CIRKUS

CIRKUS are a band out of Quebec who actually released "Wild Dogs" in 2017 as a bootleg then decided to re-record it with some new songs releasing this one in 2018. I honestly thought I had the 2017 release(haha) but no. So on this release they are a four piece with a vocalist, 2 guitarists and a multi-instrumentalist playing keyboards, drums and bass if you can believe it. No I can't see how this would work live unless you bring in a couple of more musicians. The sound quality is okay but not the best. This is a double disc worth well over 2 hours. And the reason I'm hard on doubles is because I am into consistent albums and it seems to be a rare thing for a band not to throw in some crap or filler I guess is the better word. This is also all over the place with Classical, Jazz, Comedy and World textures as Discogs puts it in the bio. I'm not big on variety. GENESIS is clearly the inspiration here with the pulsating organ style, vocals and more. I started to write some notes while spinning this one more time but I can't do it. A low 3 stars.

Cirkus's most recent album " The Fruits of the Unveil" is my favorite Cirkus album so far. I put "The Fruits of the Unveil" as my 4th favorite album from 2020 I personally love and appreciate all their albums but this one has to be my favorite. The keyboards and guitars are especially great here. Beautiful melodies are found throughout this masterpiece. You won't ever get board because Cirkus seems to always finds a way to make each song sound fresh and unique. Vocals aren't perfect but they are fine. I would highly recommend that everyone heard this album! Especially if you like symphonic prog rock.

Wild Dogs is the first album by Cirkus and it's a very strong debut. I've never heard a album this long ever. You won't ever get board with this album. From the fist track "Falling The Tree" to " Dalhousie's Walk" it never sounds the same and never gets boring. Dalhousie's Walk and the rest of the epics on the album are great. My top 3 favorite songs on the album would be 1. Dalhousie's Walk, 2. Johnny Got His Gun And 3. Limbo. Great keyboards and guitars here. Vocals are not perfect though. I would definitely recommend this album to anyone who likes classic 70's symphonic prog!

