''Angels Cry'' is the debut album of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

band Angra. It was released in 1993 and recorded in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Kai Hansen Kai Michael Hansen (born 17 January 1963) is a German musician who is the founder, lead guitarist and vocalist of power metal band Gamma Ray. He is also one of the co-founders of metal band Helloween, which he rejoined in 2016. He is a prominent ...

's studios in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. The opening track is a short rendition of the first movement of

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...

's " Symphony No. 8", commonly known as his "Unfinished Symphony". In addition, the title track features a brief arrangement of " Caprice no. 24" by

Niccolò Paganini Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (; 27 October 178227 May 1840) was an Italian violinist and composer. He was the most celebrated violin virtuoso of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique. His 24 Caprices f ...

, whereas "Evil Warning" features a brief arrangement of "

Winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultures ...

" by

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

. The opening of the track "Never Understand" features a brief arrangement of the song "

Asa Branca "Asa Branca" is a song written by Luiz Gonzaga and Humberto Teixeira in 1947. The ''asa-branca'' ("white wing") of the title is the picazuro pigeon. With its departure the desolation of the parched ''sertão'' (the arid backcountry) is complete, ...

" by

Luiz Gonzaga Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento (standard orthography 'Luís'; ; Exu, December 13, 1912 – Recife, August 2, 1989) was a Brazilian singer, songwriter, musician and poet and one of the most influential figures of Brazilian popular music in the twen ...

. The opening section of the closing track "Lasting Child", entitled "The Parting Words", is an adaptation of the theme of

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

's "

Variations sérieuses ''Variations sérieuses'', Op. 54, is a composition for solo piano by Felix Mendelssohn consisting of a theme in D minor and 17 variations. It was completed on 4 June 1841. A typical performance lasts about eleven minutes. The work was writte ...

", Op. 54.

Production and recording

When commenting on the production and recording of the album, vocalist

Andre Matos Andre Coelho Matos (14 September 1971 – 8 June 2019) was a Brazilian singer and musician. He was involved in the heavy metal bands Viper, Angra, Shaman and Symfonia. Since 2006, Matos had been dedicating his time to his solo career. In 201 ...

said that recording the album was difficult due to the inexperience of him and his bandmates, and also due to the difference of musical influences between them and the producers. He also referred to the recording as "an exile": Producer Charlie Bauerfeind was not confident that drummer and co-founder Marcos Antunes would be skillful enough for the music he expected to put in the album, so he told the band they could either fire him and hire

Alex Holzwarth Rhapsody of Fire (formerly known as Rhapsody) is an Italian symphonic power metal band formed by Luca Turilli and Alex Staropoli, widely seen as a pioneer of the symphonic power metal subgenre. Since forming in 1993 as Thundercross, the band h ...

as a session musician or use electronic drums - or otherwise he would leave the project. The band decided to do as he said and replaced Antunes with Holzwarth, a decision Matos regards as being very difficult. One of the songs, however, was performed by a different drummer:

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single "Wuthering Heights (song), Wuthering Heights", ...

cover "

Wuthering Heights ''Wuthering Heights'' is an 1847 novel by Emily Brontë, initially published under her pen name Ellis Bell. It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moorland, moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their tur ...

", played by then

Gamma Ray A gamma ray, also known as gamma radiation (symbol γ or \gamma), is a penetrating form of electromagnetic radiation arising from the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei. It consists of the shortest wavelength electromagnetic waves, typically ...

drummer Thomas Nack. Matos said Nack was a big fan of Bush and "could play those lines perfectly". The inlays and photo shoots for the album display drummer

Ricardo Confessori Ricardo Confessori (born January 25, 1969) is a Brazilian drummer and a former member of the Brazilian power metal band Angra. After leaving the Brazilian thrash metal band Korzus, Confessori was invited for assume the post of drummer of Angra ...

, but he would only join the band after its recording. Antunes appears on the back sleeve and inlays of the Japanese first press of the album instead of Confessori.

Track listing

Personnel

Band members

André Matos Andre Coelho Matos (14 September 1971 – 8 June 2019) was a Brazilian singer and musician. He was involved in the heavy metal bands Viper, Angra, Shaman and Symfonia. Since 2006, Matos had been dedicating his time to his solo career. In 201 ...

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

Kiko Loureiro Pedro Henrique "Kiko" Loureiro (born 16 June 1972) is a Brazilian guitarist. He has been a member of several heavy metal bands, including Angra and Megadeth. Career Loureiro began studying music and playing acoustic guitar at age 11. He studie ...

–

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

and

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular recu ...

guitars *Rafael Bittencourt –

and

guitars *Luís Mariutti -

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

Guest musicians

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

except in Track #7 *

Dirk Schlächter Dirk Schlächter (born 15 February 1965, in Bad Nauheim, Germany) is the bassist of the power metal band Gamma Ray and Avalanch from 2018. History Dirk got in touch with music for the first time joining a music school at the age of 8. At the ag ...

–

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

in Track #6 *

–

in Track #6 *

Sascha Paeth Sascha Paeth (born 9 September 1970 in Wolfsburg, West Germany) is a German guitarist, bassist, musical producer, and mixer known for working with heavy metal bands such as Avantasia, Edguy, Angra, Shaaman, Rhapsody of Fire, Kamelot, After ...

– acoustic and

guitars in Track #6

Additional musicians

*Thomas Nack –

in track #7

References

{{Authority control 1993 debut albums Angra (band) albums Polydor Records albums Albums produced by Charlie Bauerfeind