THE CIRCLE PROJECT

The Circle Project is a Spanish initiative conceived by Ángel G. Lajarí, who neither sings nor plays any instruments but takes charge of production, art creation, and graphic design, as well as managing the project. The band's sound stands out for its creative approach, skillfully blending literature with a wide range of musical genres, with a special emphasis on art rock. The band's proposal is to offer a musical experience that transcends mere auditory enjoyment. Their compositions are not only sophisticated and intricate but also imbued with profound and captivating literary narratives that capture the imagination and hearts of those who immerse themselves in the world created by the group. By integrating storytelling elements with symphonic musical arrangements, the band delivers a fully immersive journey into their creative universe.

I find the genesis of The Circle Project quite intriguing. The concept for the band emerged from a series of discussions among members of the Spanish Facebook group Prog Circle. Dedicated to progressive rock and its various subgenres, this group served as a virtual meeting point for progressive music enthusiasts. It was in this space that a passion for music found fertile ground, allowing creative ideas to be shared and explored. The conversations and interactions within the group not only fostered an exchange of influences and experiences but also helped shape the vision and identity of the project that was about to take flight.

Bestiario II is the group's second album, and as the name suggests, it continues the theme explored in its predecessor. The concept remains centered on a fascinating collection of descriptions of creatures, whether real or mythical. Each track functions as an entry in a sonic bestiary, where meticulously crafted melodies and arrangements evoke the nature, mystery, and magic surrounding these subjects. Thus, Bestiario II not only complements the previous work but also expands the group's imaginative and sonic universe.

Although every track has its merits and is worth listening to, I'll comment on the ones I liked most. First, through a Manual De Criptozoología, a voice welcomes us on this new journey into the group's fascinating universe: "A long- awaited new book has come into our hands. We will once again travel through time and space with impossible, colorful, and arcane animals from distant lands and past oceans. To hear their songs, let us open the bestiary once more." Following this introductory narration, the album begins with "Mantícora," a mythical creature of Persian origin later incorporated into Greek mythology. It has the head of a man, the body of a lion, and the tail of a dragon or scorpion. The track begins with a solitary acoustic guitar, but soon other instruments join in, each bringing its own color and texture, enriching the composition and creating a harmony that gradually evolves. It's interesting to see such a delicate song symbolize such a ferocious creature. The idea might be to explore a narrative about the coexistence of strength and gentleness, or perhaps the deceptive nature of appearances.

"It's a kind of giant squid that lives in the abyssal depths. The excessive size of its tentacles creates large whirlpools ?similar to those of Charybdis in the Strait of Messina?and it can sink ships. Already mentioned in medieval bestiaries and by Jules Verne, it remains a mystery of the ocean, perhaps less known than our solar system" With these words. "Architeutis Dux - Kraken" is introduced. The sound production is expertly designed to reflect the vastness and darkness of the deep waters. The experimental arrangements are rich in textures and layers, creating a palpable sense of depth and complexity that embodies the legends surrounding this creature.

"Pardus Alatus Nero," a flying feline described in the narration preceding the song as "noble, strong, and muscular, capable of diving into the ocean during its flights to hunt seals, polar bears, and even sea lions. It descends into the depths in search of a mate, and once it finds its object of platonic love, it never forgets it, though it always returns to its place of origin." The track begins serenely, almost dreamlike. The acoustic guitar and hulusi?a Chinese wind instrument?dominate the piece for some time before a change of direction brings in the rhythm section and electric guitar, adding energy and weight to the track. This shift in sound can be interpreted as the moment the creature reveals its true nature, transitioning from calmness to a dominant and menacing presence.

