ANGELS CRY

"Angel´s Cry" is the debut full-length album by Brazilian power metal act Angra. The album was released through Rising Sun Productions in October 1993. "Angel´s Cry" was recorded at Kai Hansen´s (Helloween, Gamma Ray, Iron Saviour) studio in Hamburg, Germany and produced by Charlie Bauerfeind and Sascha Paeth (one part of the prolific producer team Paeth/Miro who have worked with most of the European power metal elite. Most notably Rhapsody of Fire). It´s noteworthy that the drums on the album are played by Alex Holzwarth (Sieges Even, Rhapsody of Fire) as future drummer Ricardo Confessori was not a member of the band at the time when the band recorded the album even though he is featured on the photos in the album booklet.

The music on the album is neo-classical influenced European power metal with the occasional progressive moment thrown in. After listening to "Angel´s Cry" it´s pretty obvious that Angra are Helloween worshippers ("Keeper of the Seven Keys part I and II" era). The fast paced double bass drums, the melodic neo-classical influenced guitars, symphonic keyboards and the memorable, anthemic and melodic vocal lines delivered by a high pitched vocalist are all trademarks in the genre, that Helloween spearheaded in the 80s. So it´s safe to say that the music on "Angel´s Cry" is not very original.

What makes this album stand out from the pack is the quality of the music. And these are generally very high quality compositions. The album features fast paced Euro power metal tracks like "Carry On", "Time" and "Streets of Tomorrow" but "Angel´s Cry" is actually a rather diverse album which also features tracks like the power ballad "Stand Away" (which features some extremely high pitched vocal parts), "Never Understand" (the most progressive inclined track on the album) and the symphonic closing track "Lasting Child: I The Parting Words II Renaissance". There is also a cover version of the Kate Bush track "Wuthering Heights" featured on the album. The cover is true to the original but very well performed. The vocal performance by lead vocalist André Matos is nothing short of amazing on that track. High pitched falsetto delivered with passion and conviction.

The musicianship on the album are on a high level. The guitar playing by Kiko Loureiro is melodic yet powerful but the prize goes to vocalist André Matos. He is an outstanding vocalist who masters his voice and singing style to perfection. He doesn´t invent anything new but he´s got a great voice and a brilliant technique.

The sound production is professional, clear and powerful although the drum sound at times could have been a bit more powerful. So all in all "Angel´s Cry" is a great album in all departments. Professional and clever songwriting (even though it´s not terribly original), brilliant musicianship and a well sounding production. In other words a high quality release by Angra fully deserving a 4 star (80%) rating.