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Fragile Equality is the second album by the Brazilian
metal band and purveyors of hot licks, Almah. Front man Edu
Falaschi has shored up his one-time side project with a permanent
lineup that includes fellow Angra alum Felipe Andreoli. According
to Almah’s Myspace Fragile Equality will have a Manga-style
companion book released (though only in Brazil). Their Portuguese
only website www.almah.com.br made further details unclear.
Starting with the very first notes, mind melting guitar
playing is on display. This might be expected from a prog-metal
band, but even so the speed and tenacity, similar to early
Metallica, are worth mentioning. When the guitar playing isn’t
intense and forceful, it is stunningly epic sounding. “Birds
of Prey” and “Magic Flame” have particularly soaring choruses.
The reason so many prog-metal songs describe dystopian worlds
is that when things get a little Mad Max, you’ll need to be
pumped up to survive. Fragile Equality is the perfect album
to have when surviving in the wasteland. I made the mistake
of listening to it while jogging. You don’t jog while listening
to songs like “Birds of Prey.” You sprint. There is no holding
back the adrenaline.
Fragile Equality does a good job of breaking up the song
pacing to avoid deadening listeners’ ears, though each song
does feature a machine gun style of drumming at some point.
Falaschi even brings uses string instruments, which he arranges
himself, to accompany the band and fill out the sound. This
works to great effect. Almah is a band whose music is clearly
rooted in metal tradition but also has an interesting style
of song writing.
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