"Meiga", here the band seems focused on portraying just one type of meiga; however, it's important to clarify that meigas can be categorized into different types, such as the "chuchona meigas," who drain the vital energy of people; the "meigas de mal," who are more malevolent and mentioned in the narration; and the "good meigas" or "meigas de bien," who are considered healers or protectors. Through a delicate soundscape created by layered keyboards and acoustic guitar, emotional vocals express the pain caused by a woman who crushed the singer's heart and cast a spell on him. The combination of music and narration?possibly a metaphor for emotional manipulation?connects with something broader and more mysterious.

"Rainbow Leprechaun", Leprechauns are creatures rooted in Irish mythology, often depicted as mischievous, solitary beings who guard pots of gold at the end of the rainbow. The concept of the "Rainbow Leprechaun" evolves this tradition, blending the magic and vibrant colors of rainbows. The song begins with a grand and dark atmosphere, characterized by symphonic arrangements that create a sense of mystery and depth. A transition introduces military-style drums accompanied by bass, leading the piece into a more robust territory with a rich instrumental arrangement. A brief melodica solo is followed by a guitar solo. After these highlights, the song returns to a serene sound guided by a delicate flute, maintaining tranquility until its conclusion. While it may be challenging to directly link the music to the creature, the grand and dark atmosphere at the start could illustrate the Rainbow Leprechaun?a figure shrouded in mystery and enigmatic allure.

"Tardo", this should not be confused with the legendary creature of the same name from Amazonian indigenous mythology. Here, it refers to the Galician Tardo, often portrayed as an entity inhabiting rural and forested areas. Its appearance blends human and animal traits, such as pointed ears or glowing eyes. It enjoys playing tricks on humans, causing them to get lost in forests or experience negative sensations like pain and nightmares. The song boasts a strong musicality, particularly through an energetic rhythmic section and symphonic keyboards. Meanwhile, the vocals are presented from the Tardo's perspective, portraying it as a powerful, menacing figure that manipulates and dominates the fears and anxieties of its target. The symphonic sense of grandeur and mystery in the music resonates with the folkloric and enigmatic nature of the creature.

"Papilio Evanescens", this is a butterfly with the ability to vanish. Initially a caterpillar, its abrupt disappearance after transforming into a butterfly is also associated with mystical characteristics, such as the ability to travel between worlds or dimensions. Musically, the song's first part stands out with its ethereal atmosphere, where layered female vocals?though performed by the same vocalist?float with celestial delicacy. In the song's core, an enchanting flute emerges accompanied by rhythmic percussion, adding a lightness to the beat. The rhythmic section then gains intensity, driving the song toward a more powerful direction. This shift is marked by a keyboard solo, followed by a guitar solo, both elevating the composition. In this way, "Papilio Evanescens" becomes a living metaphor for the music, embodying the transition from gentleness to intensity, from fragility to strength, all while maintaining its graceful and transcendent nature. Additionally, its ability to appear and disappear prompts us to question, through its closing lyrics, the mystery of what lies beyond death?contemplating life after death or the possibility of continuation in another realm.

"Draculis Scarabus", named after a creature with a glossy black shell adorned with scarlet markings that evoke vigilant eyes or sharp claws, these details amplify its intimidating appearance. Initially, solitary bass notes are joined by a soundscape reminiscent of a 1970s horror film. The music then transitions into a more electronic style, maintaining its atmospheric quality and adding subtle touches of psychedelia. Near the end, the drums intensify, joining the other instruments to create an almost distressing atmosphere. This track is perhaps the closest match to the creature it represents, with its sound embodying a dark essence and delivering a haunting experience akin to encountering the mentioned being.

As with the album's opening, the conclusion features a brief message from the Manual de Criptozoología, leaving open the possibility of a third installment: "The story ends, and according to the bestiary, thirteen new beings inhabit our imagination. Urbano Monte's map served as a canvas for another grand journey through strange and novel places. Let us close this manuscript now?perhaps another awaits."

Bestiário II is a captivating album woven with a rich and harmonious sonic tapestry. It stands out for its immersive melodies and the delicate harmony that permeates each track, creating a mesmerizing and engaging experience. The band's occasional ventures into heavier territories, with moments of intense musicality, provide effective contrasts to the album's overall softness.

