CIRCUS PANDEMONIUM

ACT is backt! After an 8-year silence since their last album, Silence. Their goofy faces (as in their photo on this site) should in the encyplopaedia under eclectic prog. I define their style as Broadway heavy music, or a metal band indulging their Queen, disco-era ELO and that funky-reggae craze many rock bands underwent at the 70-80s border, with a healthy dose of playfulness.

ACT are no strangers to the more-sinister-than-it-seems-by-the-playful-music epic concepts. In this regard, Circus is most similar to their best work, Last Epic. It's tight, well-produced (if a bit too heavy on the guitar side) and catchy as hell. But, like similar efforts - after a long wait - by popular bands such as Arena or Fates Warning, feels kinda perfunctionary. Less fresh and diverse. Evil circus must be the most overused concept in culture. Stylistically, they mostly stick to heavy power-pop here (heading into outright metal territory by the end), and instrumental jams overuse the stop-start heavy riffing- softer keyboards pattern.

Good, but they can do better.

I have, after some writings about it, listened to the Swedish band A.C.T.'s fifth and latest record "Circus Pandemonium". You can't hear that the band is Swedish because they sing in English, so they could have been American or whatever. The band hasn't made a record for some years and now 2014 this is released with Thomas Lejon on drums, Herman Saming on vocals, Peter Asp on bass, Ola Andersson on guitars and Jerry Sahlin on synthesizers.

The cover is frightening but colourful and strong. It seems to display an evil circus trainefr and a poor freak, who is chained on the ground. That motive also is a theme on this concept record. My version of the album doesn't have marks between the different songs so I experienced it such a whole. Some of the passages on this record are really worth hearing. Sometimes the keyboard work is splendid or at least recognizible for prog fans and for example "The End" which nearly starts the record is borth catchy and clever. The vocals on this album are qualitative and varied. Parts of it is like a musical where a woman tries to defend "a freak" from an evil(stereotypical) circus manager. The record is over all well produced and I like it's theme. Many sole songs too are worth hearing at least once.

Though are there a lot of features I don't really like. The album is too heavy for me. I don't often find meaning for its heavyness. A bit too vociferous for me is is as I would consider it. I have also hard to hear originality. This album is good, but not exactly in my style. Three stars!

The Show Must Go On

So after a lengthy break of eight years, Swedish heavy prog band A.C.T have finally released a new piece of music, their fifth album, Circus Pandemonium. I found A.C.T through their critically acclaimed 2003 album Last Epic, a ridiculous and fun record, coming equally from rock opera and the bombast of a stage show as it was from progressive rock and metal. The album was hardly a groundbreaking one, but it was impossibly catchy, and actually incredibly unique ' I can't really think of another record with that kind of eccentricity and catchiness in progressive music, although recently Incura have been tackling a similar style (albeit with more of an alternative approach than progressive). A.C.T were not a huge classic band, but they were the sort that were definitely missed in their absence.

So with this new album, Circus Pandemonium, I guess I have to report some good news, and some bad news. And oddly, both happen to be the same thing ' this album is more or less A.C.T doing what A.C.T have done. I can't speak for any of the other A.C.T albums, since Last Epic is the only one I knew before this, but this is more or less the same style, more or less the same melodies and more or less the same excellent fun. Some people will rejoice to this ' this album is as accomplished as Last Epic and basically just as good, and some people honestly don't care if two albums sound the same. I know every single fan of 'djent' nodded their head in unison. But others will realise that this really is A.C.T writing on autopilot, with the same style and the same mindset. On this album, as the title suggests, we have the inclusion of some circus-style music, including influences from dark cabaret and different areas of stage theatrics. But realistically, when has A.C.T's music in the past not sounded like a carnival?

I don't really mind the continuation of the older style myself, because as I said, this is just as consistent as Last Epic, and the simple fact is that A.C.T's sound is so unique in the first place, that them playing the same thing isn't really going to make me mind. The melodies here are just as ridiculously as fun and just as memorable, particularly the infectious choruses of opener 'The End' and 'Manager's Wish'. The energy throughout the record is also unparalleled, using fantastic dynamics in a similar way that a stage show would, particularly in the first few tracks here. But although these first few songs on the album all have pretty stellar melodies, I do actually think that they all run a bit long, especially since they rely so much on the one catchy chorus melody, and no matter how catchy a chorus, its charm dies after a few repeats. As much as I enjoy the hook 'A Truly Gifted Man', it really starts to grate after a while, and it has the sort of tonality that would make me go insane if I heard it too much.

