Circus Maximus definitely sound like Dream Theater should have sounded anno 2005 for many fans that liked the earlier albums. And they only needed one album to convince me of this. There is no need to hide among big prog names for these extremely talented guys. Every single song this album has to offer is flawless and the vocals are great, too. However, it didn't take very long to find out that vocalist Michael Eriksen somehow reminded me of Lance King (ex-Balance of Power, Pyramaze). Nevertheless, it's an extremely strong and clear voice.

I strongly recommend this album to all prog fans that are looking for some fresh material. Some bands from this genre scare the listeners off with long technical instrumental parts and even if some fans like it, others don't. Circus Maximus created long songs like "Glory Of The Empire" exceeding the 10 minutes or the epic title track "The 1st Chapter" which is almost scrating on the 20 minutes mark and you hardly notice the length of the songs. There is no need to mention any highlights of this album as simply every song on this 70-minutes package is a highlight (note: I'm refering to the European version including the "Haunted Dreams" bonus track. The US-version has a different bonus track). You got the typical prog elements, great melodies, great vocals - basically you got everything you need here. Additionally you got one of Mattias Norén's (ProgArt) cover artworks which always look impressive anyway....

And remember one thing, this is just a debut album we're dealing with. It's almost a bit scary what potential some newcomer bands have. They deserve the 10/10 - nothing less.

written by Silence

Playing time: 70.35