AURORA DOS SONHOS

EXCELLENT!!!

First APOCALYPSE's album I heard was "Perto do Amanhecer". I was surprised why they are in Symphonic - that one was very good MARILLION Fish-era clone with average Portugese vocals. With "Aurora dos sonhos" it is deserved - APOCALYPSE has grown immensly!

Imagine the same way beautiful MARILLIONish atmosphere, but played in a more complex way (COLLAGE, RED SAND and DREAM THEATER circa "Images and Words" come to mind) while not loaing their fantastical melodic gift! Vocals are rare thing here - to my luck, as I ain't a huge fan of Portugese singing! Tracks are mainly 9-12 minutes long with 2 shorter tracks in the beginning (each one is 6 and a half minutes long). I saw "Jamais..." video version before listening to album and was completely impressed both by musicians' level and their composing talent. Incredible!

To finish with, I EXTREMELY recommend this Symphonic Neo Prog Masterpiece for those who like MARILLION and related bands (COLLAGE, RED SAND, IQ, SAENS, even NEXUS), for Latin America Prog devotees and for those who likes both melodic and complex sides in Prog!!! APOCALYPSE serves as a paragon of equilibrium between these sides. Again, HIGHLY recommended! A Must!

It´s the same old story. Very good instrumental parts, bad vocals. And even worse lyrics, but if you are not familiar with portuguese words, don´t worry. The group would benefit a lot if they recrutit a singer with a voice and techinique as good as they are in their instruments. Unfortunatly many prog bands in Brazil though that anyone could sing and any word written was valid, even if they don´t know what it meant. A real shame for the musicianas are very talented and the music is good. Not exceptional, but very good anyway.

That´s why I still think groups like Arion, which has a superb lead singer as well as skillful instrumentists, are so much more acclaimed and less frustrating to hear. They combine the instrumental passsages and vocal parts with great harmony.

Good, but definitly with weak vocals. Get a new singer and maybe someone to write better lyrics and they will probably reach the level of Arion.

As I went a-searching for lesser known gems (an upcoming project for PA) of Symphonic prog , I came across this group and their album Aurora dos sonhos. Only 6 ratings and a very interesting review from Prog Jester. The simple mention of Marillion, IQ, Saens, was enough to set my hopes flying. This may have hampered my view of the album, as it doesn't really meet my expectations. Don't get me wrong. This is well played prog. I can understand the above comparisons, but would add to that, that Apocalypse come across a more symphonic version (i.e. less neo) of those groups. The guitars, for me, remind me more of Saga than your typical Neo or Symph player. The occasional flute & acoustic guitar solos bring to mind other south american groups like Los Jaivas. And the compositions are well structured with no excess to mar or drag out a song needlessly. So to summarize, imperfectly, I would compare them to Saga with lengthier compositions, a singer who's not as bad as one review here mentions, almost a less theatrical Micheal Sandler to come back to the Saga comparison. And for those of you who've been here long enough, you may recall some opinions stating of Saga being an influence on the initial wave of Neo prog groups. From there Apocalypse bring their own to the table and end up with a more symphonic style than Neo. Good, not great, and while they don't rock my world, they well merit a more prominent place in our prog world. Check out the samples, I might be underestimating them, eh ...

Indeed, great symphonic show with (as it seems affecting everything, but literally, everything, these days) Neo-prog flavour. While first two songs depends more on symphonic element, third one is more synth driven, like their "live" album. Even live, it's in fact new material, so I consider it as live studio. Anyway, in 3rd Ultimo Horizonte, there's nice flute-like instrument in last two mintues. Beautiful surprise though, even only for short time (later on for brief flashes on next track). Then we continue into shared universe of beautiful, yet cruel sympneo world which brings unforeseen events, never imagined before. Its beauty lies in your mind, where it makes wonderful connection.

5(-), big share of imagination required, I often give 5, when I don't feel any disadvantages, or major mistakes.

Fans of « Genesis », this is for you. If you accept that a band recreates the musical universe of the masters (excluding the lyrics fantasy). The opening track propels you some forty years or so backwards. And the time machine is working alright.

Sweet vocals, fine but discreet guitar, melodic keys. You got them all! After all, why not? This music is quite enjoyable although derivative. But when I listen to a piece as "Em Apenas Um Segundo" (In Only One Second), I just succumb to the music.

Most of the tracks featured are conveying a positive and enjoyable feeling. Not very original maybe, but I don't care. The instrumental "A Um Passo Da Eternidade" (at one step from eternity) displays some gorgeous acoustic guitar moments like the masters (Howe, Hackett).

There aren't weak moments in here, even if the longest song is my least fave one ("Último Horizonte"). The delicacy of the vocals during "Do Outro Lado Da Vida" (from the other side of life) is just marvelous. It is full of passion as I like it. It is full of melody as I like it.

This is a very good symphonic album; with a special mention for the keys. Don't hesitate to discover this Brazilian band; you won't be disappointed. Four stars.

With a stable line-up and a good contract with Musea, things couldn't have gone much better for Apocalypse.Actually Musea believed so much in the Brazilians that instantly included one of the debut's tracks (''Notre Dame'') in the late-95' compilation ''Le meilleur du rock progressif instrumental''.The next year Apocalypse returned with their sophomore effort ''Aurora dos Sonhos''.The album dealt with different issues like conservation of nature, science fiction and spirituality.

Musically the band attempted to deliver longer and more complicated arrangements with the result being partly succesful.Succesful because the beautiful elements already presented on their debut are again on par: Haunting melodies, dramatic atmospheres, elaborate solos and sharp, grandiose synthesizers.Partly because the long tracks contain overstretched intos or themes that prevent them from being absolutely stunning.Some extended hypnotic guitar solos and Classical-inspired piano preludes are still interesting, but way too long to be warmly appreciated.Fortunately the band is generally in excellent shape.The tracks scan the fields of Neo Prog and Symphonic Rock with comfort, most of the guitar melodies are fantastic, while Eloy Fritsch seems to be another talented keyboard wizard, torturing his minimoog synthesizer with easiness.Lots of shifting moods and diverse textures guarantee another enjoyable release by the band.

Not as consistent as their debut, but the majority of ''Aurora dos Sonhos'' is engaging Neo/Symph Prog with quite a few impressive passages.Had the band avoided the aforementioned flaws, we would be talking about another masterful work.Still strongly recommended...3.5 stars.