Tracks
1. Synthetic Sleep
2. Left To Die
3. Exception
4. 21 Grams
5. The Blackened Halo
6. Take Your Life
7. Never Forget
8. Reflections
9. Redesign
10. The End
11. Until The Worlds Collide

Band:
Niklas Keim – Vocals
Tobias Pfahl – Guitars
Christian Sommerfeld – Guitars
Björn Boehm – Bass
Peter Suppinger – Drums

Diskography:
Your Own Story (2006)
The Supremacy Of Time (2008)

Guests:

Info:
Produced at Maranis Studios with Vagelis Maranis

Released 29/4-2011
Reviewed 20/4-2011

Links:
circle-of-silence.de
myspace
massacre

I find it slightly odd to use a word like silence in a band name because what really points towards a musical band in that kind of name that Circle of Silence is. I would rather say that it points towards some religious cult or something along those lines. But if it were to against all odds be something that has to do with music I think the first thing that would come to mind when seeing such a title would be power metal. In fact, I think that everything about the external with this album points in the direction of power metal. The band logo, the cover artwork, the title, the song names, there is really nothing that points in any other direction.

When starting the music it is clear that the guessing about powermetal is completely not mispredicted as power metal is just what it is. It is not that more melodic and crystal clear production with the high pitched vocalist. This is more power and with that there is a more dirty feel, the sound is not so overly polished but has remaining an air of very careful and skilled production. The songs are a bit varied from midtempo to quite fast with the faster songs being the slightly better ones on the album.

It all starts with a song called Synthetic Sleep which is probably the best on the album with its strong melodies, great tempo and energy. There is no song as good as the opening that follows but there are some quite good tracks that stand out it a positive way. Take Your Life and the ending tracks are two more tracks that is worth mentioning.

I think this is a really good album as there is not any track on it that is bad, neither is it so much stuff that you feel are just there to fill up the space on the album. The songs all feel like they make sense bother where they are and how much time it takes to play it. It is a good album no doubt about it. The sound of this band is unique enough for them to be standing out just enough to be able to get noticed in the bigger crowds of band. This Backened Halo is a really good album and it could signify a breakthrough for this band with their third album but it probably will not.

I think that the blackened halo is an album that shows how good power metal has the potential to be, and also how skilled they are at making really powerful music. There are eleven strong tracks on this new and third album for these Germans. The raw and riff based powerful music is a welcome change from much of the stuff I usually tend to get, and even though the vocals might have been seen as a problem they work really well for this album and the music it presents.

With The Blackened Halo I would say that Circle of Silence have managed to break the silence and get noticed but it would remain to be seen if this is just by me or their potential buyers. At least they have done what they have been capable of with the music, it is a really good about this blackened halo.

HHHHHHH

Label - Massacre Records
Three similar bands - Fireforce/Mystic Prophecy/Rebellion
Rating: HHHHHHH
Recensent: Daniel Källmalm