On the Shortness of Life

A new album from Brazilian power metal band Hibria, aimed squarely at a second revival. The Japanese edition comes from Marquee Avalon on 5 August 2026, catalogue number MICP-12020. New singer Ângelo brings a wild, powerful voice that blows fresh air through the band, while the sharp guitar riffing and rolling bass that define their sound carry over intact. The opener "Undying" — its video already out — is about how passionately you spend the time you are given rather than how long that time runs. "Fire Away", "Pulse" and "Persist" put the fast riffing and technical construction that have been there since the debut back into sharp relief, now carried by a new voice. "Melting Alive" and "Against the Wall" face the limits of existence directly; the latter was issued as the second advance single. The title track is built as a suite (I. Adiaphora, II. Prohairesis, III. Apatheia, IV. Ataraxia, V. Eudaimonia), lining up Stoic concepts to close the album's argument. Seneca's essay of the same name is the source, and its central claim — that life is not short, we merely waste it — runs through the whole record. The Japanese edition adds "Steel Lord On Wheels (Live Session)", the current line-up playing the signature song from the 2004 debut, as a bonus track. On 25 October 2026 the band play Full Metal Japan 2026 at Pia Arena MM in a special billing that brings back Iuri Sanson and Renato Osorio.