This band seriously have something. They haven’t been around very long, and this is their first release of any real note (they did release a demo early last year, aptly entitles Prelude). That being the case, this debut is mindblowing. Many bands, especially ones playing complex and progressive music, take a little time to mature, to grow into their skins musically. Not so with this Melbourne five piece. They’ve got that special something already.
And what that special something is, is that magical juxtaposition of heaviness/complexity in the context of memorable, melodic songs. These guys have mastered this to such an extent so early in their careers that it’s quite unbelievable. With the vocals, which are almost exclusively clean, their tunes soar to the very heavens and stick in your head with disarming effect. And yet they have the instrumental and production chops necessary to venture into musical passages that blow your mind. Many bands go too far in one direction or the other, either they’re so blisteringly heavy, technical and precise that it leaves no room whatsoever for songcraft, or they confine themselves to writing three to four minute tunes for obvious radio airplay and instant catchy accessibility. No such issues here.
This is a fine line to walk, but walk it Circles do, with a level of skill in the execution that belies their few years together. There’s also an excellent sense of dynamics, variation and experimentation in their sound that’s a joy to behold. Wall of sound intensity followed by moments of quieter reflection and melody. Subtle electronic flourishes that complement the music rather than dominate it. Musicianship and sound of a world class level. It’s all here. It’s no wonder a UK label picked them up. We just need Australia to pick up on it as well.
These boys are already poised to give Periphery, Animals as Leaders and Tesseract a run for their money. Give them a few more years and a full album or two, and they’ll been running circles around them!
ROD WHITFIELD
