavy rain threatened for the early morning. The first band was It 's All Red , a traditional band in the Rio Grande do Sul metal scene, with very diverse influences and extremely high performance, both instrumentally and vocally! The band's range of activity focuses anywhere between post-metal and core , which enters with "Boneless," but when things get serious, the group looks to metal for the formulas to make their sound explode.
Tom Zynski 's vocals on "Integrate Forever" and "Lead by the Blind" are truly impressive, as is the persona behind them – there's an enviable freedom in how he delivers the lyrics on stage. Beyond that, the singer brings an arsenal of techniques that take us to different landscapes of heavy sound, such as nu-metal, screamo, and other disruptive styles. All of this is accommodated by the hard-hitting rhythm section of Renato Siqueira (drums) and Carlos Loureiro (bass), and by moving guitar duets and multimodal harmonies from Daniel Nodari and Rafael Siqueira (guitars). The band featured Lucas Zawacki ( Mortticia , from Porto Alegre) for a beautiful duet on "Power to Let Power Go," brightening the night. It's a pleasant surprise to learn that they've been around for 15 years, but that explains how they're able to navigate the labyrinthine arrangements and super deep grooves. The band also dedicated “Gemstone” to Lohy Silveira , the eternal frontman of Rebaellion , who passed away this year, and closed with “Killing a Dead Tree” and “Poisonous.” The band left a good impression on those present, who were already beginning to fill the Opinião bar.
The night continued with the São Paulo band Alchemia . On the poster: corpse paint; on stage, the band delivers clean and dirty vocals, riffs and atmospheres, drawing from sacred sources of heavy metal. In makeup and sound, the quintet goes all out. Somewhat mystified by the information presented (the stage presence, the corpse paint and attire, the narrative approach with great riffs), the band's live performance remained a great mystery in my head throughout – exactly what one expects from a horror metal band.
It's the old trick of categorizing everything: the vocalist is dressed like Rob Halford , sings like him, but the band often finds itself in that same high register, but in a more King Diamond , which makes everything much more interesting, since bands with this style are scarce, like Attic and Midnight Priest , which came to mind as compliments to Alchemia. An absolutely remarkable highlight was the timbres and mix of keyboardist Wally D'Allesandro, who brought dark atmospheres and cinematic soundscapes with a rare professionalism at the keyboard. And what volume!
Overall, the band seemed excited to be bringing their work to the southern corner of the country. Something was causing the musicians to take too long to connect one song to another, something they could resolve if possible. Until the end, the influences remained lingering in my mind, full of question marks – Ghost ? Candlemass ? Heavy? Gothic? Doom? – but in the end I concluded that Alchemia's setlist is killer, a feast for the aforementioned styles, and all that remains for me is to salute the vocals of Victor Hugo Piiroja , the guitar of Rodrigo Maciel , the bass of Fifas and the drums of Alex Christopher , in addition to the aforementioned Wally.
And so, after 1 AM, we arrived at the main attraction – Hibria entered with a gleam in their eyes as they reunited with fans and fellow countrymen. The band had played their first show with the new lineup in 2019 ( we have a review here on Wikimetal ), but despite the great debut, they had to isolate themselves during the pandemic – a period in which they definitively consolidated their new image at Me7amorfosis. The expectation regarding Hibria revolves around their successful trajectory, and the question that arises: how will the band enjoy this legacy? How will they surpass it?
The answer Hibria gives us is a valuable lesson: focus on the work, and keep the leisure time with friends. Abel Camargo itched to find Otávio Quiroga (drums), Bruno Godinho (guitar), Thiago Baumgartem (bass), and Victor Emeka (vocals), and now that the world has turned, that they've recorded a very well-received album by fans and critics, that Emeka has embraced the dream-mission of being the frontman of this band, and that the world is reconfiguring itself for the return of tours, it's time to start working. Before announcing future dates, Abel decides to kick off Hibria at the band's home, Opinião, practically as a family, and to the joy and success of this great night, he invites many musicians who toured the world with the band, responsible for bass and guitars on albums like Silent Revenge , Blind Ride , and the emblematic Skull Collector and Defying the Rules .
The set was a gift for the fans, and a true invitation to discover the band's devastating repertoire, in case anyone has spent the last 20 years living in a cave. The band kicked off with "War Cry," with Victor Emeka soaring high on the vocals, while the band exuded novelty and motivation. The vocalist took over the night, and a barbecue vibe took over with the announcement of Benhur Lima (bass), who recorded the historic debut. The gauchos went back in time with two basses on stage, shredding the intricate arrangements of "Millenium Quest."
The band followed with a powerful punch in “Shoot Me Down,” and then called André Meyer for the classic vocal duet on “Silent Revenge” with the Distraught . In a raw and passionate performance, the band brought the house down. Emeka announced an old B-side, then Diego Kasper (guitarist from the original lineup) came on stage for the band's great anthem, “Steel Lord on Wheels,” for many the most anticipated song of the set. The fact that they played it so early in the set shows that Hibra values its origins, but that there is still much more to come.
Abel takes the microphone, reminding the crowd of the recent loss of Lohy, his comrade in the underground scene of Rio Grande do Sul. One of the singles from Hibria's new album, "Meaning of Life," a high-level power ballad, was dedicated to him and received an emotional response from the audience.
From Me7amorphosis , the band also played the single “Fearless Will,” which featured an emotional fan who climbed onto the stage and sang the entire lyrics with the band. The boy enjoyed the moment without any shyness, and Emeka, acknowledging his presence, ended up transmitting a great vibe to the audience, even sharing the microphone with the fan at some points. They also played “I am so lonely,” not exactly a highlight of the album, but it worked well live. To close, the anthem of Hibria's new phase, “Shine,” was sung at the top of their lungs by those present, showing that Hibria's vocalist is at his vocal peak.
The band left quickly, and upon their return, Renato Osório , one of the city's most iconic guitarists, entered the stage like a Steve Vai and delivered a virtuoso blues performance of "Leading Lady." The band closed the night with Marco Panichi (bass) on "Tigerpunch," another classic, unfortunately the last of the night, leaving fans disappointed when they begged for more. It was almost 3 a.m., the rain was pouring down, and the show turned into a party, the end of the workday for the stars of the night.
Hibria is experiencing a great moment for melodic metal in Brazil, and soon will be enjoying its legacy and hard work around the globe. Brazil and its audience gain a lot from this great return, featuring a frontman who is every bit as good as the big names in the genre, and leaving his mark with a highly anticipated and celebrated comeback.
Our colleague Alessandra Felizari was there and took some amazing photos. Check them out!
