Join us in the magical land of Atlandia, where we’ll tread a fascinating path into the world of symphonic metal opera with French band Avaland. The band, whose name is the capital city of the realm, welcomes wanderers into its lands with engaging vocals and dramatic instrumentals in an enthralling style that they describe as “theatrical, genuine and many-sided.”
The band, from Grenoble in the southeast of France, began as the project of frontman Adrien G. Gzagg (vocals, keys and orchestration) in 2018, when he was 20. Bassist Camille Souffron was in Adrien’s first band (Eyezery) and, after a few lineup changes, they were joined by guitarist Lucas Martinez, drummer Leo Mouchonay and joint lead vocalist Jeff Kanji. The band also has an army of guest vocalists who join them for recordings and big shows, including Madie (ex-Nightmare), Cara (Eltharia) and Sophie Yanelli (Devil’s Joke).
On the sound they’ve crafted, Adrien told us: “Our sound for this new chapter is more ‘rock oriented,’ as we really wanted to push the musical and theatrical aspects of our music. Joost (van den Broek, who provides additional keys and orchestration and has produced music for Ayreon, Powerwolf, Epica and Sabaton) helped us a lot in defining exactly how Avaland have to sound. But we also wanted to keep a heavy and symphonic metal energy as Epica and Nightwish could show.”
Our latest taste of this is Sail On, which was released last week. It starts out with a cool darting lick over dramatic strings and choral vocals, which gives way to engaging vocals in a moody opening verse. More dramatic vocals take over, alongside a plodding guitar riff, before a piercing guitar lick and multiple vocals lead us into a catchy chorus “Brave Heart! Sail On! Never be the same again, Brave Heart! Sail On! Breaking the order of time, Brave Heart! Sail On! Guide me to the mother death, I promise, I’ll find a way (home).”
A darting riff comes in to set up a dramatic verse, which picks up pace before flowing into another big chorus. The pace picks up with a stabbing riff supporting dramatic vocals, giving way to a fast-paced guitar solo over driving drums and stabs of string, which sets up a more dramatic final blast of the chorus.
On the track, Adrien said: “Sail On was only released a few days ago, but the feedback has been incredibly positive, we are really happy that people have noticed the progress we’ve made, especially working with Joost as producer, who pushed us in our limits to perfect the song.
“Sail On is a powerful, dark yet full of hope hymn-like song. If you enjoy choruses that stick in your mind, we sincerely think that this one is made for you. The song is about a journey to hell, an allegory to how we can face our darkest moments.”
Sail On follows on from the band’s albums, Theater of Sorcery (2021) and The Legend of the Storyteller (2023), as well as a superb live album, The Legend Comes Alive, which was released last year.
Avaland’s music draws on a wide range of influences, from Adrien’s love of The Alan Parsons Project, Avantasia, Ayreon, Savatage, Asia and Winger to shared interests like Helloween, Blind Guardian, Dream Theater, Symphony X, Angra and French songwriter Jean-Jacques Goldman. While Sail On, which was written by Lucas, was inspired by Black Sabbath traditions with a more modern atmosphere.
And on what inspires them to write music, Adrien explained: “Every song starts with an idea, an image, a feeling. As Avaland is a Metal Opera with a complete timeline and unique lore, I write all my ideas for each chapter, then it gives me guidelines to write my stories. When it comes to lyrics, I can be inspired by fantasy books, movies and series, but also by mythologies, local legends, alchemy and magical universes.”
Avaland plan to release several more singles this year, with another album scheduled for release by the Autumn and a tour planned for later this year into next year.
And Adrien added: “Avaland is really more than just a musical thing. If you love Fantasy, RPG worlds, and fantastic movies, you can experience our albums with the lore (on World Anvil) and find interactive lyrics on our website!”
You can follow Avaland on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and YouTube.
Listen to Avaland and more new bands on our Spotify playlists GigRadar Metal and GigRadar Symphonic
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