VANISHED FROM EARTH

Argentinian band VANISHED FROM EARTH (VFE from now on) was formed by Fernando Refay and Rodrigo San Martin in 2011, following a set of previously successful collaborations between the musicians. Joined by Mike Buenaventura Lima and Ignacio Gulich they started performing live the same year. They released their self-titled debut album digitally in 2012, and the CD edition of this production was self-released by the band in the fall of 2013.

This debut album explores quite a wide territory, featuring material that will find favor among fans of progressive rock, heavy metal and progressive metal all. Personally I found the compositions closest to progressive metal to be most enjoyable, and then in particular the two epic length tracks that make up more than half the playing length of this album. As such I'd recommend this production to those with an interest in progressive metal first and foremost, and in particular those amongst them who are equally fond of progressive rock.

I had the pleasure of seeing the band live a few months ago and I bought their CD from Rodrigo San Martín the guitarist at the end of the show because I really enjoyed their genesis meets "power alternative prog" kind of style.

Charlie Giardina was not present at the performance and Fernando Refay the keyboardist made his best effort to replace the singer, but I must say that after listening to the album at home with Giardina I liked the CD even more (Refay was pretty good live though, just not as good as Giardina).

I have heard several bands from Argentina and I consider myself to be very picky when it comes to choose an album to review specially from my country; the only albums I have ever reviewed are from Bubu, Crucis, ALAS, Lito Vitale, Spinetta Jade, and Serú Girán so this means I am putting these guys on the top list.

The addition of George Carlin speech on "Hydra" was interesting since for a lot of people he is considered one of the most revolutionary social critic comedians of all time and as a prog fan it is always nice to have intellectual additions such as this.

It is hard to describe their sound since it contains a lot of influences and their music is really a Crossover between a melodical neo-prog approach fusioned with progressive metal.

Ignacio Gulich the bassist does an spectacular job as well, I did not want to miss the chance of reviewing his skills because he has a very round and harmonious sound, it's one of my favorite featured electrical bass in a progressive metal album.

The last song that is "Grey Matter Absence" a 25 minutes song that will shake your ears is what makes this album earns most of the stars. Instrumental sections again goes heavily dream theater oriented with a more Italian prog rock fusion a lá Quella Vecchia Locanda on keyboards. Vocals choices are quite interesting on this track as they serve as a perfect connection between different moods for this trippy ride. I am very happy the band achieved an original track such as this one, and last but not least the drummer Buenaventura Lima really shines on this track specially on the heavier side and that is not all; they even did a jazzy section too! Just in case the track was not diverse enough.

Rounding off the album score is a solid 3.5, but It has a lot of 4 out of 5 moments specially on the longest track so I give the album 4/5 for being a surprise and an excellent addition to my progressive rock collection.

Since at least 2 years ago, I've been in touch with two talented musicians from Argentina whose solo projects have demonstrated they have earned a place in the current progressive rock scene, these guys are Fernando Refay and Rodrigo San Martin, the first on keyboards while the second on guitars. When two cool musicians becomes friends, for sure the idea of new projects come almost immediately, I am sure it happened with them, who along with Mike Buenaventura on drums and Ignacio Gulich on bass decided to give birth to a child named Vanished From Earth, whose self-titled album show their true quality and talent. It lasts over 60 minutes and contains 7 tracks.

The introductory track is also entitled "Vanished From Earth", whose first minute offer only a nice "movie-like" keyboard, while in the second a Gilmour-like guitar appears. It leads to "Hydra" which shows a noticeable change in the music, because here the power and energy are spread since the very first seconds. A rockier song begins here, with also the inclusion of Charlie Giardina on vocals, speaking in English, by the way, in spite of their Spanish native language. There is a passage after two minutes in which the sound reminds me a bit of Supper's Ready, I don't know if the guys are aware of it and did it on purpose, but it is quite alike. However, it is just a passage of this original composition, which later offers a pretty cool heavy prog moment when guitar and keyboards interplay with some cool solos. Later the music calms down and a classical-like part begins, with soft vocals. But wait, a new explosion appears in the last couple of minutes. Very nice track!

"Fight the Power" has something of the title on its rhythm, it is a fast and rocky piece, which honestly is not my favorite, actually I would say is just another song from the prog bunch, it is not memorable, I am sorry if I am being mean here, but one can skip this track without feeling guilty, in spite of its nice instrumental and solos part after 2:30. "Daenerys" on the other hand, is a quite good song, in which the acoustic guitar enters as main character for the first time. It is accompanied by soft vocals and some keyboards here and there. The music flows and progresses little by little, the musicians use backing vocals in some moments, which add new textures to the music, becoming mellower in parts. After 4 minutes the song makes a change, the rhythm becomes a bit rockier for some seconds, including a keyboard solo, but later it returns to its charming and soft form. Very nice.

"The Girl in the Mirror" is the first epic of this album with 12 minutes length. The acoustic guitar continues here, the first moments are like depressive, with emotional vocals and sorrowful lyrics. There is a brief instrumental calm part before the storm arrives, and it happens at minute 3 when the music becomes much heavier, but it keeps the symphonic prog spirit, due to the keyboards sound. The song offers several changes, and though mostly the music maintains a calm and low profile, I think the moments where it explodes and becomes more aggressive makes this track successful. Nice composition, by the way. "Pandora" is a shorter track with a lullaby-like sound. It is a deep breath of fresh air after the rush and energy of the previous song. This instrumental track is one of the best of the album.

And finally the longest epic, "Grey Matter Absence" with over 25 minutes length, a song that let us know they are capable to create challenging tracks, well crafted and better performed. The first couple of minutes have a nice mixture of space prog with heavy rock, very well done. Later a new passage begins with the inclusion of vocals, first in a soft way, but later the rockier and heavier spices are spread. Here we can find something that prog rock fans love, loads of changes in mood and tempo, but better, changes that don't harm the music at all because they were nicely composed, none of them sound forced, all sound natural, hope you get what I mean. There are parts in which the skills of the two main members of the band are shown without masks, so we can listen to wonderful guitar riffs by San Martin and great keyboard explosions by Refay, creating a good blend of symphonic heavy prog.

Well, this is a very good debut album by Vanished from Earth, a band whose talent is undeniable, and I think they have to continue with this project, maybe their upcoming album would be one of those memorable materials, who knows. For now, I think the album is pretty good but not essential, there is a song that I would really omit, and there are some moments in which the voice is not my true cup of tea, and though the epics show their skills and power to create great music, I honestly believe they have some work to do. My final grade will be 3.5 stars.

Enjoy it!