The 1st chapter circus maximus rar

As I understand it their new album should be a little darker in the sound, which I am looking forward to. I hope they in time will find their own style within this extremely overcrowded genre. Good but not essential. This is one of the few bands that actually deserve the title of 'DT-Clones', but don't forget to put a huge portion of Symphony X in there too. This album is a perfect mix of Scenes and The Odyssey, done exceptionally well.

The guitar and keyboard sound will blow you away; the solos are very crafty once again reminiscent of Symphony X and Dream Theater. The thing I liked most about this band was obviously a perfect blend of the aforementioned bands, but also they unique melodies and excellent chorus work done.

The singer in particular is one of the reasons why the choruses sound so exuberant. He has a pretty decent voice even though he sings in a sort of power metal vein, but not the bad kind. Even on my least favorite tracks on the album, I still find the chorus work done to be stellar. There are two tracks in particular that too similar to Dream Theater and Symphony X tracks.

Still 'Biosphere' was an excellent instrumental while the title track was very lacking. Most of the songs on here are very well done and composed. There are still a few tracks that don't hold too much steam, but there is nothing too terrible about this album, except possibly the title track. Otherwise every song on the album is pretty good and then there are some that are really kick-ass.

I would recommend this to any fans of Dream Theater and Symphony X. Prog-metal fans in general shouldn't be too afraid to get this either. If you are a DT hater stay far away, you'll hate this one too and if not a prog-metal fan in general, then look the other way. I'm looking very forward to the second chapter. This was a great album. This was quite a shock.

Few bands release actual masterpieces that rank up there were the other essentials of the genre. Circus Maximus has somehow managed to do this on their first time up to bat, and 'The 1st Chapter' is certainly a record that vies for that title.

What more could one want from a progressive metal record? There are strange time signatures, virtuosic performances, fast songs, short songs, and of course; an epic to top it off. Keeping in mind that the members of this band were all in their early-mid twenties at the time of making this album, you have to wonder, 'how the hell did they manage this? Circus Maximus, while obviously not being completely ground breaking in terms of style they bear striking similarities to Symphony X in terms of musical style and content but they inject something into the music that seems to have been long forgotten in the progressive metal world; melody.

The centre of their songs is always in the melody, and that really helps to enrich their music in a genre that runs the risk of becoming dry.

A young classic. I can only say I am excited to see what they release in the future. Vocals a minute in, keys a minute later. Cool lyrics too.

Again just reading the lyrics is a treat. The intro is laid back and we get some outstanding atmosphere. It starts to get powerful 2 minutes in. Great sound! It settles somewhat as vocals come in. Synths and piano come and go. Thunderous drums come in quickly followed by a nice guitar led section before a minute. Some good variety in this one. This is a ballad-like tune but I like it. Love the chorus.

Piano after a minute. It's heavy again. This is a ride folks. Orchestral intro is blown away by ripping guitar, synths and drums 2 minutes in.

A calm before 9 minutes with piano and reserved vocals. Tasteful guitar after 11 minutes. Vocals follow. A circus-like melody ends it. I can't give this less than 4 stars. Excellent musicianship and lyrics, besides like I said earlier this is too much fun. This is the debut album of Circus Maximus, released in I like the aggressive in a very good sense composition and symphonic or perhaps neo-classical elements in this album.

There are two long track in this album, with off course a lot of progressive elements such as tempo changes. Promising debut from melodic power proggers in Circus Maximus. Production could use more range, and album does have some cute growth issues youth maximalism , such as let's-outdo-everybody instrumental which is actually not bad and lets-write a minute epic at all costs which comes across Circus Maximus is a group that I approached with a little of hesitation, both because most of the post metal leaves me uninterested, if not disgusted yes, I'm still stuck in the 80s when it comes to Metal, I must admit , and because some confused and superficial listening I gave made the A good debut album by Circus Maximus with great musicianship.

But I have to agree with some reviews before me that the music is all to familiar and can be an underwhelming experience if you have already heard things like Symphony X and Dream Theater before it as it takes almost all of it's influ I would give to this album all the five stars, but they miss in some originality, but still, they made a very unique album, whit theyre own sound.

The album has a sound like the "Metropolis pt 2", but with some differences: as MP2 likes to use the "solos", this album likes more the "band" sound An excellent cross between Dream Theater and Symphony X, you can hear the influence from both of the bands.

Circus Maximus has some good heavy rhythms to dish out on this album and presents alot of potential for thier heavy metal progressive career. They have plenty of room for improvement but Well, not original but really good, that's my summary of this record. With great variety and skills and the sound of DT and Symphony X this would have been a 5 if it brought something new, but it doesn't.

On the other hand, if you like "classical" prog metal you won't be disapointed. Of course It's been a while since I first listened to this record.

After numerous and careful listenings, I'm now able to deliver a review without being bothered by the discovery's emphasis. There's just one thing I can say : these guys have a bright future ahead of 'em.

The First Chapter is, put simpl Surfing on the web the past year, I discovered a new Prog Metal band from Norway which had a lot of recognition on some websites, Circus Maximus. So, I decided to check out what they do. First of all, the feeling I have about this band and most of new Prog Metal bands is that I wasn't hearin The trouble I have with prog-metal is that so many bands in the genre often descend into too much metal and not enough prog with tracks that could be from any decent metal album.

