PARANOID is a band that I find has a very fresh sound in that is so straightforward.  There aren't any gimmicks, no keyboards, no frills.  It's just straight up balls to the wall heavy metal, similar to a metal version of CLUTCH in that their sound doesn't have any surprises but it also doesn't pull any punches or conform to any particular ideals or style of metal.  Metal probably has more sub genres than any other type of music and sometimes I don't want all the bells and whistles.  While they aren't the only band to do this, they don't sound similar to any of the others such as LAMB OF GOD, GOD FORBID, or KILLSWITCH ENGAGE.  Their sound is their own and that is something to be respected in today's music scene where everything has been done at least once.

Miguel's vocals are well done; it is mostly a clean style with a nice dose of edge thrown in. His regular voice sounds similar to Maynard from TOOL but he isn't afraid to throw in a scream, shout, or a growl.  His vocals never become stagnate with the constant switching up in tone and style. Joao's guitar have a very clean and clear tone.  The riffs are paced well with a great crunch in the distortion and even some groove.  There is very little in the way of guitar solos or complicated melodies; the band is clearly riff based and centered around his guitars, which isn't a bad thing because he is a slick player.  The main riff to "Let Them Free" will definitely get your head banging and I bet this song slays in a live setting.  The ending riffs to "Last Day" are both crushing and catchy, which describes most of the music on this EP.  Miguel's screaming over the riffs during the part of that song really help things out too.  In fact, I find that his vocals and Joao's guitars work very well with each other, almost in duet type of way.

As much as the guitars and vocals work together, so do Marcelo's bass and Tiago's drums come together to really amplify the sound.  Both instruments are constantly pounding and adding more dimension, which is good since Moura is alone with guitars.  The double attack of the rhythm section allows them to both hold down the fort and keep things moving. If you like metal but can't get into the more extreme side of it, then I highly suggest PARANOID'S debut EP.