Each song captures the essence of the creature it represents, offering a vivid and expressive sonic portrait. The transitions between gentleness and intensity are executed with elegance, allowing the album to tell diverse and rich stories anchored in a cohesive and sensitive narrative. In the end, Bestiário II invites listeners on a journey through a sonorous universe full of contrasts, where melodic beauty and musical strength intertwine harmoniously, always respecting the mythology and imagery evoked by each composition.

THE CIRCLE PROJECT is a project that fuses various musical genres with literature and graphic art. The initial idea came from Ángel G. Lajarín, founder of the Facebook discussion group on progressive rock, art rock and related music named Prog Circle, which has more than four thousand members. He noticed that among the most active members there were many musicians with interesting careers and proposed that they form a collective project to pool their talents beyond geographical barriers, using the Facebook group as a space for communication and work.

BESTIARIO - (BESTIARY)

A first proposal in the form of a rock opera was, perhaps, too ambitious. And was abandoned in favour of Rafael Pacha's suggestion to set a medieval-style bestiary to music.

October 2016 saw the debut album, "Bestiario". It featured several artists from the Spanish music scene resulting in an eclectic, but at the same time coherent work. Mostly thanks to the production and musical direction of multi-instrumentalist Rafael Pacha (San Barandán, La Banda del Lago, MacíaPacha, Last Knight, The Guildmaster, Samurai of Prog, Pacha & Pörsti) in close collaboration with guitarist German Fafian (Axiom9, Axis Ensemble, German Fafian) and Raúl Díaz (Taker 51), keyboards and drums.

It is made up of nine songs full of passages and emotions of meticulous instrumental and vocal musicality, complemented by the lyrics and voiceovers of the writer Ignacio Carlos Romeo Puolakka and the drawings of the imaginary beasts by Ángel G. Lajarín.

The other participants of the first album were: Ana Marín (Psychosound, Axiom9, Axis Ensemble) bass, Javier Herrera (KantFreudKafka, The Logical Group) drums and vocals, José Carballido (A Sombra dos Soños) guitars, vocals and production, Aser Nova drums, DanielF. Campañá (Quorum) vocals, Clara Morant vocals and Amador Gázquez second vocals. The work has the special collaboration of the prestigious guitarist Manoel Macía (Manoel Macía, Los Visionarios, Suárez & Macía, MacíaPacha) and voiceovers by Alexandro Baldassarini.

BESTIARIO II ? (BESTIARY II)

A trip to Seville to visit Antonio Manuel Fernández -Noné Easter- is to blame for the birth of this sequel. This time it boasts the participation of Manuel Soto Noly (Mártires del Compás, Malabriega, Blasphemous, Graci Rodríguez Band, Manuel Soto Noly) on acoustic guitar, keyboards and drum programming, and Noné Easter on electric guitar. During this trip. Noly proposes Patricia García, David Escolano Lajarín and Ángel G. Lajarín, to take up the project again and launches a video to promote it. The suggestion is received with enthusiasm and so it is decided to consult with Rafael and German, who show their happiness for the resurgence of the project.

The same method of calling and working on the initial album through Prog Circle is maintained, and of the twenty-five musicians who were initially interested, the final list is twenty, some of them highly valued on the national and international scene. For the second time Rafael Pacha was in charge of supervision, production and musical direction, as well as composition and playing several instruments.

