Almah – Motion (2012)

Fronted by Angra’s Edu Falaschi, Almah shows a more versatile side to this excellent singer and with “Motion” the band delivers 10 tracks of very well crafted Melodic Metal. The band’s sound ranges from more commercial bands like White Zombie and Fear Factory to Power Metal greats like Stratovarius and even some Angra hints. Being the band’s third full-length release, “Motion” is very entertaining and guarantees a high-replay value due to its catchiness.

With a nice chugging pace, “Hypnotized” opens with album and delivers very catchy chorus sections and some vocals that sound quite a lot like Burton from FF in said chorus sections. The Power Metal-esque guitar work is more evident in tracks like “Living and Drifting” and “Days of the New” where we are treated some excellent guitar leads and solos. The keyboards also help the music be more accessible and entertaining.

The best song of this release, and one song we can’t seem to get out of our heads, is “Bullets on the Altar”. In this track the catchiness factor is cranked up to 1000 with epic vocal lines. The riffing is very well constructed in simple enough to be very effective. Edu’s vocals are excellent and on the chorus part they work magically. “Zombies Dictator” shows a more aggressive edge with some vocals FX’s, very different from the rest of the release up until the typical Power Metal chorus section.

If you are looking for something bordering on the Grunge/Alternative Metal, “Late Night in ‘85” has a very unique and different vibe that will make you wonder if you are still listening to the same band. Moving into Progressive/Power Metal realms, “Daydream Lucidity” shows the band’s potential in other genres while still trying to maintain their own unique sound. This song makes them sound a bit like Mercenary in their good old days.

In terms of the album’s sound, “Motion” has a great production behind it and everything sounds crystal clear. The guitar sound is excellent, very powerful when distorted and very clean when the guitar magic is being unleashed. The drumming is very catchy and nicely crafted, and the bass guitar keeps pounding all through this very exciting release.  If you are looking for something very melodic with excellent vocals and very catchy sections, look no further and give “Motion” a try.

Release: January 17th, 2012

Country: Germany