Style: folk rock, prog metal (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Angra, Jethro Tull, Mägo de Oz
Country: Peru
Release date: 20 Jan 2025
As a genre, folk metal can transport us to many places—in one moment, we’re Viking warriors, brandishing our battle-axes and swilling mead (Týr); the next, we’re Celtic mystics on a mist-soaked moor (Eluveitie); we could even venture high in the snowy Mongolian mountains (Tengger Cavalry). But on their latest release Cosmos, Flor de Loto’s particular fusion of traditional instrumentation and heavy riffs sees us journey on a road less travelled in the passages of folk metal lore: we’re going to Peru.
Formed in 1998 in Lima, Peru, Flor de Loto (which translates to “Lotus Flower”) have a respectable back catalog of eight studio albums and one EP. They have also worked with a host of well-known featured artists, including Arthur Brown and Fabio Lione. The core of the band’s sound is a rollicking, easy-going blend of ol’ reliable Iron Maiden-esque riffs and Latin American pizzazz. After a handful of instrumental releases early in their career, the band threw vocals into the mix, and the resulting formula would sum up quite nicely even without the secret weapon. But oh yes, Flor de Loto has a secret weapon… or perhaps not so secret, if you paid attention to the FFO at the top of this review: the flute features heavily across the 44-minute runtime of Cosmos, and let’s not mince words: it rips.
Cosmos opens with the short but punchy instrumental track “Exodo”, which introduces the main woodwind instrument on the album: the quena, a traditional Andean wooden flute. The flute melody ambles nimbly over spacey background synths before we launch straight into “(R)evolución”, where bright tenor vocals join the party. By now, we’re getting a pretty good picture of the vivid Andean landscape that we’ll be exploring with Flor de Loto as our tour guides, but they have plenty more to show us.
Ex-Riot singer Mike diMeo opens up the title track, proclaiming ‘Reach the cosmos!’ But why would we want to do that when we’re having so much fun down here in the Incan foothills? As the album continues, Checho Cuadros on woodwinds has a few more tricks up his sleeve: employing different sounds and techniques, including circular breathing, the woodwind element on Cosmos continues to delight. Instrumental tracks shine: “Ecos del Pasado” is a whirlwind of pirouetting interplay between woodwinds and stringed instruments, and “Ahorita Voy” begins with a muted pan flute solo before treating the listener to bending and twisting melodies overtop jazzy Erroll Garner-esque organ stylings. It’s hard to say whether these tracks are so strong in spite of the lack of vocals, or because of it. Alonso Herrera on lead vocals is eminently capable, his delivery smooth and agile, but he can’t quite compete with the quena.
Cosmos contains many instances where flutes and guitar either double up or trade back and forth on solo passages (“Cosmos”, “Reino del Dolor”). Individual melodies frolic and gambol charmingly, but, in keeping with our cosmic theme, the fourth pane of the galaxy-brain meme is never quite reached: I would prefer to have each instrument play off of each other, instead of with each other in unison. In addition, some melodies are chewed past their expiration date, particularly in the tracks with guest vocalists: “Cosmos”, as well as the album closer “Crossfire”, which features Ray Alder of Fates Warning. Maybe the band wanted to make sure their guests had ample time to shine, but both tracks lose their flavour and potency by iterating over the same ideas too many times. Still, interjections by the flute in both songs add a much-needed hit of piquancy to keep things moving.
Over twenty-five years into sharing their craft, Flor de Loto are clearly a musically mature band. They know what they want to say and how they want to say it. Though the woodwinds may sometimes steal the show, strong artistry is on display across the band’s lineup. Fans of all kinds of folk metal would do well to follow along with Flor de Loto, whether into the Cosmos or simply into the jungles of Peru.
Recommended tracks: (R)evolución, Ahorita Voy, Ecos del Pasado
You may also like: Heroes del Silencio, Sacrificio, Los Jaivas
Final verdict: 7/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives Page
Label: OSKAR Records – Bandcamp | Official Website
Flor de Loto is:
– Alonso Herrera (Vocals, guitar)
– Lucho Sánchez (Guitar)
– Alejandro Jarrín (Bass)
– Sergio “Checho” Cuadros (Wind instruments)
– Diego Sánchez (Keyboard)
– Álvaro Escobar (Drums)
