CIRCLES

Argos is a young German neo-prog band, on the heavier side of the genre. The band has a great eclectic and dissonant style, with a heavy use of bass and spacey electric piano. Circles, the band's sophomore album, fleshes out this unique style, showing the young band's promise and unique light in the genre. Each song has a great feel to them, with an eclectic sense of jazz, neo fusion, and some nice great symphonic elements as well. Of course, neo-progressive rock is one of those 'circular' genres that no one really knows what it truly is, and we can just assume that Argos can be described by such a genre. The whole album is full of catchy melodies and great harmonies that keep the compositions spicy and full of great proggy vigor. The songs are upbeat, jovial, and have a really nice atmosphere about them. Reminiscent of the Flower Kings fused with Marillion, the band has a creative style, with more nostalgic themes to keep you seated without too much 'worry' about outlandish attempts at experimentation.

The band is able to keep quite a steady feel to the album, with some funky bass lines, retro synth, mellotron, and Hammond lines, and some upbeat jazzy rhythms. The melodies are engaging and nicely harmonized with the music. The music is catchy, fused with pop elements, but still able to keep a level-headed prog spectrum in mind when playing. Songs like A Thousand Years, Total Mess Recall, Lost on the Playground, and Progology have a really awesome upbeat feel to them, keeping you tuned into the music and attentive to the great compositions (Total Mess Recall is a personal favorite of mine). Then, songs like Closed Circle, Lines on the Horizon, and The Gatekeeper have a more intensive, sometimes melancholy, sometimes intense musical feel to them, which edges them closer to the 'metal' section of the neo-prog genre. Overall, nearly the entire album is genius tracks, combining funk, jazz, prog, symphonic rock, and a host of other elements to fuse into a fantastic album.

Overall, the album is great. Full of countless memorable moments and some really fantastic instrumental sections, the album is certainly a memorable moment in recent neo- prog history. It may not be a masterpiece, but this album is certainly a great collection of tracks. With many dynamics, little moments that contribute to the whole atmosphere of the music, and many other little tidbits, the album is great. I highly recommend this album to any fan of neo-prog, symphonic rock, or even jazz fusion, because of all the great jazzy elements in the music. In the end, Circles is one of the more memorable albums of the past year (2010). 4 stars.

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