Eldermoon - Egregora

Angry Metal Guy 50

Written by: Nameless_N00b_86

One of the best ways for an unknown band to pique a potential listener’s interest is to promise an immersive story. Eldermoon, a fiery new band from Curitiba, Brazil, attempts this tactic with its debut album Egregora. The narrative is told by an omniscient entity called the Moon who watches the various stages of human existence—encapsulated in each of the 10 tracks—without interference or judgment.¹ The band was even committed enough to write detailed track-by-track summaries of each chapter as part of the promo materials. However, any album that tells a story must also offer quality music if it wants repeat listens. Does Egregora deliver, or did the allure of a concept album mislead me?

Despite having no veteran experience, the members of Eldermoon bring plenty of energy and creativity to their brand of melodeath. Much like Soilwork in recent years, this style relies heavily on choruses, leaving room for fast, catchy riffwork. All of the songs feature guitar solos by Allan Estalk and Alan Sanglard, which are easily the album’s highlights. The blistering guitar solo in the title track particularly showcases their proficiency. This isn’t to say that they are the only skillful instrumentalists—Fabio Conelli’s bass and Lucas Lorenzetti’s drums deftly keep pace with the ever-changing musical tempos. All of them, working in tandem, help drive the music forward.

ELDERMOON – Egregora by Sliptrick Records

The vocals present the most glaring inconsistency on Egregora. Alex Biembengut has roughly an octave in the baritone range where he sounds comfortable. Though this is less than ideal,² the main problem is that he spends a lot of time outside the scope of his singing ability. His voice becomes strained and off-key when he tries to stretch his range upwards, like in the chorus of “Wake of a New Cycle.” When he sings too low, it becomes raspy and even croaks in the intro of “Egregora.” Nowhere are these limitations more evident than on “Priestess of the Moon.” As a ballad, there isn’t much to pull the focus off the vocals. Furthermore, as a duet with pitch-perfect guest vocalist Raíssa Ramos, the song highlights Biembengut’s shortcomings. On the other hand, Biembengut’s rasps and growls are serviceable. In future endeavors, Eldermoon would be better off letting the guitars carry most of the melody and using Biembengut’s growls and screams as a rhythm instrument and accentuation. While laudable in theory, the band’s choice to prioritize vocal variety diminishes Egregora’s quality.

The vocal woes are especially regrettable because the songwriting on Egregora hits more often than it misses. The chorus of opener “The Elder” is tight and catchy, with a smooth key change in its final appearance. “Timor Incogniti” establishes an epic, dramatic atmosphere through the use of choirs without overdoing it. There are a few big whiffs—”Tomorrow in Oblivion” and “Wake of a New Cycle” are both marred by choruses that sound like week-old Five Finger Death Punch—but overall, Eldermoon knows how to write engaging songs with a distinct character. I hope that in the future they home in on the elements that work best and explore them more thoroughly.

Egregora aims high but falls short of bringing its expansive story to life. There is some compelling material that may appeal to those who can forgive the vocal imperfections, with “Timor Incogniti,” “Gears in Motion,” and “Give Me More!” representing the most consistent stretch. I suspect, though, that the singing will irreparably injure many listeners’ impressions of the record. Still, Eldermoon’s earnestness and talent are hard to ignore. If they can shore up or sidestep their weak points, they have the potential to make their sophomore venture worthy of note.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Sliptrick Records
Websites: eldermoonband.com | facebook.com/EldermoonBand
Releases Worldwide: July 30th, 2024

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