Principe Valiente – Barricades (Album – Metropolis Records)
Genre/Influences: Dream-Pop, Shoegaze, Cold-Wave.
Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.
Background/Info: Nearly five years after their last album Swedish formation Principe Valiente seems to have gotten an upgrade being signed to Metropolis Records.
Content: The Stockholm based formation remains driven by 80s retro elements and the Dream-Pop style reminding me of The Cocteau Twins is clearly running though the guitar playing. There’s a perfect twist between numerous, elevating guitar parts and melodic synth arrangements. The vocals inject passion to the album.
+ + + : The previous album “Oceans” was already a great piece of music but the new work moves above all expectations. This is a mature and fully accomplished production carried by impressive guitar playing. Together with the electronic sound treatments and melodies it creates a true symbiosis while the passionate vocals have never been that charismatic and professional. There are numerous great songs featured, but my favorite is “Porcelain” -previously released as a single. This is a dark piece driven by alluring, lifting guitar play.
– – – : I can’t say this album has minus points but I simply get the feeling Principe Valiente is even able to go further and do better.
Conclusion: “Barricades” stands for a great merge between different 80s related music styles. This is definitely one of the best ‘Post-Punk’ releases from the past months.
Best songs: “Porcelain”, “I Am You”, “Never Change”, “Tears In Different Colors”, “When We Can’t Let Go”.
Rate: 9.
Artist: www.principevaliente.com / www.facebook.com/principesweden
Label: www.metropolis-records.com / www.facebook.com/metropolisrecords Read the news on ‘Barricades’.
Metropolis Records released “Barricades” on 18 March 2022 on CD, vinyl and digitally. The ten tracks are “Barricades”, “So Much More”, “Porcelain”, “I Am You”, “Tears In Different Colors”, “When We Can’t Let Go”, “Never Change”, “The Beating Of Your Heart”, “The Impossibles” and “This Buried Love”.
The album was preceded by the single “Porcelain” in December 2021.
Listen to “Barricades”:
About Principe Valiente
Principe Valiente is a Swedish band from Stockholm, formed around Fernando Honorato on vocals and bass and Jimmy Ottosson on guitar. Their sound draws on post-punk minimalism and shoegaze, and is usually labelled dark pop. Jacob Malmström, Erik Grahn and Joakim Janthe have also played in the group.
The self-titled debut album appeared in 2011 through AF-Music, followed by “Choirs Of Blessed Youth” in 2014 and “Oceans” in 2017, which Side-Line reviewed that September. Aenaos Records issued the “Oceans” deluxe edition in 2019.
“Barricades” was the band’s first album for Metropolis Records. Two months after this review the band discussed the record in the Click Interview with Principe Valiente. The follow-up, “In This Light”, arrived on the same label in 2024.
Support Side-Line
More people read Side-Line than ever, and there is still no paywall and no advertising. Readers pay for it instead - from $5 a month.
Why we ask
Advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations we have not put up a paywall, and we refuse to add annoying advertising, so we need to ask for your help. Side-Line’s independent journalism takes time, money and hard work to produce, and we do it to push the artists we like, who are equally fighting to survive.
Handled by PayPal.
I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.
