THE BLACK CIRCUS PART 1 - LETTERS

Probably a 4 star epic thrash/power metal album and their best to date (pre-Safe). The lyrics are actually quite good, despite a couple of funny lines. The music is very enjoyable European style thrash riffing, powerhouse drumming with Malmsteen-esque lead guitar, Maiden-esque harmony solos, with Blind Guardian-esque vocals and epic-ness. There's a King Diamond-esque imagination to the songs and keyboards and apart from the interludes and the not-so-good 'Freakshow' this is a worthy piece of imaginative prog/thrash.

Making all those references is a little unfair (or a compliment), Manticora have their own sound . Worth a listen if you like this kind of stuff and certainly one of the better and more original sounding bands in the genre.