CIRKUS is a progressive symphonic music group from Quebec from the city of Trois-Rivières in Canada. After a bootleg and two all excellent albums here has arrived "The Fruits Of The Unveil", an opus which remains in the same traces as the previous ones but with more research and maturity. ALAIN PROULX is at the origin of almost everything, songwriter, arranger, mixer ... The recording is done at his home in a studio, the execution is perfectly accomplished, the acoustics invite us to privacy, and the sound delivers excellent analytical and balanced effects, the pieces are mixed at high volume for better sound reproduction, and some passages have required up to 18 tracks! The production without a label has not been criticized. My first chronicle made for this group a year ago with "Voodooland" made me discover lands which I was not used to traveling, a sort of entry into a sphere where the voices contrast strongly with the proposed musical refinement. It is not a question here of growl, but of omnipresent songs with very masculine aspects being transformed by deliberately crazy passages, a kind of controlled and assumed slippage, but with a little redundant side sometimes ... Indeed, this quartet us delivers here as in their previous album theatrical scores, cinematographic effects, and expressionist scents ... because this work often presents a high level of dissonance, dynamic contrast, constant changes of textures, as well as melodies and distorted harmonies. The vocal ranges are similar to MORISSEY (THE SMITHS), PETER MURPHY (BAUHAUS), PETER HAMILL (VDGG) or even DAVID BOWIE. The instrumental is largely represented by the influences of GENESIS and YES in bits and pieces. The texts are full of poetry and speak to us, among other things, of redemption in pain, of certainty in the beauty of light and of the heavens, of fallen angels and of the evil one ... but with hope as a central point. Let's see more closely if these fruits will reveal some little gourmet secrets ... A small farandole "mellotronée" begins "Alternate Pleasures", a deep and uncompromising voice urges us to succumb to tribal temptations and to give free rein to our follies. A pretty melody then comes to titillate our ears with a tempered keyboard reworked by a bouncy orchestration and a bit playful. The song becomes soft and harmonious like a liberation going to a bonfire beaten by a voodoo and frenzied rhythm. Thanks to the words and the tone used, this piece gives off a feeling of heightened awareness, a highlighting of the reality of our contained and unfulfilled aspirations, a cinematic scenario superbly produced thanks to miryads of keyboards and deeply true and authentic songs! (9/10). A faltering voice on the verge of rupture approaches us with "Intimate Behaviors" and speaks to us of unchanging and indestructible love. The mouths suddenly stop to make way for a fast and heavy guitar well brought up, taken up by a jubilant corpus ... mellotron, keyboards, multilayer vocals. The harmonies fly high in the sky with throats which sing like MAMAS AND THE PAPAS thus transmitting all the essence of a successful piece! The end will be repeated with the same verses and almost in the same tone as at the beginning (8.5 / 10). "Room With a View" is a lament recounting the inner torments of man freeing himself from all grip after having faced evil incarnate, it is also a modern waltz with a successful chorus, classic flights to the DVORAK, subscriber arrangements in GENESIS, a thetral voice like PETER GABRIEL, and a casket with the intonations of MORISSEY. The ensemble administers a particularly original and pleasant piece (8.5 / 10). "Winding Streams" invites us with a beautiful little poem to believe in the strength of life and the hopes of the heart, illustrated by a short, simple and melodic, but endearing song (7/10). "Red Moon on Black Church" begins as a Brazilian samba with a "Santanesque" sound, a monotonous voice poetic about the moment of death, a well-turned verse calls out to me: "We are naked, freed from lust". .. A lento and acid guitar plays in the background, the arrangement becomes solemn and delivers a sad and moving Brazilian air, the tone and the tempo given resemble a funeral march, one cannot say that the joy and the good mood are in order here! (7.5 / 10). In "Highly Blinded Faiths" C. LUCAS PROULX welcomes us gently with around him growls and voices overhanging his low and harmonious timbre until 2:30. This melodic passage could have been played like pop music with a hit, but here it will be necessary to listen to the full potential of this chorus and its arrangements hidden by a kind of artistic vagueness admirably consu, but which could have been repetitive for once ...! A small minimalist rock tune with an organ as a fulcrum will continue its progression towards a striking and rare contrast like an alarm coming from the heavens, interrupted by the breath of the angels ... and yes only that! The initial chorus will be replayed in skipping mode and closed by rhythmic guitars in the style of LA BATTERIA (9/10). "A Moment in Time" is a short little melody sung with a lot of grace accompanied by synths and mellotron, an interlude where the poetry is inscribed in a parable (7/10). "The Woods of Given Death" is a new lament with more or less harmonious songs, a guitaristic part à la PINK FLOYD will come to decorate this sullen and bloodless score. The extreme is not always where you think you will find it, and I think that here we have reached the climax of despair ... Intrinsically this piece is not bad but it does not fit my strings ... (6/10). "Toss a Coin" arrives in jerks and is synchronized with the well articulated organ of our crooner, helped by his colleagues thus delivering the verses one by one, followed by synths to the sounds of JEAN-MICHEL JARRE in rhythm with a placed drums well ahead. The corpus gets carried away and we play arpeggios with two guitars to conclude this admirably executed jet in style! (8.5). " "Upward to Know" begins cheerfully with a fast cadence over female "mellotronous" vocals. The song, always so solemn, evokes us legions of archangels (I suppose) leaving to pour out hope and mercy on the earth ... This title evokes the firmament by carrying us very high with a particularly expressive and well supported voice. , supported by sublime keyboards and a guitar that flies away in dazzling arpeggios as could do STEVE HACKETT (8,5). This work will disorient more than one listener at the first listening, it will be necessary to be patient and to search well, because here nothing is left to chance, everything is calculated and carefully arranged for a progressive discovery, as well in the texts than in musical harmonies. Poems with highly spiritual biblical tinsel that will have to be peeled with precision to extract all the tenor, refined chords highlighted by raw voices like wood giving the impression that it is still alive. This feeling that the main leitmotif is contrast, as if the group wanted to bring up the musical essence through perfectly controlled vocal exaggerations. CIRKUS gives us what it can do, and it does it like a group among the greats. Excellent discoveries in perspective, good listening!

