Song Of the Day - CCXXVI - Hammers Of Misfortune

Keeping the tone in the Progressive Metal, but this time with a much more lighter tone, with lots of elements from other styles mixed in, like Folk, Power or Doom.
That's the melting pot of styles where Hammers Of Misfortune navigate to give us a very unique sound. The American band has just released their fifth album, 17th Street.

Hammers of Misfortune - The Grain

Song Of the Day - CCXXV - Haken

Haken is one of my recent discoveries, and my personal choice as the band that can shake things a bit in the Progressive Metal genre in the years to come.
They have just released Visions, that is one of the candidates to best Progressive Metal album of the year. In a year where Dream Theater and Symphony X have released new albums, that's saying something about the quality of this band.

Haken - Premonition

Song Of the Day - CCXXIV - Russian Circles

Avantgarde is not one of my favourite Metal genres, but this song, included in Russian Circles album Empros, released this week, is just awesome.

Russian Circles - Mladek

Song Of the Day - CCXXIII - Stream Of Passion

Top of my airplay today, something calm and relaxing, with a beautiful voice singing in Spanish.

Stream of Passion - Our Cause

Song Of the Day - CCXXII - Dreams Of Sanity

Another band that is missed, the female fronted Austrian Gothic Metal band Dreams Of Sanity.
Well composed songs that matched perfectly with Sandra Schleret's voice and singing style.

Dreams of Sanity - Window to the Sky

Song Of the Day - CCXXI - Type O Negative

Type O Negative was the first Doom band I listened to. Bloody Kisses and October Rust opened new horizons in my musical taste in the nineties.
I can still recognize Peter Steele's voice wherever I listen to it. He was one of those Metal geniuses that just left us too soon.

Type O Negative - Love You To Death

Song Of the Day - CCXX - Theatre Of Tragedy

Another band from the dusty graveyard of great bands that didn't make it until today.
Theatre Of Tragedy was one of the first Gothic Metal bands that I listened to.

Theatre of Tragedy - Venus

Song Of the Day - CCXIX - Sentenced

Listening to Savatage has awaken in me the need to go back to some bands that marked my steps in Metal, but are not here anymore.
Sentenced was one of them.

Sentenced - Killing Me Killing You

Song Of the Day - CCXVIII - Alestorm

Spent the afternoon in the attic with the boxes of my old LEGOs, trying to make some sense of the mess of pieces all mixed up in some boxes, so I can slowly pass them on to my daughter
I decided to put some soundtrack while I was assembling the pirate ship, and of course it had to be Alestorm.
After a couple of spins, I think that this is probably the best song of their last album.

Alestorm - The Sunk'n Norwegian

Song Of the Day - CCXVII - Savatage

Don't know why, but I remembered this band today, long time had passed since the last time I listened to it.
This one is a classic...

Savatage - All That I Bleed

Song Of the Day - CCXVI - Pain

One of these year's releases that has grown on me after each listen.
I'm conquered by the musical genius of Peter Tägtgren and his Gothic Industrial Metal, with some Deathish tones.

Pain - The Great Pretender

Song Of the Day - CCXV - Echoterra

A new 2011 release, this time Symphonic Metal from the United States Of America, by the band Echoterra, led by the voice of Melissa Ferlaak Koch, ex-singer of Visions Of Atlantis.
They have just released their second full length, Land Of The Midnight Sun.

Echoterra - All The Lies

Song Of the Day - CCXIV - Iced Earth

Iced Earth has released a new album, called Dystopia.
This album is the first with Stu Block holding the mics for the North American Heavy/US Power Metal band. At a first listen sounds pretty good.

Iced Earth - Dystopia

Song Of the Day - CCXIII - Ashes You Leave

Today, a Placebo song as you never heard it before.

Ashes You Leave - Every you every me

Song Of the Day - CCXII - Lacuna Coil

Without much time to think about new stuff to put here, I'll continue with more great covers in the next few days.
Tonight one of my favorites...

