Edu Falaschi - Vera Cruz and Eldorado (For Angra's The Temple of Shadows fans)

[devieira73]

I think it's truly an amazing power metal album, with a lot of progressive influences, very technical instrumentation, some brazilian rhythms, great orchestrations and perfect prodution. Edu tried to recapture the style of Angra's The Temple of Shadows and totally succed, without make a carbon copy of that album. I would highlight: Sea Of Uncertainties (kind of a new Angels and Demons), Skies In Your Eyes (great ballad), Land Ahoy (amazing and very progressive) and Face Of The Storm (very inspired trash metal and progressive, with Max Cavalera).
https://open.spotify.com/album/0gdT0litKVAVcypvujGegm?si=3dmfwhQdSIKfM3aAgVhiYw

[Puppies_On_Acid]

I'm intrigued. I will have to check this out. Temple of Shadows is one of my all time favorites.

[Dedalus]

I find it absolutely bizarre and depressing that he has the need to copy the whole concept/idea/aura of ToS to get back to relevance (especially with Brazilian fans).

Not even Angra tried to do a ToS part 2 (even with Edu still in the band).

And worst of all. He tried to do different things (Almah) and was solemnly ignored.

[devieira73]

I get what you mean. Personally I love those last two Almah albums and I think that, artistically, they came from a more sincere place than Vera Cruz. But, let's face it, they were commercial failures and Edu had to think about the viability of his musical career. And he did exactly what his fans (and a lot of Angra fans) were asking for. To my surprise, despite he made Vera Cruz clearly having ToS as model, I think he suceed to make an excellent album. IMO Dream Theater more or less, for different reasons, made that with aDToE and also suceed artistically.

[ariich]

As some people here know, I'm never one to yearn for bands to repeat their classic albums and so on. But I have to admit that I've not been especially interested in what I've heard of Almah, or indeed what Angra have done since Temple of Shadows (and the couple of releases before it - that era is by far the period I find most interesting from their output).

Having a listen to Vera Cruz now and definitely digging it. For sure it's definitely reminiscent of that Angra era, but that alone wouldn't be enough if the energy and melodic richness weren't also present, but it's sounding really good from that perspective.

[Dedalus]

Personally, I don't see it just as a repetition of a classic album. He managed to create his antagonism with Angra that I think is low, so much so that Edu fans love to say that he is more Angra than Angra itself. And I'm sorry, but I met the band at Angels Cry, so Edu will always be the NEW GUY for me.

I must say that from a strategic point of view he was brilliant. He managed to stimulate even more the antagonism of the fans with Angra (today people hate Angra and Bittencourt more than many MP fans hate DT), then came with a tour of nostalgia and then with an album millimetrically copying ToS, even incorporating a theme of Portuguese navigation / discovery of Brazil already addressed by the band when he was not even there. As a strategy, absolutely smart.

But I can't seem to respect that. I think the minimum necessary to listen to a band, an artist is to be able to have some respect for what he is doing and I don't have it.

[ariich]

To be perfectly honest, I don't care at all about any of that really. I pretty much ignore when fans "hate" this or that. If someone's behaviour has been inappropriate that's one thing, but when it comes to music and performance it's a matter of taste, and all that drama just doesn't interest or engage me at all.

[Dedalus]

To be perfectly honest, I don't care at all about any of that really. I pretty much ignore when fans "hate" this or that. If someone's behaviour has been inappropriate that's one thing, but when it comes to music and performance it's a matter of taste, and all that drama just doesn't interest or engage me at all.

Fair enough.

Personally my problem is not so much with the drama (well I still listen to DT and MP, so...), but I don't respect what Edu is doing and I don't respect his music.

So it doesn't work for me.

[gazinwales]

Edu has a new album out in 2023, Eldorado and it's more of the same as Vera, but the guitars sound a lot better.

[devieira73]

It's a good album, but it sounds more formulaic than Vera Cruz and less inspired to me. I agree that the guitars (and bass) sound better. I understand that Edu is giving "what people want" to make a living with music, but his music sounded better and a lot more sincere and mature with the last 3 Almah albums IMO, but it didn't sold.