But then on the tracks in the middle of the album, the band go in the opposite direction, and we have a string of five shorter tracks, with only two of them really having any real musical substance ' the ridiculous and Bungle-esque 'Look at the Freak', and the rather sweet (although a bit clich') 'A Mother's Love'. The rest of the tracks are all story-building ones, giving us a bit of an insight into the characters and plot of this album, which seems to be about a circus freak with no tongue and an evil circus manager and a girl who tries to save him, and I can already feel everyone rolling their eyes. I honestly wish the story had been left to the background of this album, since it's so completely clich'd and contains so many archaic plot devices. 'A Mother's Love', as well as a couple of the other rock-opera styled tracks, has a massive Ayreon vibe, mostly due to the way the lyrics are sung, and the use of multiple vocalists. Although the melody on this is better than anything Arjen has written in years, I still can't shake the clich', and the notion that the lyrics feel simply like sung dialogue, making the lyrics pretty weak (ever heard of poetic dialogue?), but also meaning the melodies come second to the story, and when the story is this bad, you don't really want that.

In the end, Circus Pandemonium is certainly a good addition to the A.C.T catalogue, and long- term fans will certainly be glad for their return, but this really breaks nothing new for the band, and is basically as we should expect from them. Although I've said that this is pretty much on the same level as Last Epic, I would still return to that more than I will to this, since I feel a bit of the clich' and cheesy carnival parts of this album detract from the music, and the melodies aren't quite as good. It's still a solid record, however, and if you are looking for some bombastic and energetic circus-rock-opera-metal, (and you've already heard Incura enough), then this is a must-have.

7.1

Originally written for my Facebook page/blog: www.facebook.com/neoprogisbestprog

"Circus Pandemonium" is the 5th full-length studio album by Swedish progressive rock/metal act A.C.T. The album was released through Marquee Avalon in March 2014. It´s the first album release by the band since "Silence (2006)", so it´s been an 8 years long recording break, and I was beginning to wonder if they had disbanded without telling the world.

Thankfully that´s not the case and "Circus Pandemonium" sees A.C.T return doing what they do best: Playing melodic progressive rock/metal with great positive energy delivered with sublime technical skill. They have a distinct sound, that sets them apart from most other contemporary acts although their influences do shine through. When listening to A.C.T I´m first and foremost reminded of 70s art rock acts like Roxy Music, 10cc, Supertramp and especially Queen, but with an added progressive metal edge that reminds me of early Dream Theater.

While the music is played with great technical skill, the tracks are for the most part vers/chorus structured. The band almost always include surprises during the tracks though and while this isn´t the kind of progressive rock/metal music created to show off, there are still some pretty complex parts being played. The music for the most part sounds lighthearted and features great positive energy (sometimes to the point where I´m thinking I´m listening to a piece from a Broadway Musical), which make "Circus Pandemonium" quite the party to listen to. The instrumentation consists of bass, guitars, drums and keyboards, but it´s the high pitched vocals by Herman Saming that´s predominantly in focus. The addition of harmony and choir vocals are also an important ingredient of the band´s sound (the Queen reference is especially strong in that part of the music).

The material on "Circus Pandemonium" are generally quite clever and well written. A.C.T are very skilled composers and they pull off their adventurous ideas with ease. The combination of occasional heavy riffing and lighthearted (almost whimsical) musical ideas work wonders. Packed in a powerful and clear sound production "Circus Pandemonium" comes off as a high quality release on all parameters and a 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

A 'return to form' effort that's worth enjoying ...

As I mentioned earlier in my previous writing that I am quite happy with recent developments in prog scene as many bands produce excellent albums. In fact it confuses me which one I should spin as so many excellent happenings in relation to prog. For this reason, I do not want to expand my listening horizon to other music but prog. Why? No time man! There are so many good album from many musicians / bands like IQ, Transatlantic, Steven Wilson, Steve Hackett, Curved Air, The Flower Kings to mention some of them. And now I am writing my view on another excellent album by Sweden prog group called themselves as A.C.T. Prog music is really nice and gives me full of joy in life. Prog music motivates me to create innovative things in my professional life as strategy & change management consultant. In fact, I play prog music from my MacBook when I facilitate workshops with my clients. If I am lucky sometime I got one or some of the participants asked me what music that I play. Or ...sometimes they came to me and say: "Hey ....you are a prog fan?" YUP! Of course I am; and I am proud being a prog fan!!! There is no other music as captivating a PROG - full stop!

I have a strong rationale why I love prog music very much. The proof is quite easy: get the CD of this Circus Pandemonium and spin it. Taste the music with open mind and conclude: what type of music this gentlemen from Sweden play through this album? Most of them will not be able to categorize under what basket this album is. Yes, there is a bit of rock, a bit of pop, a bit of metal and mix of them. While people like us easily say: This is PROG man! In one of reviews I did for the bad, I mentioned that they play a "cabaret rock" music. A term that is not usual in any music critics industry, I think ...

And talking about A.C.T you may want to browse around this site that I have reviewed all of their previous four albums with various rating depending upon how I feel and I think about the music. In a nutshell, after eight years of silent since their weak "Silence" album released in 2006, this new album remarks the "return to form" spirit as musically this one is closer to their best album ever "The Last Epic" released before "Silence". Even though I do not follow the band's activities during its silent or vacuum period of eight years but I always follow their release and write a review for it.

