This up-and-coming “Couture Metal” ensemble from Down Under strikes back with their first ever full-length album, an eight-track odyssey that serves as a philosophical exploration of the human condition.
Melbourne has long been a crucible for heavy music innovation, but Symphonic Metal entity ANA is currently redefining the aesthetic boundaries of the genre. Since their inception in early 2023, the quintet has bypassed standard symphonic tropes to establish “Couture Metal” as a sophisticated, upscale evolution of the craft that prioritizes high-fashion theatricality alongside punishing sonic precision. Led by the enigmatic frontwoman Anna Hristenko, whose vocal range anchors the band’s atmospheric depth, ANA have quickly transitioned from an intriguing newcomer to a formidable force in the international metal community, culminating now with the release of their first full-length album Motivated By Death, following up on their 2024 EP The Art of Letting Go. Engineered and mixed at Monolith Studios, and mastered at The Panicroom Studio, the new album by Anna Hristenko on vocals, Josh Mak on the guitar, Cody Lamb on bass, Mark Shi on keyboards, and Andres Felipe Martinez Osorio on drums is an eight-track odyssey that serves as a philosophical exploration of the human condition.
Like the intro to an epic movie, ethereal sounds permeate the air in Hate Me before morphing into a thrilling fusion of Symphonic and Alternative Metal led by Anna’s hypnotizing vocals, whereas Josh’s striking riffs are boosted by the electrifying keys by Mark in the upbeat Shadow of Life, highly recommended for fans of Within Temptation and Epica. Then Cody’s rumbling bass kicks off the hard hitting Following the Wind, perfect for some wild headbanging while Anna delivers her trademark vocals supported by the again whimsical keys by Mark; and after such an electrifying tune we face the dark ballad You Loved Me More Than I Love Myself, bringing passion and melancholy to the band’s feast of modern-day heavy music.
Andres takes the lead with his ruthless beats and fills in the mesmerizing Eyes of A Child, with their riffs and keys also taking us on a journey to far away lands, always spiced up by Anna’s striking vocals, followed by Sick Love, another enfolding ballad by Anna and her henchmen, with her passionate vocal lines being nicely complemented by the delicate piano and keys by Mark, ending on a strong note when the guitar, bass and drums join him. Papa is a decent song but not as captivating as the rest of the album, lacking an extra kick in the end, albeit Anna still delivers her usual striking vocals, and closing the album we have the band’s very interesting take on System of A Down’s classic Aerials (check the original one HERE if you’re from another dimension and doesn’t know it yet), where Anna and the boys bring passion and tons of symphonic elements to their inspiring rendition.
An invitation to see the birth of a new era in Australian heavy music, Motivated By Death will undoubtedly take ANA to new heights, hopefully meaning we’ll see the band touring on “distant” lands like the United States and Canada in the near future. Having said that, if you want to know more about the band and invite them to hit the stages of your hometown, you can find them on Facebook and on Instagram, subscribe to their YouTube channel, stream their classy music on Spotify, and of course put your hands on their incendiary new album by clicking HERE. ANA stand at the precipice of a new era with the release of Motivated By Death, proving that while life is temporary, great music is immortal.
Best moments of the album:Hate Me, Following the Wind and Eyes of A Child.
Worst moments of the album:Papa.
Released in 2026 Eclipse Records
Track listing 1. Hate Me 4:32
2. Shadow of Life 3:28
3. Following the Wind 3:32
4. You Loved Me More Than I Love Myself 5:42
5. Eyes of A Child 4:13
6. Sick Love 4:17
7. Papa 4:38
8. Aerials (System of A Down cover) 4:19
Band members Anna Hristenko – vocals
Josh Mak – guitar
Cody Lamb – bass
Mark Shi – keyboards
Andres Felipe Martinez Osorio – drums
Are you ready to burn in the fires of extreme music together with our metal lady of this month of February here on The Headbanging Moose? I’m sure you are, and get ready as her incendiary vocals will melt not only any snow left from this harsh winter, but also your faces, leaving you completely disoriented after all is said and done. She’s an Extreme Metal vocalist, an opera singer, a soprano, a singing teacher, an actress, and a vocal coach, making the whole world of heavy music a much better place for us fans of hypnotizing and powerful vocals. Her name is Jessy Vignolle, sometimes referred to as Jessy “Christ” Vignolle, or simply Jessy Christ, the frontwoman for French metal sensation Usquam, and once you know more about her life, her career and her music, you’ll certainly get addicted to her distinct voice, charisma, and aggression.
