Darkwave.ro electro/industrial music magazine | news – reviews – interviews – concerts – festivals – parties

Tracklist: “Intro” * “Before You Knew Me” * “One More Time” * “In My Arms” * “New Life” * “Solitary Man” * “Stay” * “Afraid” * “150 Years” * “The Night” * “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow”

About Principe Valiente:

Principe Valiente are: Fernando Honorato (vocals, electronic bass, keyboards and piano); Alexander Lehto (guitars); Joakim Janthe (drums).

Principe Valiente‘s debut album finds the band fulfilling the promises of their achievements to date. The Stockholm-based band has in a short time gained a reputation for their live shows and are the subject of an increasing interest in their material in clubs and social networks on the internet. Their sound may partly be the result of a variety of elements inspired by the minimalism of certain post punk acts and the lushness of shoegaze, but is primarily characterized by an ambition to break new sonic ground.

This combination of innovative and inspired material makes for an invigorating listen as it is difficult to pinpoint in regard to genre. As a result, their music has frequently been labeled “dark pop”, a description that sums up the sonic qualities reminiscent of bands as diverse as The Sisters of Mercy, The Sound, Interpol and Suede. The music video for the newly released “The Night” has been rotating on German television (topped the Pop10 video chart week 47 & 49) and the band’s eponymous 2007 EP has been played on the radio and by DJs around Europe. The EP has also received good reviews on the other side of the pond. As the album has been greatly anticipated, the material has been meticulously scrutinized for the full length effort, work that has resulted in a conceptually and sonically consistent album throughout. Songs like “One More Time” and “New Life” are hypnotic, energetic and powerful and even though the songs work very well in their own right the record is structured enough to create a rewarding album context for the songs as well. (source: band site)

Principe Valiente “Principe Valiente”: Viva Music Album Review:

Out on Oct-21 with afmusic, Principe Valiente’s album is a great listen, gently moving across musical genres, and unraveling a great deal of emotions within the space granted by the album tracks. Self-titled, “Principe Valiente” may act at the same time as a band manifesto, bringing into the foreground a hermetic, but nevertheless welcoming atmosphere. Sizably empathetic and well-wrought into a continuous sequence of sounds that seem at the same time intimate and outgoing, the album also has to do with the two concepts in the band name: the nobility of lineage, and the valiance of warriors.

After an introspective, becalming “Intro”, the quiescence that envelops the listener is dismantled into fragments of imaginary worlds in free-floating dynamics as the first sounds of “Before You Knew Me” invade the ears and create the sonic landscape that separates between two worlds, that of the harsh sounds through the peepholes of which moments of calm can be gazed into, intently. With a very definite and acoustically pleasant flow, the album becomes sparkling with the incoming “One More Time”, which sounds at the same time retro and futuristic. The elegance of the sound showcases great instrumental and vocal capabilities in the band, and also a strong potential for live performances. If they adhere to 2012 festivals, do not miss the opportunity to go to their shows!

Alert only to the point of creating a special bond and transmitting a spectacular acuity in the listener, the album ensues with the same intelligently crafted music, with minimal vocals and instrumental highlights, with a dark sheen that not only seems plausible, but also very satisfying. Lush instrumentals propel forward the next track, too; “In My Arms” has a post punk loop and a stable souvenir of shoegaze, alongside the radiant vocals and the great feel it brings along. And it does not stop there, “New Life” keeps the expectations up and provides a song that can equally be thought of as a tribute to the music of the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, and an occasion to peer into the future. Not unlike the forthcoming “Solitary Man”, may it be said, which continues the sequence of noble tracks with a grand composition, really worth the listening time, at least ten times!

To show, however, that “Principe Valiente” cannot obsess over one and only musical theme, the shift of paradigm brought by the previous track is conceived into a different genre peek by “Stay”. Great tune, folks! In addition to the previous band map stars from the band bio, we would definitely stick a star in the Principe Valiente galaxy for Morrissey; not in the sense of influence, but, in the sense of impact. The same stress on feeling is elegantly preserved by “Afraid” and “150 Years”, and then “The Night” is taking over with an unstoppable vibrancy. Last but not least, “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow” closes the compilation with a sleek sound, truly amazing in concept and in the way it is carried out.

We liked Principe Valiente’s album because it is fresh, with a dark fiber interspersed in the post punk and shoegazing inspiration it was brought to life by. Also, it is heteroclite and despite the common vein of the tracks, which grants homogeneity to the album, you can capture different, stubbornly persistent feelings in each and every one of them. Enjoy!

Principe Valiente – Official Website | on Facebook | Discography on Discogs