The album kicks off with an ambient nuance that sounds like silence mode just before a show - a circus show. And it blasts off with an energetic music through its second track The End (5:56). The tempo is upbeat and you may consider this as a straight rock kind of style but it surprises me when it suddenly break with powerful vocal which brings the music into its full power. I find a full sense of joy with this track and the vocal harmonies are truly topnotch, backed with excellent music riffs. There is also orchestration as well through the passage of the track. What then surprises me is the break where it seems like audience giving applaud to the circus act. It's really an innovative break! I would say this track is a masterpiece as it's flawless in terms of composition and performance. At the end of the track there is a powerful riffs combined beautifully with orchestrated arrangements and ...again ..another break with people's laugh giving applause.

The third track Everything's Falling (4:55) is still with its high energy tempo, even faster than the previous one. I love the riffs produced through its transition segments as well as jaw- dropping drumwork. The basslines are great and in some segments produce memorable riffs. The interlude part demonstrating short solo of keyboard combined with powerful basslines is really excellent - followed by powerful vocal line. Manager's Wish (5:54) is the next track with still an energetic style combined with some break with slow tempo combined with vocal line. This time it seems like there is a communication between the Manager and its circus players. A Truly Gifted Man (6:44) is different in style with nice piano fills. The music is kind of combined pop rock and reggae rhythm section. Presentation (1:03) is basically a break that demonstrates a dialogue followed with fast tempo and unique music of Look At The Freak (1:13). The follow-ups are short tracks with duration of 1 to 2 minutes :Argument (1:06), Confrontation (1:12), A Mother's Love (2:37), The Funniest Man Alive (3:46) depicting various stages of the circus story. I like Confrontation as it's quite complex and played neatly by the band which then flows into mellow part o Mother's Love. Really nice! And there is a bonus track under Japanese edition titled as Scared (4:43). The last two concluding tracks are also excellent: Lady In White (4:40) and Freak Of Nature (5:59). Lady In White has different style compared to other tracks.

Overall this is an excellent album that scores about 4.5 stars. It's beautifully composed and neatly performed by the band. The composition has good melody, superb harmonies on vocal its backing voices as well as the combined work of instruments used plus its orchestration, may tempo and style changes with relatively complex arrangements. The album has a solid structural integrity from start to end of album despite many breaks in the middle of the album - but that makes it richer. I highly recommend this and definitely it's much better than its predecessor released eight years ago. Happy that the band is still alive. Keep on proggin' ...!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

A.C.T is back with a vengeance. After an 8 year respite in which most of us (myself included) wrote them off, they have concocted an amazing offering. In fact, this may be better than Last Epic. Yes, I'll admit the circusy theme is probably a bit overused in prog, but don't worry because the music here feels fresh, and is consistently addictive and catchy, despite having some quite complex passages and really superb musicianship. I can't really think of a bad track or anything about the music here that I don't like, style wise. Some of their previous works tended to be a tad too chipper, and then Silence went too far the opposite direction and had some OTT emoness, but this release seems much more emotionally balanced, which is what makes it (and I say this tentatively since I've only had this album for a week) their best release to date. I certainly hope it's not another 8 years before we get another.

It was a great Christmas gift to read the news of a new A.C.T release, back in December 2013. At that point, I wasn't sure what the status of the band was. I remember having a brief chat with Thomas Lejon, after his gig with Andromeda, in 2011, and asking him about that status of A.C.T but didn't get much more than that the band members were still in touch.

I bought Circus Pandemonium as soon as it was released for pre-order and even got the Japanese release, from some weird Japanese website where I could barely figure out how to place my order. Luckily both versions arrived without any issues and I was ready to dive deep into the fifth official studio release from A.C.T!

The 8 year release gap didn't affect the sound nor the production of the album, as this was still clearly the band I've known and loved. The album was an enjoyable ride from start to finish, or is it the other way at round? More on that later. There were quite a few standout tracks for me initially like Everything's Falling, A Truly Gifted Man and The Funniest Man Alive. Eventually, some of the tracks got a bit overplayed for me, while others grew even more, especially once I got to see A.C.T at their comeback gig on March 1st, 2014 in Gotherburg, Sweden. The band was even better live than I remembered them to be and all the members were firing on all cylinders. This was my all time favorite A.C.T performance to date and I got to see them four more times since then.

The album's concept is not that complicated on paper and I like the twist of having the story play out in reverse order, in style of Christoper Nolan's Memento. But let's be honest, it's the performances and the songwriting that are the focal point of this album. It's safe to say that A.C.T deliver in both categories and managed to craft another fantastic release. I do enjoy Circus Pandemonium a lot and have considered it to be a complete masterpiece on a few occasions, but having had 9 years with it, I will call it a near masterpiece that fits perfectly it the band's discography.

***** star songs: The End (5:56) Everything's Falling (4:55) Look At The Freak (1:13) A Mother's Love (2:37) Lady In White (4:40)

**** star songs: Intro (1:01) Manager's Wish (5:54) A Truly Gifted Man (6:44) Presentation (1:03) Argument (1:06) Confrontation (1:12) The Funniest Man Alive (3:46) Scared (4:43) A Failed Escape Attempt (5:18) Freak Of Nature (5:59)