Hailing from Paris, France, Jessy has been a curious child from the early age of eleven, discovering her passion for music through the guitar, piano, and singing without a defined direction, exploring everything from classical to rock. All that passion led to her first ever concert as a singer and guitarist at the age of 13, joining her first band a year later. Exploring multiple musical styles including Pop, Jazz, Indian music, Celtic music, and many more, while also drawing inspiration from all their unique characteristics (which she sees as future strengths), Jessy enrolled in musicology and earned a bachelor’s degree in musicology, a master’s degree in artistic supervision, and a master’s degree in artistic engineering. At the same time, she pursued a professional career in classical music, studying operatic singing at the Savigny-le-Temple Conservatory in Paris under Véronique Laguerre and joining the Che Calda Voce opera company led by Laura Marin. Not only that, she also made her mark in the rock and metal music scene, performing on numerous French stages such as La Cigale, La Boule Noire, and La Machine du Moulin Rouge, among others, as well as at festivals.
It was not too long ago, in the not-so-distant year of 2024, when Jessy joined Usquam as their new vocalist replacing Lucas Henry. Formed in 2018, this Paris, France-based Melodic Black Metal band released in 2021 their debut EP Reborn, followed by their fantastic first full-length opus Ex Nihilo, in 2025, already with Jessy stealing the spotlight with her undisputed vocals. Exploring the secrets of dark music, inspired by the observation of a world oscillating between decline and progress, the band currently formed of our metal lady Jessy on vocals alongside Eithenn and Draugr on the guitars, and Alwan on bass aims at spreading their dark philosophy all across the world, and you can get a very good taste of their music on YouTube, BandCamp, and Spotify, enjoy their official videos for the songs Arcana Nox, Altar Ego and Ego Sum (Qui Sum), and keep an eye on their social media for their live performances, in special if you live in France.
Apart from her promising career with Usquam, Jessy can also be found as a guest and as a live vocalist (under the moniker J.V.) for French Black Metal entity NZGL, founded by vocalist, guitarists and bassist Gaël Liger, recording vocals and having also written some of the lyrics for their 2025 album Tales from the Pale Moon… And Other Stories, available on both BandCamp and on Spotify. In addition, she’s also involved with an Industrial/Gothic Rock band named Syndro-syS since 2013, having released with the band the 2015 album Corporation, available on BandCamp. The band doesn’t seem to be active anymore, as they’ve been dead silent since around 2020, but the music is still great and definitely deserves our attention. Who knows, maybe we can all inspire Jessy and Syndro-syS to get back in action if we listen to their music enough, right?
Anyway, Jessy can also be seen as a guest musician to a few very interesting bands and projects since the beginning of her undisputed career. For instance, she recorded all female vocals for the 2022 EP Exist in Ruin, by American Symphonic Black/Death Metal project Exist in Ruin; vocals for the songs Kimi Ga Yo, Seducing Dementia and Whispering Clouds, from the 2013 album Les 12 vertiges, and for the song Hate Me, from the 2019 album Le festin du lion, by French Electronic Industrial Metal act Herrschaft; vocals for the song L’étranger, from the 2018 album Standalone Episodes, by French Progressive Heavy Metal band Seasons; and vocals for the song The Edge of Time, from the 2015 album Symbiosis, by French Melodic Death/Groove Metal act T.A.N.K. Not only that, she also worked as a vocal coach for French Black Metal horde Houle in their 2022 self-titled EP, and their 2024 album Ciel cendre et misère noire.
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An opera singer, soprano and vocal coach, , as already mentioned, Jessy is more than a passionate musician, offering an array of services to accompany most types of celebrations including baptisms, weddings, funerals and tributes, as well as private events, supported by a varied repertoire of sacred music, operas and popular music, such as Ave Maria (Franz Schubert), Voi che Sapete (Wolfgang A. Mozart), When I am Laid (Henry Purcell), La Vie en Rose (Edith Piaf), Someone Like You (Adele), S’il Suffisait d’Aimer (Celine Dion), and many more, always delivering every piece with a ton of emotion to retrace your most beautiful memories. Not only that, she also lends her voice, composes and also collaborates with many international musical projects, just like her guest contributions to the aforementioned metal bands.
