Tierras de leyenda

Tierra Santa was my favorite band back in high school, when I was a metal newbie. Their speed, their themes; there was something in them that just got into my ears. Since Spanish is my native tongue I understand perfectly all of their lyrics, and had the luck of singing along with them when I saw them live.

Now, I still regard them as a good band, though I have only this album of their catalogue, since the title track was always (and still is) one of my all time favorite songs. So, let´s get on with it.

La Tormenta – or The Storm, its just an intro with a storm in the background, a choir, and a horse driving a chariot. Just an intro.

Tierras de Leyenda – or Lands of Legend, here is what Tierra Santa is all about: speed. Rhythm guitar and drums are the same all the way, fast as a war chariot. Its about and old man telling the story of a king trying to rob the power of a unicorn. The whole song is quite the same, but for the solo and lyrics. Although quite simple, easily the best song.

Sodoma y Gomorra – or Sodom and Gomorrah, then again speed. The song speaks of the two cities of lustful infamy. A bit slower than the previous one, but with a better guitar solo; the chorus gets catchier.

La Canción del Pirata (Parte 1 y 2) – or The Pirate´s Song (Part 1 and 2); the lyrics are a poem written by José de Espronceda, a spanish poet, and tell the story of Bajel, a pirate known and feared for his bravery. Part 1 is mid-tempo, and a strong song, the most catchy. It fades to a beach sound, with seagulls and everything, and Part 2 begins with an acoustic guitar tune, and goes the same for the first half. The second half kicks with drum and riffing, while retaining the same melody for the lyrics. These two songs just kick ass.

El Secreto del Faraón – or the Pharaoh´s Secret, another intro, just Egyptian ambientation via synthesizers I think.

La Momia – or the Mummy, return to speed and power. Quite a more melodic song with an Egyptian tune quite memorable. The same elements of Sodoma y Gomorra are present, although in a bit larger song. As you can see, Tierra Santa is a little bit repetitive, but by no means bad, at least in this album.

La Torre de Babel – or The Tower of Babel, which lyrics obviously speak of the famed tower who stood in defiance of the Heavens. This song is quite similar to Sodoma y Gomorra, but faster.

Una Juventud Perdida – or A Lost Youth, the most different song of the album, at least during the beginning. It starts with a piano and vocals, almost like a ballad. In fact, this could be the ballad of the album (it speaks of the pain of a mother whose child went to fight evil, and lost), were it not for the heavy part which comprises the second half. Not bad, but the weaker song of the album.

La Caja de Pandora – or Pandora´s Box, it starts slow, with a guitar leading the tune; and then evolves into a master song, with the same tune, but faster. Good song, but not one of my favorites.

El Caballo de Troya – or The Horse of Troy, the closer of the album. A fast song, a great song, the most catchy in the album. Definitely a great song, but I don´t like it as a closer. La Canción del Pirata 1 & 2 would´ve been the accurate choice for a closer, but anyway a good song.

The problem with Tierra Santa is that they are repetitive, one time too many. They use the same elements of start and finish in most of their songs, not only in this album but in most of their repertoire. Its not that they´re bad, in fact they are fast and catchy, but they could be a bit more innovative. That would certainly make them a better band, those who know these guys should agree with me, it is a little bit difficult to distinguish their songs from each other.

A good album, I know most of their songs from their other records and I like this one the most. If you like speed metal and mythology, this album is highly recommendable, otherwise, buy it out of curiosity at least. They aren´t precisely musical geniuses or masters in their instruments, but do achieve tunes to remember.