TYRANT

NWOFHM!

Yet another installment on Circle's NWOFHM sound. Unlike Tulikoira or Sunrise, this one has more to do with with Krautrock than with 80's heavy metal (even though this is still a heavy affair). Fans that didn't enjoyed Tulikoira or Sunrise because they didn't had that certain Circle sound on it will certainly be pleased with this one.

This album has a very doom-ish atmosphere surrounding it. It sounds sinister too, but has more to do with the mood of the album rather than an "in your face" style of playing. This can be heard right from the get go with "Screaming Luovutus", which it may well be Circle's heaviest most menacing song to date! It starts off like a typical song from these Finns with it's trance-inducing heavy space metal (?) melody until all of a sudden disturbing and wretched screams pierce your ears! This is certainly not a thing to listen to at night. It sounds like some demonic creatures all gathered around you screaming like crazy scarring the hell out of you. I don't know what a "Luovutus" is, but I certainly wouldn't like seeing one if this is what they sound like. After the screaming session is over the song starts playing faster almost like following your heart beat after the scary scenery you've endured.

The second song on the album "Steel Tormented Warrior" is less structured than the first one and sounds more experimental too. It isn't as metal as the first song, but the mood is certainly there. The "song" is made up of random drum beats, guitar sketches, waves of synth effects and weird vocals bringing images of (you guessed it) a "Steel Tormented Warrior". The last song on the album, "Amputation Crusade", takes the same doom-ish atmosphere of both songs with a more structured sound and Neu! style playing (if they ever played music as dark as this one). This song is also the softest of them all, but from what it lacks in power it makes up for a more drugged out sound. There are some strange mumbling and choking vocals in the background for extra creepiness (as if the previous songs on the album weren't enough...). I'll point out that this is also the laid-back song of the three since it doesn't have any Luovutus or Warriors screaming at you.

This certainly not an inviting album even by Circle's standards. Everything from the slow repetitive melodies, to the haunting atmosphere and the little experimentation here and there will put off most new comers. All the songs being around 15 minute each doesn't help either, but once you break the hard shell Tyrant will be a more rewarding experience.

One of the later releases of circle that has drawn my attention is Tyrant and its neat little cardboard casing to be placed in the "Latitudes" collection. The artwork is provoking curiosity as you'd want to know what these Afghani burqas are all about on this disc, but there is little info as to whether this is linked of not. Also their consistent use of NWOFHM is a bit anal I find, especially that there is little metal outside some gory vocals often provoking a mocking smile than the awe-striken faces they'd search for.

Three "epics" around the 15-iminutes mark, with that usual Circle sound, somewhere between Krautrock, Hawkwind and Post Rock, and mostly hovering on the Calvert/ Turner nest, although the Opeth/Dying Bride-like vocals is certainly not doing it any favour, but it's all down to each and everyone's landmarks in their own musical landscapes. Besides its puerile title, Steel Tormented Warrior (sounds like Stacia pounding the [&*!#] of Molly Hatchet), the track is an interesting bruitist collage of interminable intro that actually lasts the length of the track, but it's actually the most interesting of this lot, sometimes ogling towards the chaos of Ghost, the Japanese band that makes me most think of Circle. The whispered vocals still have that deathly guttural feel, bur it's not laughable this time around.. The charmingly title Amputation Crusade is a again very laughable (but not any less than the picture where all four display their freshly acquired clouted/spiked wristband in front of Stonehenge) is again more of this ambient post rock, then later, there is a slom-pace crescendo that can remind of Anekdoten, eventually finding its place in the middle of the other two tracks' soundscapes.

If after some 15 years of existence, Circle is still playing at getting dressed as Vikings or warriors of doom, you'd guess that they'd have a fantastic fellowship and if not numerous, probably loyal enough to keep the band floating and buying spike bracelets. Whatever flows their buckets, musically, this album is definitely worth throwing an ear on it, but once you'll have spun it three times, it'll collect dust for decades.