CIRKUS is a Progressive Symphonic music group from Quebec City of Trois-Rivières in Canada, and has just released their second album, "Voodooland". After a rather successful first outing in 2017 with Wild Dogs, here is a galette that promises us some good surprises to be enjoyed without moderation. At the head of this strange and magical land we have the multi-instrumentalist and arranger composer ALAIN PROULX. This quartet delivers us here theatrical or even cinematographic scores, and I would even go to the limit towards expressionist music ... because this work often presents a high level of dissonance, dynamic contrasts, constant changes of textures, distorted melodies and harmonies, and fear as the main subject. We talk about redemption, the world going in error, empires built like sand castles etc ... This tone will be given and evoked like a spell throughout the duration of the album. The palette of influences is quite large in this cursed place, with a wide range that goes from BAUHAUS to PETER HAMILL for vocals to GENESIS and YES for musical structures. "How to Kill" begins with a slow and theatrical voice whose tremolos and lyrics we assess the gravity of the situation. The song is punctuated by a regular tempo, accompanied by a bouncy organ and past fashion which stops in front of an electric guitar playing harpeggios with silky textures and jubilant harmonies. The orchestration is symphonized and the voices harmonize to lead to an intense and structurally elaborate final, but ceaselessly alarmist. "Sidewalk Steam" can be split into three parts in different genres and styles. Indeed this piece begins with a nervous piano revolving around a guitar of good quality, then relayed by a faltering and excessively sluggish voice, combining with acoustics with the tones of YES from the best period. The second part seems turned towards songs deliberately degenerate even dissonant but well controlled, typically Post-Punk in the manner of JOY DIVISION or even TELEVISION. The contrast between the rendering of voices and the musical architecture of Prog is really striking here. This piece ends with a well-composed, calm and pleasant synth / piano duo whose elegance will make us think of GENESIS. "Arrival" is a clever mix of festive songs, choirs sounding like chimes, dismal voices at the breaking point in a style that can be confused with Punk / post Punk wanderings, but paradoxically well brought and coherent, with a passage intermediary which makes us glimpse a MORRISSEY in great shape, but also Indian songs well cadenced and successful. This delirious patchwork interspersed with high-level musical passages makes this piece unique and particularly brilliant. "Blind Parade" takes up the same vocal specificities with a more joyful refrain resembling a hymn dedicated to the blind that we are ... This melody evolves with drum rolls and a fiery and luminous guitar, then becomes again mysterious to end with a lament vindictive and repetitive. With "Sandcastle" how not to think of PETER HAMMILL, this genius with a voice so expressive and overflowing with emotion who made us discover unknown sound spaces. Here the progressive is in the vocals, and the guitar and the keyboards of the accessories carrying the choirs towards an apotheosis filled with drunkenness. I must admit ... this sand castle with such a beautiful and tortured voice made me shudder a little! Contrary to some reviews that I have read, "Catch The Beast" is a very successful composition and expertly interpreted. It won't jump out at you right off the bat, and you'll have to be patient to assimilate the little secrets that will reveal themselves to you as you listen. The interesting points of this title come for many from the vocal games, both individual and collective, from the rendering of the instruments which overlap perfectly with the vocals which will make us think once again of GENESIS. A mysterious atmosphere begins "Like A God", accompanied by a slow voice and diffusing a deliberately false song, giving a feeling of disuse and doldrums. A word of advice ... throw all blunt objects at hand before starting this listening, because the hour is serious and on the plate is written "No Future". But luckily, the musical parts will give us a glimmer of hope. "Masterlord" is here is a good summary of the potential of CIRKUS and a demonstration of C. LUCAS PROULX's talent in terms of singing, with a real ability to master a voice that walks with ease and fluidity between PETER HAMMILL and DAVID BOWIE, an anthology of phrasings well adjusted and held firmly, as well in the rising ones as in the fragile and emotional parts. The accompanists are not left, and deliver us here and there superimposed and polyphonic layers enhancing this bewitching voice, the orchestration suddenly taking its share of the cake with a more complex and more prog approach. My only complaint will be for the finale of this title which seems sluggish and without much brilliance, it's a bit of a shame for the end of the session ... When I discover an album I always trust my first impressions, if they are bad it's a good sign, and vice versa if the production is understandable from the start. Here this rule has proven itself once again. Indeed, from the outset I was not subjugated by these dissenting and dramatic voices, this mixed feeling of listening to a Post Punk group accompanied by a high level Prog orchestration, but especially taken aback by this contrast. After having patiently dissected this work and with the obligation to write a credible column, I discovered with delight a new way of shaping Prog, a kind of raw and fine mixture at the same time that I did not really know, because very heard ... Even if some may find this voice a little too present, do not press the off button before you have soaked up these skilfully constructed melodies, listen to these songs so particular but so deep and let yourself be take them to new and reassuring emotions. Strong recommendations!

