Children of Gaia/Confronto "split" CD
[Liberation]
Cool deal. A split between two vegan/vegetarian straightedge metalcore bands out of Brazil. Children of Gaia (São Paulo) begin with four tracks of blistering European styled metalcore that also reminds me somewhat of that old Ohio band Ascension. Think brutal chugging rhythms, thrashy picking patterns, utterly sick vocal screams, and a powerful atmosphere that most of today's metalcore bands lack big time. There's some tremolo picking stuff that sounds mildly Scandinavian influenced, but barely. This definitely sounds like the more metal side of what was going on in the 90's, and to me that's a very good thing. They've got a great sound as well. Everything is heavy but very clear. I'd like to hear a slight bit more bass guitar in the mix, but everything else sounds fine in my opinion. Confronto (Rio de Janeiro) does five songs (among them an awesome Self Conviction cover - "Unbroken Feelings") of similar but perhaps more diverse metalcore. There are more tempo changes and some death metal influences vocally, and the excellent acoustic passage with spoken vocals in "Ossos e Carne Diante do Desespero" is awesome. Though overall I feel that the songwriting here, while great, isn't quite as energetic as Children of Gaia's work. I like the variety, though. They're very close to hitting the nail on the head with their blend of crushing rhythms, clean passages, and intense tremolo picking. The rhythm section sounds really good, as the drums are tight enough to stand out but they don't get annoying and the bass tone is awesome, playing a huge role in the mix. As with their last full-length, the main problem is that the guitar tone is too choppy for their style, but overall this sounds a bit better, and they're on the right track. The layout's not bad. There's a lot of weird imagery such as a woman wrapped in plastic and groups of people in protective white suits, and all of the lyrics (which are in Portuguese) have English translations provided. Both bands deal with personal takes on socio-political issues, with Children of Gaia taking a more blatant approach in their calls for animal rights and their flying of the straightedge banner. Confronto has similar messages but takes things on a larger scale and tends to deal with them in a grander context relating to society's present state. I'm really into the Children of Gaia material. I'd love to hear more from them. But shit, Confronto is very promising as well, and I think this is an improvement over their last release. So both bands are definitely worth checking out. (7/10)
Running time - 36:32, Tracks: 9
[Notable tracks: Quando a Ignorância se Torna Uma Festa, Réplica, Ossos e Carne Diante do Desespero, Unbroken Feelings]
Confronto - http://www.xconfrontox.cjb.net

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