By Daniel Agapito
Hailing from the state of Tocantins, "with the aim of taking the culture of their people throughout Brazil, and from Brazil to the world," Vocifer , a heavy/power metal band formed in 2014, delivers a unique, yet typically Brazilian sound with their second album Jurupary , released on June 23 of this year.
Based on the legend of Jurupari, the indigenous woman Ceuci eats a fruit forbidden to women during their fertile period and ends up conceiving a boy, the son of the Sun. This conception expels her from her village, however, at the time of her son's birth, this child knew that he was a creature who would bring new customs and laws to the world, such as dance and music.
The successor to Vocifer's first LP, the well-received Boiuna , the new album features a sound that isn't entirely unfamiliar, but rather an innovative and polished power metal. Jurupary is also the band's first studio project to include guest appearances by guitarist Gustavo Oliveira and drummer Alex Christopher .
Vocifer: A track-by-track review of Jurupary
The album begins with “And Then…”, an instrumental track featuring orchestral elements, flutes, and bells. Following this tranquil, yet unusual, beginning for power metal, comes “The Voice of the Light,” previously released as a single and even accompanied by an animated music video (available in the player below). This song starts with strong guitars and powerful drums, followed by a devastating solo. Throughout much of the track, subtle uses of synthesizers and keyboards can be heard, courtesy of Fábio Laguna , former keyboardist for major bands such as Angra, Almah , and Freakeys . This song showcases João Noleto , reaching incredibly high notes. The riffs are somewhat reminiscent of Angra's golden age, but this doesn't detract from the overall listening experience. The track's second solo features incredible guitar harmonies between the band's two guitarists, Pedro Scheid and Gustavo Oliveira.
Next, “Bridge of the Stars” opens with a stunning keyboard break and features several harmonized riffs throughout its duration. In terms of drums, we start with some typical power metal beats, but they are effective nonetheless. The song has a very interesting dynamic between the two guitarists, highlighting the chemistry between the band members and showing how much prior planning went into making everything work the way it does. It seems both guitarists end up soloing. Fábio Laguna's keyboards subtly accentuate various moments of the composition, and towards the end, even feature a short solo.
Following this keyboard solo, "Vanity in Disguise" opens, the first song with a feature (other than the aforementioned Fábio), this time by Daniel Mazza, drummer of the band Inutilissimo . The fourth track on the album begins with a riser and a galloping riff, which reappears later. The composition demonstrates the masterful use of the double bass drum and a significant amount of vocal harmonies. The track also shows a good vocal variety, exhibiting both vocals that reach surprising high notes, as well as vocals with more drive. We also have the riffs and solos with guitar harmonies, which could not be missing.
After the initial excitement of the first four tracks, comes "Rain of Doubts," an acoustic track that strongly highlights the album's musical variety. It features only acoustic guitar, vocals, and keyboards that emulate orchestral elements. With such simple elements, the talent of vocalist João Noleto shines through. Unusually, a beautiful, albeit brief, guitar solo is also presented, reminiscent of the solos in 80s heavy metal ballads. The song concludes with the return of vocals, acoustic guitar, and keyboards. It's also worth noting that the song's lyrics are excellent and complex, dealing with introspection and being somewhat philosophical.
We also have another heavyweight guest appearance on “Wings of Hope,” this time from Daísa Munhoz , vocalist of the great Brazilian power metal band, Soulspell . The track begins with a clavecino line and a short solo. The song features various harmonies between the vocalists, both of whom have an impressive vocal range. “Wings of Hope” contains a wide variety of riffs and virtuoso solos, including a rather unique solo with tapping full of effects. The transitions between the two vocalists, João and Daísa, are very smooth and well thought out.
Halfway through the album Jurupary , “Wings of Hope” is followed by “Pleasure Paradise,” which ends up being quite different from the rest of the album, but in a good way. The song's opening features another solo and a prominent bass line (courtesy of Lucas Lago), both of which wouldn't sound out of place in an anime opening. The entire track has a slightly heavier metal feel, featuring chugged and synthesizer arpeggios. The drums are quite simple, but impressively effective. There are some moments in this song that strongly resemble certain Helloween Mötley Crüe sound making “Pleasure Paradise” one of the most eclectic songs in the Tocantins band's work.
