Artist: Van Canto
Title: Break the Silence
Type: Album
Label: Napalm Records

I'll be the first to admit that I was a little caught out by this album. I'd heard some of Van Canto’s older stuff and enjoyed it for the novelty. In the same way I liked Apocalyptica when they were just playing songs I knew, I thought Van Canto were going to be a cover band with a twist. Don't get me wrong, their original material is still well worth listening to, but it just isn't what I was expecting. Granted there are still covers on the album but they are also proving they aren't a one trick pony.

Opening number "If I Die In Battle" starts with a minute of softly sung crooning, but once Bastian Emig kicks in with the drums and Stefan Schmidt, Ross Thompson and Ingo "Ike" Sterzinger start their rakkatakka and dandan vocals, it actually sounds like a power metal band, with less whiney guitars. Dennis "Sly" Schunke and Inga Scharf trade off their male and female vocals on "The Seller Of Souls", with her also doing some higher guitar harmonies. The first cover is of Sabaton's "Primo Victoria" and it even features Sabaton's Joakim Broden on vocals for added authenticity, but as I've never heard the original I wouldn't be able to compare the two, but it sounds pretty good regardless. "Dangers In My Head" is slightly slower with heavier dandans in there for good measure, but what really impresses me is the way Inga hits those really high soprano notes, along with Stefan's wahwah solo guitar vocals. Feeling slightly more operatic in nature "Black Wings Of Hate" is predominantly female vocal based and could quite easily rival female fronted power metal songs. and to be honest it's only when you hear them singing "bah bah dum, dum dum, bah dah dum" clearly that you remember there are no guitars on these songs.

The cover of Alice Cooper's "Bed Of Nails" is pretty cool, and I think Sly definitely has the better voice too. The totally acoustic "Spelled In Waters" has Marcus Siepen (Blind Guardian) playing guitar, because sadly there's no way you'd be able to imitate the scratching on the guitar strings vocally, and the added vocal harmonies actually make the song even more beautiful. "Neuer Wind" is completely sung in German, and I am guessing here, but I think the onomatopoeia used on the backing vocals may also be Germanic, or I may be talking tripe, which is more likely. "The Higher Flight" is a far livelier track than any of the others and its more cheerful tune is rather catching, the "rum-dum-dum" is rather catching and it's easy to find yourself chanting along to it pretty quickly. I've never been a Manowar fan, so the only reason that I know "Master Of The Wind" is one of theirs is because it's explicitly listed as such and the piano accompanying the singing quintet is masterfully played. There are meant to be 3 bonus tracks on the digipack version of this release, but as I don't have 'em, so I'll end my review here.

http://www.vancanto.de

Marco Gaminara

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