Cirkus is a Symphonic Prog band from Quebec, Canada founded in 2015. The band has only released 2 albums, one in 2017 and one in August of 2019 called "Voodooland". The band line-up has pretty much remained the same with lain Proulx (bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, lead and backing vocals), Serge Doucet (6 and 12 string guitars), and C. Lucas Proulx (lead and backing vocals. Also joining this core line-up this time is Guenille (chimes and noises of all kinds) and Martin Vincent (drums and 12 string guitars) who also has been touring with the band. The album is made up of 8 tracks and it has a run-time of over 70 minutes where they try to capture the energy and theatrics of the live show in long epic tracks.

The album opens with "How to Kill" (7:54) where they immediately establish their strong symphonic sound. The vocals start early on and are quite dramatic sounding sounding even more flamboyant singing in English with the strong French accent. The music moves mysteriously along and finally kicks in with steady, moderate rhythm, a heavier guitar base and a great level of melodious music. The guitar takes over with a nice solo backed by the cinematic sounds. Vocals return before 5 minutes, this time with a lower register vocal singing along at parts. The guitar lead takes over again after 6 minutes, this time joined by a counter musical line from the synth. The dramatic sound returns before the ending to close it off with flourish. "Sidewalk Steam" (8:49) begins with a running piano pattern, guitar and tonal percussion with the symphonic effects of the synths joining in later. Soon the smoothness breaks up with a progressive flair and then things go slow and emotional when the vocals come in. A lovely melody with heavy synth backing emerges, with just enough vocal variance to not sound overly polished. The guitar brings back a fuller sound and then the drums come back in anchoring everything. The vocals come in to match the forward movement of the track. The music continues as progressive style riffs create a bit of tension. The music suddenly slows and becomes pensive in the last minute.

"Arrival" (9:02) begins with a slow, heavy beat and layered vocal effects. The piano comes in to soften things up a bit. Vocals and a more upbeat sound begin after a minute with it all backed by a heavy organ. At 3 minutes, the guitar leads with a pizzicato sound in the string effects and this bridges to the next section with goes back to a heavier beat. This continued interchange from slow to moderate tempo continues to change back and forth as vocal and instrumental sections also take turns. At 5 minutes, a nice cinematic section starts and continues to build with a lot of synth and keys, dramatic drumming and so on. This track definitely stresses a more progressive sound as the themes are less repetitive and the lyrics take on a more storytelling style. Definitely a strong and standout track.

"Blind Parade" (9:31) starts right off with vocals and a march-like rhythm and a strong lilt provided by string effects. The shakiness of the vocals, and the wandering in and out of being "in-tune" is more apparent in this track, but I think it all works in the bands favor so as to not sound overly polished. It does carry a bit of charm to the music, but at times it can be more noticeable than others. At 3 minutes, a nice, smooth guitar solo comes in with airy synths, almost sounding like a mellotron in parts. At 4 minutes, the music becomes softer and pensive as the organ slowly pumps out an almost-calliope style. More intensity returns at 6 minutes and the faster rhythm returns along with the melody from the first. "Sandcastle" (6:58) also begins with vocals right away, this time, though, they take quick, deep growling dives and quickly emerge back to normal. It is a strange, yet unique sound. Before the 3 minute mark, things smooth out more as the vocals stop their strange diving tricks. The track is lyrically heavy and the melody is not immediately apparent. A guitar solo settles in at 5 minutes backed by more symphonic effects.

"Catch the Beast" (7:07) is probably the least interesting track of the bunch, as the smoothness of the beat and synths almost start to sound like a bad disco song. Not much really happens on this track that remains with the listener for long. "Like a God (9:23) is more promising however, as it goes for a more emotional and cinematic sound, which is what the band is better at, and the vocals almost take on a live theatrical performance sound. At 4 minutes, a steady rhythm kicks in and the track becomes smoother, but the vocals are almost consistently out of tune on this one, making it hard to take as seriously as the atmosphere of the track wants it to be. This would be a really great track, except the vocals just don't cut it on this track. However, the instrumentation is quite stirring.

"Masterplan" (11:29) begins with another lovely melody and quiet keyboard-led start. Even the vocals are better on this one. The beat picks up just before the 2 minute mark and the vocals become more theatrical when both vocalists start to sing. After 4 minutes, the sound becomes more orchestral, but this is all done by synths. The mood shifts again and the storytelling vibe becomes apparent again. The track later shows off some folk elements with a jaunty melody which later moves to an instrumental section with woodwind effects. The song goes into another, heavier direction before 8 minutes as string effects and a heavy organ take over an interlude. This builds to a nice climax, then mellows right out with an electric piano. Nice contrast. The vocals and symphonic syths suddenly return as the main theme returns. Another excellent track, and so the album closes on a strong performance.

