Forgotten Gems: Panndora-Heretic's Box

If anyone has noticed, which would naturally mean that my hit count had gone from zero to one or more LOL, I'm actually covering this Brazilian act's catalog backwards. Having reviewed the band's 2012, 3-track EP, "Behind the Crime", earlier this month (link below) I'm now turning my attention to this LP which, in addition to being another self-produced/self-released affair, is the band's sophomore output. Whew, now that we have all of that out of the way let's crack open "The Heretic's Box" and take a look inside. As noted on my previous review of Panndora, which is worth reading if you're interested in the back-story of this all female heavy metal group, these fine ladies are another example of retro-metal worship in all it's glorious colors! The difference with Panndora is that, unlike the bulk of retro-metal bands these days, their sound is more natural and free-flowing. In a way I'd compare them to Ladybeast and The Sign Of the Jackal in that these heavy metal ladies don't try to copy their heroes, but instead take their influences and, in a case of practice makes perfect, rock the living daylights out of them! It's as though Panndora actually know what they like (in this case it's everything from Doro/Warlock to Iron Maiden) and yet they fully understand that being a carbon-copy of those acts is just not cool. How I do wish that more new, up and coming, traditional metal bands would follow suite. While we all love the greats (Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Saxon, etc.) do we really need 1,000 new bands sounding exactly like them? Even if it's played in sincere fashion it still sucks the air out of an enthusiasm that I might have for one of my favorite genres. Thankfully Panndora really don't sound just like band A, B or C even when they end up covering a particular artist. On this sophomore release the band choose Running Wild as their subject choice and they pull it off admirably. Mark that one down as another influence although fans seeking female-fronted metal should realize that these fine ladies are more of a combination of 80's heavy metal and the N.W.O.B.H.M. scene. It's just too bad that more people haven't taken notice of the talent level presented here, let alone the marketability of this group, as Panndora could prove to much more then this hand-drawn album art might imply.




http://metalmark.blogspot.com/search?q=Panndora

Panndora-Behind the Crime

Self-Release/Independent
2012

It was some months ago that I followed up on a suggestion that I needed to track down this 3-track EP. As a fan of female-fronted heavy metal/all women metal bands this one held the promise of being right up my alley. Panndora's "Behind the Crime" actually follows in the footsteps of the band's second full-length album,  "Heretic's Box" which I do plan to cover down the road a bit. With that said I've got to admit to the fact that I had half-forgot about asking for this promo material when I got a message that it was on it's way. Panndora were nice enough to send me their "Heretic's Box" as a bonus so I thank them for that in advance. As the group hails from Maringá, Paraná (Brazil) the bulk of material (in regards to info about the band) is not in English, but that doesn't really have any effect on the group in general so no biggie. This all-ladies heavy metal act was formed in 2000 and, per the Metal Archives, were initially known as Wind Of Fate. This 3 track EP was recorded at Refrão Studio and Burn Studio (Maringá-PR) in 2012 with one of the tracks, "Cold Eyes", getting the royal music video treatment at the start of 2013. Said video is linked below. So, you might be asking yourself "Self, what makes Panndora tick?" and the answer to that is STRAIGHT-UP ASS-KICKING METAL! The influences range from the obvious/big name bands such as Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Kiss, Twisted Sister and AC/DC to the more subtle/not so-much big name groups like Doro/Warlock, Acid, Warlord, Running Wild, Vixen, Grim Reaper, Quiet Riot, Wasp and Grave Digger. Some folks have always drawn connections to the sound of Sacred Blade which I wouldn't deny, but I'd add on the likes of Omen, Exxplorer, Leatherwolf, Sacred Rite and Lizzy Borden. In other words these 4 ladies flat-out slay the metal dragon! If there's a downside to be had it's the short length. It leaves you primed and ready for more, but you're left longing. Thankfully I still have the other album to dig into so I won't fall into that trap myself. As these lovely metal maidens are from Brazil mainstream success will be a challenge for them, but others have done it before and, with the right label and promotional department behind them, Panndora could very easily break out to! For more information be sure to check out their Facebook page and the band's own site.
http://panndora.net/
https://www.facebook.com/panndoraband
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=43tKKZXCgtM (video of "Cold Eyes")