Fairly new to the metal circuit, the symphonic metal band Pergana began in 2010 with their promotional single Frozen Heart, and later following up in June 2011 with their first EP The Mirror of Silence. It received a good amount of reviews that enabled them to be played on both American and European radio stations. Now the band tackles a second EP entitled The Visit, released just last November.

Beginning the album with the very upbeat track, Return to Innocence starts off with a good rocking chug accompanied by a piano that carries the melody well. The symphonic sound hints to the early Nightwish days, but still sounding unique in its own right. The music relies on keyboards, rather than the use of an actual orchestra, which is sometimes a breath of fresh air for me due to some bands overproducing the orchestral elements of their music. A solid keyboard solo found at the end of the track shows there’s some solid musicianship found behind the keys.

The main title track The Visit is a heftier track, this time bringing out double bass behind the drums, and making sure not to forget to belt out a catchy guitar solo in between. The last two tracks tacks on a slower approach, the first being The Whisper that captures a beautiful yet sad solemn sound. The keyboards carry the song well through this track once again with a rather depressed tone, but the acoustics guitars also come through to help this song carry through this lovely, yet mournful sound.

Though unsigned, Pergana have solid musicianship that will surely get some symphonic metal heads interested, as I know I was at the very first listen. Great potential lies here, and I am more than intrigued to what Pergana will be able to achieve with a full-length record when the time comes.