Lacuna Coil - Enjoy the Silence

Within Temptation - Coliseu, Lisbon, Portugal, 12th October 2011

First lets talk about the venue. Lisbon's Coliseu is a great place for concerts, but getting there is a nightmare. It took me one hour and a half in a route that should not take me more than 45 minutes. Parking the car was even worse, and I ended up having to walk much more than I intended.
Maybe concerts in Coliseu should have the starting hour set to 10 pm instead of 9 pm.
With all these problems, I ended up loosing the beginning of Kandia's performance.


Kandia

I must admit that I didn't knew Kandia's work prior to this concert (shame on me!), and only in the day of the concert I was aware that there would be a support act.
I believe that, just like me, many people weren't aware that there would be an opening act, which was great for Kandia, since they had an almost packed room to see them perform.
All this being said, I must admit I was overly impressed with the show the band put up.
Nya has a good and powerful voice, more like Amy Lee from Evanescence than the usual Power/Gothic/Symphonic Metal female singers in Europe, she can support all the vocals on a song, without the need of a male voice to support her.
The songs are well written and with the right pace, being André's guitar the highlight of the music, though Bernardo and Daniel also deliver a consistent output that keeps the end result at a high level.
Also they have a good stage presence, showing genuine pleasure in sharing their work with the audience, which leads me to believe that this is not the last time we will hear about Kandia.

Within Temptation

When the Dutch Symphonic Metalers finally set foot on the stage, the Coliseu was completely packed of die hard fans of the band (yes, including yours truly).

The show started with the short movie Why Not Me, which is the intro on The Unforgiving, the band's latest album, while each band member entered the stage, followed by an instant acclamation by the audience.
The biggest one was, of course, to Sharon Den Adel, the voice and the soul of Within Temptation, that kick-started her energetic performance with Shot in the Dark, followed by In the Middle Of the Night and Faster, following exactly The Unforgiving track list.

Lost (also from the last album) was a slow paced interlude before the band dive in a set of their greatest hits.
Ice Queen, The Howling, Our Solemn Hour (probably my all time favourite song from WT) and Stand My Ground were heavily sung by an audience in complete ecstasy, just before Sinéad set the crowd shaking their skeletons.

What Have You Done was one of the highlights of the night, with the crowd completely replacing the recorded voice of Keith Caputo during the whole song, just before Murder and Iron dissipated all remaining doubts about how amazing The Unforgiving sounds live
Angels and Memories provided a slow paced end to the main set list of the concert, although most people in the room didn't really noticed that it was the end of the concert, since the band just left the stage with no goodbyes and Jeroen, the bass player remained on stage.

It was an odd moment, because the band was surprised by the lack of clapping and encore requests, and the audience wasn't really thought that it was just a break.
Even without big cheering the band returned on stage to perform their first encore to revisit Deceiver Of Fools and Mother Earth.

This time the band properly issued their goodbyes, but the fans weren't yet ready to go home and clapped, cheered and sung, until the band returned for a second encore.
Stairway To the Skies closes the band's last album and also closed the show.

All in all an amazing show, by a band on top of their game. Visually appealing, with a perfect set list - can't remember one song that I would trade in if it was me choosing that set list. Definitely a concert to remember!

Set list:
Why Not Me / Shot In The Dark / In The Middle Of The Night / Faster / Lost / Ice Queen / The Howling / Our Solemn Hour / Stand My Ground / Sinéad / What Have You Done / Murder / Iron / Angels / Memories
1st Encore:
Deceiver Of Fools / Mother Earth
2nd Encore:
Stairway to the Skies

Song Of the Day - CCXI - Within Temptation (again)

As I struggle to finish my chronicle about wednesday night concert, bear with me in one more Within Temptation song.
This has one of the most epic instrumental starts of all time.

