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Circle II Circle > Burden of Truth > Reviews
Circle II Circle - Burden of Truth

I can heal you of what you have become - 80%

Twisted_Psychology, June 1st, 2009

Fronted by former Savatage vocalist Zak Stevens, Circle II Circle was one of the three bands that were born from the great Savatage schism along with Jon Oliva’s Pain and the very popular Trans-Siberian Orchestra. This is the band’s third album and was the first to not feature any outside contributions from Jon Oliva or Chris Caffery, effectively proving that Stevens and his new ensemble were able to survive on their own.

Unsurprisingly, the music sounds similar to that of Stevens-era Savatage; the songs are strong and accessible, the vocals keep a melodic tone for most of the duration, the guitars put out crunchy riffs and occasional acoustic flourishes, and there is a slightly symphonic presence throughout. The band stays solid throughout and Stevens manages to sound great even though he rarely hits the high notes that made songs like "Taunting Cobras" so cool back in the day. Hell, they even managed to put one of the classic Savatage vocal canons at the climax of the title track! Granted it's not as dramatic as the ones from "Chance" or "Dead Winter Dead," but it's still pretty memorable.

Unlike the band’s first two albums, this release is also a concept album based on the controversial Da Vinci Code novel/film. As some listeners have pointed out, this idea seems to slightly date the album given the novel isn’t as controversial as it was a few years ago. Thankfully the band didn’t overdo the concept; there are no ridiculous interludes and the construction of the music is always at a higher priority than the lyrics. In fact, you probably wouldn’t guess that there was an overall theme unless someone pointed it to you. Sorry if I just ruined the album for some of you out there. . .

If you manage to overlook the lyrics, the album’s only flaw seems to be similar song construction. With the possible exceptions of the album’s two final songs, every song seems to be based around basic song structures and have a tendency to sound pretty alike as a result. Fortunately the riffs and choruses are distinct enough to stand alone, but this seems to be one of those albums whose songs seem to just slip by if you’re not really paying attention.

Overall, this is a very solid release that should appeal to both Savatage fans and people interested in hearing excellent melodic modern metal.

Pros:
1) Accessible songwriting
2) A great band performance
3) The themes never get in the way of the actual music

Cons:
1) Little variety among songs and mostly basic structures
2) The album theme makes it seem somewhat dated

My Current Favorites:
"Who Am I to Be?," "Heal You," "Sentenced," "Burden of Truth," and "Live as One"

Who Am I To Be? - 88%

pinpals, May 23rd, 2007

Why is it that so many bands these days insist on doing concept albums? First of all, the idea is overdone and should be saved for bands that have been around for awhile and already made a name for themselves. Secondly, these concepts are mostly boring and uninspired. Possibly the worst of all of these concepts is the one behind Circle II Circle's "The Burden of Truth." It was written around "The DaVinci Code," which not only makes this weak because the book sucked, it also makes it instantly dated, because the DaVinci code had its 15 minutes of fame in 2005. Fortunately, it is easy to completely ignore the concept because the band doesn't sacrifice any of the music to tell the story. They also don't include stupid spoken interludes that interrupt the flow of the album.

Once you get past the concept, it isn't hard to get into the music because it is so easily accessible. Zak Stevens has an outstanding voice; powerful, yet filled with warmth. There really aren't any other singers out there like him. He shines throughout the record, using the verses to build up to commanding harmonized choruses. He doesn't reach as high as he did on "Edge of Thorns," opting for more a midranged style, and as a result his vocals are much more powerful. Zak Stevens mentioned several times (whined is more the word) about how Jon Oliva stole his original band, yet it seems to be a blessing in disguise, because Circle II Circle actually sounds like a band, while Jon Oliva's Pain sounds more like a Jon Oliva solo project with a good lead guitarist. All of the band members give solid performances, and as a result the album is consistent from start to finish.