Circus Maximus avoid this failing. Although they produce metal sounds as heavy as anyone, the prog factor is high, I have mixed emotions about this album. As stated in previous reviews, the Dream Theater and Symphony X parallels are blatently obvious, but for some reason one can look past that and enjoy this album none the less.

What Circus Maximus have given us is a truly enjoyable prog-metal album. Definitely the big surprise of this young band from Norway. The album was probably the best album which was released during along with Octavarium. The music is ver Well first off i was kinda weirded out to hear that a band was named Circus Maximus let alone found out they were prog metal.

This sounds like a very strong debut to me and i'm going to be listening very closely for the follow up. Dream Theater and Symphony X are two very different sounding bands, both who could feel justifiably proud of a new album like this. I think anyone attempting to combine such influences shou I don't believe it was in their mind to reinvent prog metal when they made this album. And they haven't done that either.

One the other hand I certainly think that this is a very strong debut album that they are showing the prog metal fans. I am a Dream Theater fan and I love progressive, epic, metal, ecc. The first impression I had listening Circus Maximum's first album was: very good!! Their sound is quite close to Dream Theater's for me, so was not so difficoult to bring Circus Maximum with me in my car, with my favourite Every song on this album is absolutely amazing.

The truth is, I hated this album on my first two listens but as time progressed and I listened more and more to it after I was about to give up on it completely I realised "hey, this ain't so bad! Circus Maximus in their debut album don't seem to impress me very much. This album is an example of mix between Symphony X and Shadow Gallery. All guitar riffs and keyboards are good but very close to Symphony Xs' songs, i mean heavy riffs and oriental structures of music.

On the other hand ther Circus Maximus is a progressive metal band formed by the Haugen brothers, who appear on guitar Mats and Drums Trus , Mats' old school buddy Glen Moller on bass, Michael and the mastermind Espen Storo on keyboards. They're from Norway, who has given us great progressive bands like Ark and Pa Well, what a joke The vocals aren't bad they are just some kind of ennerving and don't really fit into the music. The style is too less self-contained.

Based on his miraculous rescue from the demon, he now understands his true destiny. Knowing he can no longer go back, he continues towards the Utopia, and is once again confronted by his sin in the form of a beast. But now, this challenge, though still difficult, is conquerable. In the resulting battle, the character turns out victorious, and shutting the door on Satan, he finally arrives at his destination.

As the final lines bring the piece to a brilliant, dazzlingly triumphant finish, the instruments slow down and a keyboard jingle enters…. The remaining 90 seconds let the music fade out, while a circus theme finishes the album. This is supposed to be audible throughout the album in some places, and directs the cycle of salvation back to the start. What a song! Except for this small misfire, this is a perfect album.

Circus Maximus should be quite proud of this release, and the world needs to respond appropriately. Albums like this bring hope to a world forsaken. This means anyone reading this review right now. See you all in the Grand Utopia. My friend suggested this band to me a couple weeks ago. I checked out the band's MySpace page and wanted to hear more. I almost immediately ordered the CD and have listened to it multiple times.

Circus Maximus took me by surprise. I hadn't heard anything about them anywhere until my friend mentioned them, and I'm still shocked to see them so relatively unknown. They are an extremely attractive band with a stunning vocalist and supreme musicianship, brought to life by excellent production and songwriting. The vocals, at first listen, can best be described as a more "human" version of those from Pagan's Mind.

He's not afraid of rockish hooks and sounding too mainstream. As the listener progresses into the album, a more diverse range of influences is revealed in his singing, which varies throughout his range.

I've been able to pick out homage to the vocalists of Styx, Pagan's Mind, Queensryche, Angra, and others. Like many power-esque vocalists, this singer is usually very high pitched, which may turn off some listeners for instance, your average Pearl Jam fan. Fortunately, this singer doesn't slip into the huge array of annoying power or progressive vocalists of which you make your own list and stands out as one of the most acceptable examples of modern metal singers.

His vocals should exceed, or at least meet the standard of most metal fans, if not all. Circus Maximus, musically, can easily find themselves matched against some of the best in the genre.

They got their beginnings as a cover band, covering the works of artists like Dream Theater and Symphony X. They do not stray very far from their roots, as the styles of both bands can be pulled out of The First Chapter by even the most amateur listener. Personally, I've found elements comparable to Rush, Nevermore, and again, Styx.

The guitars in this album are extraordinary It's just memorable riff after memorable riff from the first track to the last which differs based on whether you have an American or a European release. Mine is American. The solos are well written and in moderation.

The sound of the guitar is remarkably beautiful and professional, from the heaviest of the electric displays to the mellowest of acoustic works. Keyboards play a major role in this album, as can generally be expected from the genre. The keyboardist here is simply amazing, and I'm very sorry to find that he's left the band. I love the organ and synth sounds throughout. The horns on the title track are very convincing, although seem kind of alone without a major backing orchestral display, as could be found in epics like The Odyssey or Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence.

The piano tracks are beautiful in their jazz-like manor. The rhythm section of the band stands out and makes the songs as wonderful as they are.