Circus Maximus Isolate Sampler

Japanese import edition of this CD available at www.kissmydisc.jp

Imagine... the majestic elegance displayed on Dream Theater's second CD, Images and words, fused in seamless harmony with the haunting melodies of Queensryche's legendary Operation: Mindcrime CD. Circus Maximus, on their second studio CD, Isolate, managed to deliver a brand of metal so pure, classy, and elegant, even the mostdiscerning of music fans, will appreciate.

Their sound manages to defy "branding" without losing the listener. Many bands have made futile attempts to go "beyond" labels, beyond genres, only to deliver a cacophony of styles that seldom work together.

Yes, on Isolate, Circus Maximus, with the convinction of a renaissance-era artist, manages to access everything from the easily digestable melodic AOR/rock energy of TNT (think Intuition) on tracks like Arrival of love, to the dark, haunting melodies that enrich the majority of the CD, once patented by Queensryche on their timeless 1988 opus, Operation Mindcrime. One cannot deny the parallels to Dream Theater's "Images and words" album, both in terms of the incredibly rich production values, and the world-class song writing. The band's ability to surprise the listener throughout nearly every song, is truly a feat so seldom achieved in today's "formula" age of metal, where it seems so many bands follow the exact same formula. Some of the chord/melody arrangements are truly, one of a kind- leaving the listener in awe, and wishing the album would never end.

Someone once said... "Some things cannot be explained, but merely, experienced". This couldn't be more true of Circus Maximus' "Isolate" CD. This here is the already out of print Japanese edition, that features one bonus track (for a total of ten). The band's lead vocalist, was actually recruited by Kamelot recently, to fill in for Roy Khan who has recently fallen ill. While many Kamelot purists surely won't accept anything but a Kamelot with Roy Khan, the few who have heard Circus Maximus, agree that not only does Michael Eriksen (vocals) sound as good as Roy, some (including myself) feel Michael is superior to Roy. Michael's range is leaps and bounds beyond any Roy can deliver, and while Kamelot's sound has been established with Roy's unique vocal delivery, few can deny that head to head, Michael Eriksen is not only a far more diverse, and talented singer, he is, today, one of the finest metal vocalists around. It would be an honor, for Kamelot fans, to hear Kamelot classics sung by someone who easily ranks in the same league as Geoff Tate, Michael Kiske, Midnite (RIP), Ronnie Atkins (Pretty Maids) and others.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Michael
• Kiske
• Queensryche
• Operation:
• Mindcrime
• Helloween
• Edguy
• Conception
• Kamelot
• Karma
• Poetry
• for
• the
• poisoned
• geoff
• tate
• michael
• kiske
• Circus
• Maximus
• Abyss
• From
• Childhood's
• end
• darkened
• Mind
• Wither
• Sane
• no
• more
• Arrival
• of
• love
• Mouth
• madness
• childhood's
• hour
• Ultimate
• sacrifice
• Pagan's
• Anubis
• Gate

[MikeMaximus]

A BIG THX for spreading the word about our music dude..and stay tuned the circus has just begun...the new album is going to slay and I can`t wait to hear your thoughts about it ;) Michael Eriksen

[TokyoMetal777]

@MikeMaximus Mike! I cannot tell you what an incredible honor it is for me to receive a message from you. Truly, I am at a loss. Thank you! I've been a die-hard fan of quality rock/metal music for every one of my 32 years... diving even into the most obscure underground metal- from indie/unsigned 80s L.A. glam (Brunette, Lancia, etc...) to some of the best obscure death metal, power metal, etc... but only a handful of albums have failed to wither in elegance over time, as does Isolate...

[xTOMMYGRx]

Mike, you are my favorite singer. You are so talented and i wish you the best in your long gold career to come.

Can't wait for your incredible voice to be heard again in your new album.

Please come sometime in Greece, or at least near.

[quadrupleplay]

This is pretty much the way I would do this, although my musical description is different - more of a musician's ear than your more direct review approach. I just sent off a welcome message to Mike, and maybe he'll approve my own gallery of "Isolate" - then I can challenge you to a THROWDOWN! HA HA!

It's great how well you've written your feelings about CM and how you appreciate the band in a way that many don't ever bother thinking about.