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CIRCU5 “Clockwork Tulpa”
CIRCU5 “Clockwork Tulpa”
By Dark Starr
While this is not 1970s styled prog, it does have moments that lean in that direction. It’s decidedly progressive rock, though. It just happens to be the more guitar oriented modern school of the genre. It’s also very strong. In fact, there is a good chance this will make my best of 2025 list. If you like things like KING’S X, you will probably love this. A lot of this reminds me of that band, but these guys have their own musical identity.
“Make No Sound” comes in ambient with the sound of a storm along with mellow music. After the half-minute mark it drives out to hard rocking territory with definite hints of DREAM THEATER. It drops to a percussive arrangement for the entrance of the vocals. As the arrangement fills out again it makes me think of both RUSH and KING’S X in some ways. This continues to grow and evolve. It’s inventive, unique and really rocks. Driving and energized, “Sing Now” has a real modern prog angle to it. Then it drops down after a while in that fast mode to a mellower section. It drives back out into a jam that has both modern and classic prog angles built into it. The track has a number of twists and turns and some frantically crazed jamming at times.
“Freakshow Train” has more of that KING’S X vibe at times. The track is still decidedly prog, but it’s a little less dynamic than the two songs that preceded it were. I really love the vocal arrangement on “Skin Machine.” The track has some great hard rock in its foundation. It’s also proggy, though. Those KING’S X references are valid on it. It has some hints of metal, too. There is some particularly hot guitar work on the song. There is also a drop back to some rather jazzy stuff for a while. More standard prog jamming emerges from there.
The vocal arrangement on “Infinite Lucid Geometric Fever Dream” is great. The song combines mainstream rock and roll with proggy tendencies. That KING’S X thing is definitely in play on it. The bass really gets to shine mid-track. They fire out with some smoking hot prog jamming from there. The number is packed full of intriguing twists and turns and really has some of the most decidedly progressive rock stuff of the whole disc later.
The fast-paced, rocking, yet quirky riffing that opens the title track is so cool. The song is driving and has some metallic angles at times. Yet, it’s also full-on guitar heavy prog. Intricate, mellower sounds get things going on “Violet.” It eventually drives out to more rocking stuff built around that concept. The track works through a number of twists and turns as it continues.
The opening section of “Change the Weather” somehow makes me think of YES just a little. It turns a corner, getting into more RUSH-like stuff. The track continues to evolve with more of the KING’S X stuff in the mix at times. While not a big change, “Don't Spare Me” is not exactly like anything else here. It has some great hooks and plenty of that KING’S X thing at play. The mellower section at the end is intriguing and takes it to spaciness to end.
Coming in more melodic, the closing “Scars” has an intricate mellow vibe. A saxophone lends a different feel to the piece, too. The guitar soloing on it is so expressive and powerful. The track continues to evolve from there. After it ends we get the same storm sounds that opened the album, making it a circular journey.
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