{"id":606459,"date":"2026-04-15T20:28:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T20:28:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/606459\/"},"modified":"2026-04-15T20:28:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T20:28:10","slug":"vanderlust-the-human-farm-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/606459\/","title":{"rendered":"Vanderlust – The Human Farm Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Aliens offer to take you away and give you a perfect\u2014albeit short\u2014life: do you say yes? According to Italian cosmic prog metal band Vanderlust, many of you would. \u201cSo, a bunch of people everywhere on Earth gave themselves\u201d to the Coelacanths for that same offer, so opens The Human Farm. Several generations later, a human uprising leads to an escape from slavery and the discovery that the Coelacanths were all along harvesting Humans for their emotions. This isn\u2019t meant to be funny. Vanderlust were deadset on telling a compelling sci-fi adventure in The Human Farm, enlisting guest keyboardist Francesco Londino (S91) and vocalist Martina Barreca (Mass Excess) to play the role of the Coelacanths. But did Vanderlust give us a sci-fi adventure for the ages with The Human Farm?<\/p>\n

The gooey earnestness with which Vanderlust spill their adventure on The Human Farm is often matched by skill and musical vision. Vanderlust tear through speed-demonic numbers like \u201cViral Escape\u201d or \u201cGolden Shackles\u201d with acerbically hooky, Vektor-gone-power-metal riffage while creating respite between the narrative beats with moody clean guitars and skittering drums on \u201cThe Turning Point\u201d and \u201cConnection Failed.\u201d Guitarist Francesco Romeggini solos like mad on The Human Farm, shredding Megadethly over Blind Guardian riffs on the almost-instrumental \u201cFrom the Cave \u2013 Fuga\u201d and imbuing \u201cDrive\u201d with a gravitas and refinement. Bassist David Cantina and drummer Giacomo Mezzetti hold down Vanderlust\u2019s rhythms, both driving (\u201cReborn\u2026Again\u201d) and groovy (\u201cHumanity 3.0 \u2013 The New Canaan\u201d) and shine on the \u201cBattlefield\u201d\u2018s bass solo and underlying fills. Ricca Morello\u2019s vocals can get a bit mush-mouthed in the softer moments, but his power metal-inclined range and delivery crush the big moments, and Barreca\u2019s death growls hit consistently, recalling Ophelion\u2019s vocal duo on 2025\u2019s The Jaunt<\/a>. The Human Farm isn\u2019t groundbreaking conceptually, but Vanderlust have the chops to tell their tale.<\/p>\n

The Human Farm thrives in its biggest moments. Morello sounds his best when he goes all in, like on the Blind Guardian-coded power bonanza \u201cBattlefield\u201d and emotionally charged bookends \u201cHumanity 2.0 \u2013 The Human Farm\u201d and \u201cHumanity 3.0 \u2013 The New Canaan.\u201d Barreca\u2019s growls add tons of punch to Vanderlust\u2019s sound. When she trades lines with the choir on \u201cConnection Failed\u201d or clean sings on \u201cReborn\u2026Again\u201d and brings Meat Loaf melodrama to Dream Theater balladry, it feels so right. However, The Human Farm lulls when Vanderlust take the pedal off the metal. Momentum from \u201cGolden Shackles\u201d dissipates in the slow-burning of \u201cThe Turning Point\u201d and doesn\u2019t return until halfway through \u201cConnection Failed,\u201d and the barn-burning energy of \u201cViral Escape\u201d is utterly deflated by the narrative interlude \u201c\u2026Find Them!\u201d. However, Vanderlust are at any given time never too far off from another soaring crescendo, making The Human Farm an exciting listen, if not consistently so.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Vanderlust\u2019s conceptual ambitions ultimately hinder The Human Farm, I feel. Vanderlust frequently dumb down musical ideas to allow narration more sonic space. This issue is exacerbated by the uniformly bad acting performances across The Human Farm, which resembles those 90s PC games where they just threw some interns into the booth. But even if the line reads were good, interjected into songs like \u201cFrom the Cave \u2013 Fuga\u201d and \u201cConnection Failed,\u201d they come off as a tacked-on concession to the story rather than an integral part of the music, coming off as distracting or even detrimental to the music. Vanderlust can do interesting things musically to tell their story, like having Barreca clean sing in \u201cReborn\u2026Again\u201d after the Coelacanths are defeated, reflecting them at their most vulnerable, or reworking the \u201cHumanity 2.0\u2026\u201d motif into the end of \u201cHumanity 3.0\u2026,\u201d where humankind has escaped captivity but find new challenges in freedom and lead some to question their revolution altogether. But for the most part, the way Vanderlust tell the story of The Human Farm detracts from what they do well: thrashy prog-power anthems.<\/p>\n

If Vanderlust could hone their storytelling as well as their songwriting on The Human Farm, we\u2019d have a great record on our hands. As is, there are too many conflicting elements in The Human Farm for more than a lukewarm recommendation, though there are fantastic songs throughout. Fans of prog-power will find things to like here, and Vanderlust is a band to keep an eye on, and I certainly will try to catch their third album should they make one. I\u2019m not sure if Vanderlust have a Terminal Redux or Access All Worlds in them, but I wouldn\u2019t put it past them either.<\/p>\n

\ufeff<\/p>\n

Rating: Mixed
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: V0 VBR mp3
Label: Rockshots Records<\/a>
Websites: facebook.com\/vanderlustofficial<\/a> | soundcloud.com\/vanderlust-music<\/a>
Releases Worldwide: April 17th, 2026<\/p>\n

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