The songs themselves are pretty straightforward, using the verse-chorus method with a guitar solo mixed in there somewhere. The songs are so good, however, that this really isn't a detriment to the album as a whole. No filler songs, none that are even noticeably weaker than the rest. My only complaint is the false ending on closer "Live as One," otherwise one of the better songs on here, the song seems to end, and had it ended, it would have been perfect, but Zak comes in and sings a happy line and it seems out of place and unnecessary. Since the songs are all good and all similar, it is difficult to pick out the best ones. "Who Am I To Be" is an obvious choice, Zak is just amazing on this track, his best performance on the entire album. There is a beautiful melodic solo near the end, too. "Revelations" is the single and another highlight, nice rhythm and lead guitar interplay, first-rate solo, and an incredible chorus.

One of the only faults of this album is a lack of a centerpiece song, a main song supported by the two aforementioned songs. The title track seems to fit this mold; it has those layered harmonies that Stevens did in Savatage, an extended guitar solo, and a focus on the chorus. Yet each of these aspects of the song are underwhelming. The solo meanders around without direction, the counterpoint vocals aren't nearly good enough to merit their inclusion (just listen to this part, then compare it to any of the ones in Savatage), and the chorus is one of the weaker ones on the album. The potential is there, but it is unfulfilled. It's still not a bad song, however, it just could have been better. I would also have liked to seen more done with the rhythm guitar, most of the time the production pushes it to the back (with a few exceptions like "Messiah," the aforementioned "Revelations," and "Your Reality"), and there's usually just a simpler rhythm line under the verses. More variation would make more disparity between the songs.

Even though it doesn't rank among the greatest albums ever made, "The Burden of Truth" makes the absence of Savatage somewhat easier to bear, and it shouldn't just be listened to by Savatage fans. Anyone with a passing interest in power, melodic, or progressive metal would probably enjoy this just as much.

"Your Reality" may change in a POSITIVE way - 90%

Gunnodayak, October 21st, 2006

In the first place, I must say that I am not a very big fan of Dan's Brown commercial opera, it's cheesy, commercial, trendy and have especially female "customers". But that's not the point. Circle II Circle have managed to put a magnificent music on such a crappy concept, and that is really something. I have listened the first two releases of this band, and I did that just because it was about Zachary Stevens, the Savatage's former vocalist, which is in my opinion one of the strongest and distinguable voices in the heavy-prog metal. Well, those albums made me a good impression, but not one of the best and I was nearly "struck" a few days ago, hearing the first riffs form "Burden Of Truth". The production is flawless, the sound is as clearer as it can be, and the vocals are the highlight, even though the all composition, both instrumental and vocal is stunning. Compared with some other very high rated vocalists in metal music, for example Bruce Dickinson, King Diamond or Geoff Tate, Zakk seems to be forever young, and he sounds fresher than ever, he is really amazing! I love this man because he gave me one of the biggest positive surprises with this release. When I think about the old woman's lamentations of poor old (old in spirit, too) canadian James La Brie, this Zachary guy seems a God, he have something that James never had and he will never have: FEELING, ladies and gentleman. It's all about passion and feeling, a real and strong metal vocalist must transmit these to the listener through his music.


Speaking about the instrumental and compositional stuff, we have here some of the catchiest arrangements that can be made in this semiprog genre. These guys really know what they're doing, at a very profesional level. We have piano sounds here, in a very discrete and effectual way, we have catchy riffs, very well composed guitar solos, and if this guys will keep up this way, it's obvious that they have the potential to earn greater and greater recognition of their efforts.


It's not a shame to say that "Burden Of Truth" sounds better in a clear way than ALL of the Savatage releases from 1992's "Edge of Thorns" till now, I am just exposing my personal perception. Some would say that we have a comercial release, but what the hell! they are humans too, and they must live, and I thing earning a living making such "commercial" stuff it's a very honorable way to do that.


Highlights of the album are "Who Am I To Be?", "A Matter Of Time" and "Heal You", but in fact all are just highlights, but I have run out of ink and paper ... The only reason this CD will not have a higher rank is because of the lyrics concept, but still, I think it's one of the best releases from this year, we're talking about music here in the first place, so .... to Zakk and the guys: You did it, men! You did it real good!


I firmly declare, like one of the Marin Preda's characters form "Morometii, Vol. Two" named "Bila", would say: "I am telling you, with tears in my eyes ...", I say this to you, metal heads, if you want to listen something that will shook your inner world, buy this CD! You won't regret it!