CIRCLES

Joey Vera's pedigree is without reproach. Come on, Armored Saint and Fates Warning! However, I guess to be in touch with what's going on in the hard rock/heavy metal community as it exists today, I'm guessing he felt he had to put a "modern" spin on his solo work to stay relevant. While it's very impressive that he performed all instruments here aside from drums, the songwriting is what I have a problem with. Aside from the title track, which has some ferocious rhythm guitar work and just flat-out rocks, the rest of this album seems lost in that hang on to the old/grab on to the new persona that mars so many otherwise promising new releases. Taken as a whole, it was a disappointing and somewhat tiresome listening experience. There exists a wasteland between old school, established prog-metal song structure and today's pioneers that are taking yesteryears foundations to new heights, and it is in that no-mans land that this record falls...........floundering about without an identity.

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