SPARZANZA — Folie à Cinq (review)

SPARZANZA — Folie à Cinq album cover Album · 2011 · Doom Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
Time Signature
Alone with a loaded gun...

Genre: rock/metal

Sparzanza are typically considered a stoner/doom metal band. I do not know about the rest of their discography, because I have not heard it, but this release strikes me as being neither doom metal nor stoner metal. I mean, apart from some slightly downtempo sections of "Mr Fish", "Eyes Wide Shut" and "Phoenix Down" and a doomy tail of one of the main riffs of "Night of the Demons", I do not think that this release is particularly doom-ladden, and there are hardly any stoner-atmosphere elements on this release either (I mean, there is groove, but not sludgy groove, and influences from the likes of Sabbath, Led Zep and the like are not overtly reflected, as is otherwise typical of stoner metal).

To me, it sounds more like a combination of groove metal and modern heavy/hard rock filtered through the typical modern Swedish metal sound associated with many Gothenburg acts (although these guys are not from that area). Most of the tracks follow a similar formula in which the verses are heavy, and often groovy, while the verses are melodic and have a more modern rock feel to the vocal lines. Despite the formulaic nature of the tracks, I think this is a pretty good album with a collection of solid-sounding rock/metal songs (some of which contain some pretty crushing groovy riffs), and the guys in Sparzanza deserve credit for their ability to write catchy and melodic choruses.

The vocals are slightly raspy and, while there are some growls and screams, the singing is with its rock qualities, perhaps the element that provides the biggest similarity between this release and the blues-inspired belting of many 70s stoner rock singers.

"Folie a Cinq" is a solid rock release with plenty of heavy metal elements in it (or a metal release with many rock elements in it), and, while somewhat formulaic, it is a joy to listen to.
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