"I Am" begins with a variety of synthesizers and a rather powerful riff. Among the synthesizers, there's one reminiscent of a whistle, an arpeggio mixing a sine and a square, some orchestral elements (which reappear), some bells; a great variety. Right from the start, the band's work, more specifically João Noleto's vocals, strongly evokes *The Dark Ride , in the best possible way, but the track quickly distinguishes itself and becomes unique. There are parts where João Noleto's vocals become calmer, slower, which, together with the return of the orchestral elements, create an almost melancholic atmosphere. After an evil laugh and a brief moment where the voice is highlighted, filled with reverb , we have a virtuoso solo, clearly influenced by classical music and very possibly neoclassical guitarists like Yngwie Malmsteen .
The next song is the exorbitantly Brazilian “We Are,” which features the Tambores do Tocantins . Right from the start, we are bombarded with instrumentation, and more broadly a very Brazilian atmosphere, with various drums, flutes, etc. The opening riffs are somewhat reminiscent of Ozielzinho 's A Procura , and even a bit of Kiko Loureiro 's Universo Inverso . The drums incorporate several Brazilian rhythmic aspects, but the track doesn't sacrifice its virtuoso and complex solos. Overall, the participation of Tambores do Tocantins is somewhat unusual, but certainly welcome, and adds a lot to “We Are.”
With this undeniably tasteful contribution, we move on to another track with an equally high-level collaboration, "Life," featuring Luis Mariutti (ex -Shaman , ex-Angra, Sinistra ). From the start, the bass is more prominent, introducing a typical Mariutti bass line. This introduction also includes a synthesizer line, present in multiple parts of "Life." Towards the middle of "Life," we have a harmonized guitar solo that seems to rise and fall without stopping. The chemistry between the Vocifer members is so evident that there are parts where the solo, even though clearly harmonized between two guitars, sounds like it's a single guitar. After this solo, we move to a softer section with acoustic guitar full of chorus and reverb, complete with chorus, vocal harmony, and flute. The music gains new energy with chants that sound ethnic and powerful fills that turn into a double bass drum beat. "Life" is a track that would fit perfectly on any Angra album.
The album Jurupary closes with “To Be Alive,” which features Thiago Bianchi ( Noturnall , ex-Shaman), who also produced the album. The track starts with strong riffs and a typically “sword-metal” beat. Thiago Bianchi's vocals add an interesting variety to the song, and he contributes some notable vocal harmonies. There are also catchy synthesizer lines, full of delay , and dizzying solos, as is to be expected from Vocifer. The lyrics touch on themes such as difficulties and the ups and downs of life.
Overall, the album Jurupary features excellent and polished production by Bianchi. And, as mentioned before, it effectively represents the culture of Tocantins. Compared to the band's previous work, Boiuna , we can notice a significant sonic evolution.
In Jurupary , Vocifer fully delivers on what they initially promised with Boiuna . Regarding the album, vocalist João Noleto comments: “The positive reception of our first album allowed us to be more daring on this record, as well as showcasing our musical evolution and maturity, both technically and in the compositions.” Certainly, this boldness paid off, and Jurupary will undoubtedly be enshrined as a power metal album for the history books.
Review of Vocifer – Jurupay (2023)
Total duration: 47:09
Rating: 9/10
Tracklist:
1. And Then… (01:20)
2. The Voice of the Light (04:33)
3. Bridge to the Stars (03:59)
4. Vanity in Disguise (04:33)
5. Rain of Doubts (04:20)
6. Wings of Hope (06:14)
7. Pleasure Paradise (03:45)
8. I Am (05:07)
9. We Are (03:52)
10. Life (05:02)
11. To be Alive (04:24)
* This text was written by a Wikimate and does not necessarily represent the opinions of the site's authors. Want to have your text published on Wikimetal? Send an email to textos@wikimetal.com.br
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