As a vocal coach and singing teacher, she will help you understand vocal technique and discover your voice, whether you are a beginner, an artist, or a professional speaker, using a personalized teaching approach that adapts to your needs, mastering several techniques that intertwine theoretical knowledge of the instrument and live practice. Jessy teaches artists and private individuals, always keeping in mind that each student is a unique individual with their own aspirations and energy. Since 2022, she coaches magistrates at the Paris, Angers, and Rennes Courts of Appeal to help them develop their voices as a professional tool. Furthermore, she incorporates elements of the Alexander Technique (a psycho-physical re-education method that improves posture, reduces tension, and enhances performance by teaching musicians to move with more awareness and ease) into her practice to give her students the tools to understand the fundamental mechanisms of their instrument and develop their autonomy.
If you think that’s not enough, Jessy is also an actress, embodying the voice that will bring your audiovisual production to life through voice-over or dubbing, for example, and she participates in some classical concerts within the network of conservatories in the Grand Paris Sud region. Moreover, apart from her private lessons as already mentioned, she also organizes and hosts conferences, masterclasses and workshops. You can enjoy several of her works on the Productions page on her own website, from video clips to short stories and TV ads. But wait, as there’s still more. Jessy has also embarked on a new endeavor, creating her own herbal tea intended for singers, voice professionals and all food lovers, having selected herbs with virtues recognized by voice specialists and entrusted the preparation of the recipe to Happy Plantes, a company of passionate herbalists, very involved in ethical production. The final product is named Élixir du chanteur, and you can get your own package from Jessy’s Big Cartel. The tea can be enjoyed as a snack or as a treatment for those who wish to prevent issues like vocal fatigue, respiratory tract, gastric protection, hoarseness, and so on, all certified from organic farming.
I told you that after knowing more about the indomitable Jessy “Christ” Vignolle you would get more than addicted to her voice, her music, her charisma, and maybe even to her herbal tea), and as long as she keeps firing her whimsical and hypnotizing vocals together with Usquam or any other band or project, we can rest assured the entire world of music will be a much better place. Would it be too much to ask Jessy and Usquam for a US and Canada tour? I’m beyond certain the fans on this side of the pond would go mental with their music. Thank you, Jessy, for your amazing contributions to music in general, and for making heavy music a much better place with your badass attitude. À plus tard!
Melbourne has long been a crucible for heavy music innovation, but Symphonic Metal entity ANA is currently redefining the aesthetic boundaries of the genre. Since their inception in early 2023, the quintet has bypassed standard symphonic tropes to establish “Couture Metal” as a sophisticated, upscale evolution of the craft that prioritizes high-fashion theatricality alongside punishing sonic precision. Led by the enigmatic frontwoman Anna Hristenko, whose vocal range anchors the band’s atmospheric depth, ANA have quickly transitioned from an intriguing newcomer to a formidable force in the international metal community, culminating now with the release of their first full-length album Motivated By Death, following up on their 2024 EP The Art of Letting Go. Engineered and mixed at Monolith Studios, and mastered at The Panicroom Studio, the new album by Anna Hristenko on vocals, Josh Mak on the guitar, Cody Lamb on bass, Mark Shi on keyboards, and Andres Felipe Martinez Osorio on drums is an eight-track odyssey that serves as a philosophical exploration of the human condition.
An invitation to see the birth of a new era in Australian heavy music, Motivated By Death will undoubtedly take ANA to new heights, hopefully meaning we’ll see the band touring on “distant” lands like the United States and Canada in the near future. Having said that, if you want to know more about the band and invite them to hit the stages of your hometown, you can find them on Facebook and on Instagram, subscribe to their YouTube channel, stream their classy music on Spotify, and of course put your hands on their incendiary new album by clicking HERE. ANA stand at the precipice of a new era with the release of Motivated By Death, proving that while life is temporary, great music is immortal.
THE HEADBANGING MOOSE 