The biggest complaint I have is that at times, the vocals sound a bit too out-of-tune and can be annoying. This problem is very apparent on some tracks, while not so much on others when they only slip out of tune for a few seconds. The instrumentation makes up for the short mishaps. It would seem maybe one of the vocalists is more off-key than the other, but I'm not sure which one has the biggest problem. The music itself is very good however, and definitely cinematic and symphonic. The songs themselves are great with a lot of progressive passages, tempo, meter and mood changes within most every song. The musicianship is at a very high-level, and unfortunately, the vocals contrast that to the extreme on a few of the tracks. There are some excellent highs on this album especially in "Arrival" and "Masterlord", but there are some definite lows like on "Sandcastle" and "Catch the Beast". "Like a God" is almost a high, but the vocals are too far off. Anyway, it is a pretty good album, and actually stretches into a 4 star album, but some of the vocals weaken the overall sound to where it teeters into a lower rating. It's worth listening to, but I would hope that some of the weaknesses disappear on the next venture.

I discovered CIRKUS through Wild Dogs (official bootleg) last year and I kept on listening since. I was thrilled to see that they took the time to release a new edition of this beautiful material for the anniversary of the first release!

Some slight change in the pacing, but most of all, the rerecording of some of the instruments and the new mastering makes it event more enjoyable! Most of the songs also benefited form the maturity that naturally comes with playing songs for many months as a group as they prepared for their first festival in Quebec City. I highly recommend it!!!

I've already rated the bootleg version of this album. But really, the definitive version is a great improvement for the sound. It's not only a remastered and a remixed.... all the guitars, the bass and the vocals have been rerecorded. Some songs as Dead End have been completely remade with a new structure. There are, as we know, several trends in prog rock. But, in symphonic, old fashion like approach, it's really a must. Near two and a half hours of songs that explore a really wide palette of colors in arrangements. Most of all, the melodies still deep and emotional in a suggestive environment. I still rate it at 5. I do so when I can't stop to listen something over the weeks and periodically come back to it.

135 minutes of music constructed and sounding like the quirky, moodshifting way that early GENESIS did with the poor sound quality similar to that of from Genesis to Revelation, Trespass, or BABYLON's 1979 self-titled album . . . or worse. There are some GREAT ideas here but all are either poorly or incompletely developed and embellished and are rendered horribly unto reproducible sound. The vocals are interesting for their delicacy and artistic stylings yet the singing is highly fragile, often strained and missing notes off-key. Once again, I am astounded at the music fellow listeners will give five stars. Were this music finished (polished), engineered and produced to professional standards this might be a four or 4.5 star album but, as is, this is no better than a 2.5 or three star album.

Songs worth repeated listenings: the 80s techno-aided title song, 9. "Wild Dogs" (7:17) (8.5/10; 12. "Sanctus" (11:22) (8.5/10); 15. "Broken Promesses" (4:53) (8/10) and, for its choral section, 13. "Harlequins" (11:45) (8/10).

The only people I would recommend trying this album out would be people who really miss the very early music of FAMILY, GENESIS, BABYLON, and their imitators. I'd recommend bands like early MARILLION, CITIZEN CAIN, THE WATCH, CLEARLIGHT, or even THE WAITING ROOM before I'd recommend anyone going here.

2.5 stars, no more.

With so many albums coming out, it's like wandering in your favorite confectionery asking yourself which one to chose.

CIRKUS is the easy pick if what you are looking for is a mixt of the 70's taste combines with complex flavors changing all along!

War, quest for redemption, inner fight & peace, calmer & torturous times, life and death are a few themes explored in this double concept album about balance/unbalance, thus the band's name, CIRKUS. But more over, all this is wrapped in beautiful and powerful melodies that stays in your head.

You get into it with a touch African beat evolving into more classical themes and for the perfect illustration of the clash between local inhabitants and colonial forces. This epic song is only the beginning of the journey!

Listening to all songs in order will help you appreciate the well planed evolution.

I hope to be lucky enough to see them LIVE as I'm sure that the strong melodies, the crafted vocal and their sound will just blow me away! Only one small note: although the sound on occasions suffers a little from the homeproduction, it should not prevent you from appreciating the album.

Influences noted: Genesis, Moody blues, Procol Harum, some themes reminded me of Mike Oldfield.