Within Temptation - Deceiver of Fools

Song Of the Day - CCX - Within Temptation

It would be unfair to have a Song Of the Day with the support band, and don't have one with the main act.
Within Temptation was in supperb shape and delivered an amazing concert.
This one was one of the highlights with the audience completely overwhelming the recorded voice of Keith Caputo through the whole song.

Within Temptation - What Have You Done (feat. Keith Caputo)

Song Of the Day - CCIX - Kandia

Kandia was the support band to Within Temptation in their concerts in Portugal, and did a really good job.
They play Gothic Metal and have released their debut full length in February 2010.
Definetelly a band that I will keep under full attention in the future.

Kandia - Into Your Hands

Song Of the Day - CCVIII - Avantasia

Since I'm in a Pop covers mood, I found this one apropriate to signal my return to work, afert a ten days leave for the birth of my new baby daughter.

The original is from Ultravox, and it's an eighties classic, here re-done by Avantasia.

Avantasia - Dancing With Tears In My Eyes

Song Of the Day - CCVII - Leaves' Eyes

Speaking of Mike Oldfield, here is another one of his hits, in a version by Leaves' Eyes.

Leaves' Eyes - To France

Song Of the Day - CCVI - Pathfinder

The eighties was, musically, a period full of creativity and melody, specially in Pop music.
I don't know if it's nostalgia, but I still love many Pop hits from the eighties. I don't think it's only nostalgia, because Metal bands keep doing covers of those songs, and most of these guys weren't even born in the eighties.

Several bands tried to cover Moonligh Shadow from Mike Oldfield and failed miserably, until Pathfinder did it in their Sonata Arctica meets Rhapsody of Fire Neo-Classical style, and made a work of art that surpasses the original piece (for those who like neo classical guitars).

Pathfinder - Moonlight Shadow

Song Of the Day - CCV - Amaranthe

Found a new band today, called Amaranthe.
They come from Sweden, play Extreme Power Metal with female and male voices, and have released their self titled debut album this year.

Amaranthe - Hunger

Song Of the Day - CCIV - Tersivel

Found out this Agentinian band playing Power/Folk Metal.
They are Tersivel and have released this year their first full length, For One Pagan Brotherhood.

Tersivel - As Brothers We Shall Fight

Song Of the Day - CCIII - Threat Signal

Canadian Melodic Death Metal band Threat Signal have just released their self titled third album.

Threat Signal - Fallen Disciples

Song Of the Day - CCII - Thulcandra

Thulcandra is a Melodic Black Death Metal band formed in Germany in 2003.
They have just released their second full length, Under a Frozen Sun.

Thulcandra - In Blood and Fire

Song Of the Day - CCI - Machine Head

Groove Trash Metal is another genre that I don't like very much, but I open an exception for Machine Head.
They have just released Unto The Locust, their seventh full length. It's not The Blackening, as the song I bring you today, Locust, is not Beautiful Mourning, but it's close enough.

Machine Head - Locust

Song Of the Day - CC - Mastodon

Not being the usual Something-core or Stoner fan, I was pleasantly surprised by Mastodon's latest release, The Hunter.
Very interesting song writing.

Mastodon - The Hunter

Song Of the Day - CXCIX - Myrath

Tales Of The Sands is the third release from Tunisian Progressive Metal band Myrath.
First Tunisian band ever on the blog! Enjoy!

Myrath - Time to Grow

Song Of the Day - CXCVIII - Almah

Almah is Edu Falaschi band, better known for being Angra's singer since 2001.
They play Heavy Power Metal and Motion is their third album which has just been released.

Almah - Trace of Trait

Song Of the Day - CXCVII - Anubis Gate

Today I bring you the self-titled fifth album of the Danish Progressive Power Metal band Anubis Gate.

Anubis Gate - Hold Back Tomorrow

Song Of the Day - CXCVI - Einherjer

Norrøn is the awaited comeback of Einherjer.
The Norwegian Viking Folk Metal band and disbanded in 2004, but returned in 2008, being Norrøn their first release since then.

Einherjer - Varden Brenne