"Bestiario II" brings together thirteen new fantastic creatures, described by the narrators Alexandro Baldassarini and María José Vaquero Pichu and performed by, in addition to Rafael, German, Raúl, Carballido, Noly and Noné Easter, Carlos Aguilera (Troubled Mind) synthesizers, Paco Asensi (ex-Moebius, Paco Asensi) keyboards and drums, Alessandro di Benedetti (Mad Crayon, Inner Prospekt) keyboards, Mario Bocanegra (Qamar) drums, Pablo Canalís (Senogul, Otus Scops) ocean and water sounds, keyboards, conch shell, waterphone, Native American flute and bass, José Cifuentes (Moebius) flute and sax, Chus Gancedo (United Progressive Fraternity) drums, Óscar García (Project Claudia) drums and percussion, Alberto Mateos (Project Claudia) bass, guitar, keyboards and mandolin, Alicia Pacha vocals, Alfonso Romero (El Tubo Elástico) Chapman stick and bass, Joaquín Sáinz (Malabriega, Joaquín Sáinz) electric guitar, Cochè Vil (Cochè Vil Band, Costas) electric guitar and Claudia Zurdo (Project Claudia) vocals.

Ángel discovers a drawing of a late 16th century map by Urbano Monte, a planisphere divided into sixty sheets and recently assembled in digital format by David Rumsey for the Stanford Libraries Map Collection. It is a mysterious map, very accurate for the time, depicting areas and animals never before seen on our planet, which makes it an ideal album cover. It also illustrates the thirteen beasts that make up the work.

Executive production is handled by the famous Madre Mine Records & Tapes sub-label, popularly known as Hamaca Brothers Records -for those albums that have to wait, you know...-, formed on this occasion by Paco Asensi, Paco Barroso, Carlos Duro, Pedro Enrique Esteban, Patricia García, Ángel Gómez, Rafael Pacha, Miguel Rodríguez and Alfonso Romero. Javier Cremades is the author of the video edition.

You can listen to and buy "Bestiario II" on Bandcamp: thecircleproject.bandcamp.com/album/bestiario-ii

Our social networks (for now): facebook.com/thecircleprojectmusic www.youtube.com/@thecircleprojectband

Rather an excellent collective coursework at a hypothetic Prog Faculty (with a cryptozoologic elective course) of a conservatory of music than a genuine prog album. I got an email info about this band from a friend, with the subject 'Spanish prog is still alive!'. Yes, indeed. And I was especially glad to hear that it was a new Spanish prog band singing in Spanish. Since 1990s, when I discovered Spanish prog scene for myself and realized that I prefer it even to Norwegian, Brazilian and Japanese prog scenes (other faves of mine), Spanish lyrics themselves sound like a fairy-tale music in my ears, no matter if I don't understand what I hear (I don't speak Spanish). But when I listened to Bestiario I caught myself at a thought that I constantly felt... even difficult to express correctly what I felt. Lack of Guadalquivir's Camino Del Concierto? Lack of something Fragua- or Cuarto Menguante-like? The music sounded like it was turning around something very essential but steadily missing it. All the best was done by means of arrangement, not melody making, not generating fresh ideas. I.e. Circle Project's music surely contains ideas, but mostly generated not by Circle Project. I tried to imagine hypothetic feelings of a person who will listen to this album 50 or 100 years later but failed to find any moment in it which could thrill him/her. Perhaps it would be a great music if there were no Coto-En-Pel, no Gotic, no Cai, no Ibio, no Iman Califato Independiente etc. And especially if there was no Rivendel and their exceptional second album from 1996, The Meaning. I think this is what Bestiario is closest to, both structurally and functionally, - and what it loses to at all. Oh yes I read the band's biography here on PA, and I am aware that initially it was a Facebook interest group and the album was just a game. But let's be beyond random details and circumstances. This is the music. And if it cannot be appreciated if the listener is unaware of its background and not into cryptozoology, then maybe Facebook is not the best place for forming a prog band?

4.5 would be a more accurate rating, but the system doesn't allow half stars.

About a month ago the Spanish band 'THE CIRCLE PROJECT' was suggested to the team, as usual we got involved in the ritual of listening whatever samples we could find, voting and notifying the band or sending the suggestion to another team, but this time the process was a bit different. I read the suggestion on November 29 (9:30 pm) and 'The Circle Project' was approved by the three team members by November 30 (1:00 pm), not impossible but unusual, because it was so obvious they belong in Progarchives that we didn't even had a doubt.

