Adrian Benegas released a new single, "Growing Hearts", on 11 September, sung by Herbie Langhans, with Eric Juris on guitars and bass and Sascha Paeth on the mix and the master.
The Paraguayan composer and keyboard player calls it a statement about courage and transformation rather than simply a melodic metal song, and the video that carries it was drawn and animated by hand. He made a point of that. "Beyond the music, I have curated every visual element from the raw, evocative photography to the hand illustrated, traditionally animated video. In an age of sterile, AI generated content, I have rejected the easy path. Every frame, shot, and note in this project was crafted by human hands," he said.
The artwork is by Bruno Bogarín Closs, the promotional photography by Lourdes Galli and the video production by Santiago Bogarín.
Benegas has two albums out, The Revenant from 2019 and Arcanvm from 2023, and an EP, Diamonds in the Dark, from 2021. The records have drawn players from Avantasia, Rhapsody, Blind Guardian, Primal Fear and Gamma Ray, and Langhans has sung on several of the singles that came before this one.