Immediately contacted Angel Lajarin (Manager of the band) who was extremely nice and after a long chat forwarded me to 'Rafael Pachas' who sent me all the required info for the addition and gently offered a copy of Bestiario Yesterday as a delayed Christmas gift received the album and had enough time to listen it from start to end just to discover again that it's simply delightful.

Bestiario (Bestiary) is a conceptual album about eight mythical creatures, each one with a complete description that reminds me of 'Jorge Luis Borges', not only for the style, but because the strong Argentinian accent of the narrator Alexandro Baldassarini who places the listener in the mood for each track.

The CD starts with Manual de Criptozoologia (Cryptozoology Manual) that works not only as a narrated introduction to the album but to the impressive title song, from this point we will talk only about the pair tracks, being that the odd ones are exclusively narration and numbered from Chapter 1 to 8.

Bestiario opens the album with a piano intro that leads to a powerful blend of guitars, keys and percussion, somehow reminds me of STEVE HACKETT due to the heavy guitar that continues until the third minute and then starts to constantly change from heavy to dramatic. A nice musical opener

El Gusano Del Bosque Gris (The Worm from the Gray Woods) is a song about a gigantic worm elevated to the category of divinity, to the point that received sacrifice of young virgins, and the band manages to reflect the story with a very heavy track sung in Spanish where the strong guitar and percussion take the lead along with the almost metallic vocals that remind me of 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner' by IRON MAIDEN in some moments (But with keyboards), due to the radical changes. Another strong track

Equus Neptunialis more or less 'Neptune's Horses' must be one of my favorite songs from the album, has everything a Symphonic fan enjoys, lush keyboards, soft melodic passages, dramatic changes and even some Moorish overtones, somehow reminiscent of GENESIS but with a modern sound, enjoyed it from start to end, despite the fact that the lyrics are in English with strong accent.

Xiul' Farcit: is a track about a legendary alligator that gains weight until the moment of procreation eating whatever small animal is in it's path, and the song reflects the story perfectly, because it's very rhythmical and goes 'in crescendo' as the animal hunts and at the end hunted by men when it's too fat to escape. Interesting and very descriptive. The keyboard solo is impressive.

El Hada De Las Volutas De Humo (The Smoke Scroll Fairy): Is a soft and heartbreaking song without lyrics where the voice is used as another instrument that enhances the nostalgic nature of the story of an insect that lives in the smoke from the bitter herb that comes from the Shepard's pipes and vanishes when the smoke stops. The piano is extremely beautiful and sad.

Hyosube: As we can expect of a song about a nasty demon that inoculate deadly bacterias un humans, the song is strong and Heavy, closer to Hard Rock than to Symphomic, but equally enjoyable, the vocals are extremely dramatic and the guitar is powerful.

Pectoide Verde is probably the track that I find less interesting, not bad, but bounds a bit out of place as if the band members were making a homage to late 70's AOR and the lyrics are not strong enough.

The next song Umatodo Obscuro is a real surprise, somehow as we were listening a blend of mid 70's GENESIS (The Mellotron choirs are brilliant), early CAMEL and a bit of late PENDRAGON, really a brilliant song that has everything a Proghead loves, and that instrumental break is simply out of this world, by far the best symphonic song I heard in some time.

The last musical piece is Nubes Vivere , some sort of Power Ballad in the vein of late 70's YES with a nice surprise, the beautiful voice of Clara Morant in a nice duet with Daniel Campa'a, lovely ending for an excellent album.

A everybody knows I very rarely give 5 stars to a debut album, because I always expect something more of the band, and this won't be the exception, so will go with 4 solid stars and will wait for their next release with great expectation.

NOTE: A special recognition for the impeccable presentation and the amazing drawings in the booklet.