Thank you so much, PROG Magazine, Jerry Ewing, and Phil Weller, for this fantastic review of C.O.R.E. !!
Here is the entire review, reprinted in full below:
“Revamped proggers return with their most accomplished LP yet.“ “The third album from New Yorkers Circuline is buoyed by the addition of a pair of Brits in the shape of Lifesigns guitarist Dave Bainbridge and Kyros’s Shelby Logan Warne on bass. The songwriting is still handled by the core trio, keyboardist Andrew Colyer, drummer Darin Brannon and vocalist Natalie Brown, but the newcomers aren’t just making up the numbers.
The transition from sky-skimming guitar solo to choral hook in “You” makes it feel like an instant prog classic. “All”, driven by Logan Warne’s intricate bass line, sheds it skin to reveal new layers coloured by sparkling vocal melodies, fusion flavours and classical sprinklings. On “Transmission Error”, aggressive instrumentation locks horns over odd time signatures, while the acoustic “Temporal Thing” blossoms into a Mellotron-glazed finale at home in Mikael Akerfeldt’s record collection.
Naturally, the album offers many spotlights for its individual talent to dazzle. “Blindside” finds Bainbridge peeling off a boldly bluesy solo and “Say Their Name” a chance for Brannon to doff his cap to “Discipline”-era King Crimson as Circuline play every ace up their sleeve.”
PROG, Jerry, and Phil – from the bottom of our heart, we can’t thank you enough for these kind words.
Thank you so much, Profil Prog (Quebec) and Philippe Andre (France), for this fantastic review of C.O.R.E. !!
Here is the entire review, translated and reprinted in full below:
“Why is the album called “C.O.R.E.”? The 2014 trio has been enriched for the new album by Dave BAINBRIDGE (IONA, LIFESIGNS & many more) & Shelby Logan WARNE (KYROS), no less, progressive heavyweights in different registers.
I might as well tell you right away, I enjoyed the opening track “Tempus Horribilis” (9/10) the split vocals, the choirs, it’s damn well done in the genre, guitars and keyboards as accompaniment rather than soloists. My favorite track in fourth position “All” (10/10) with a monstrous introduction by Shelby Logan WARNE on bass guitar, modern progressive where all the instruments lead a wild saraband, a big bravo for this one.
The very good “You” and its superb instrumental start, a bit rootsy, Natalie BROWN’s singing chanted more than really sung, energizing and catchy at the same time (8/10) and Dave BAINBRIDGE at the top of his guitar art. The penultimate track “Blindside”, the only one sung by Andrew COLYER, very good by the way is a mid tempo quite west coast that could come out of an album by the EAGLES, POCO or the DOOBIE BROTHERS (9/10), Dave’s guitar really lighting it up from 3:22.
“Third Rail” the shortest track, sounds like a supercharged RENAISSANCE (7/10) good piece, but below on the whole album, even if Alek DARSON (guest) sets it on fire at 2:52. “Say Their Name” begins with delicacy, piano, acoustic guitar and Natalie BROWN’s calm voice before taking off for more energetic from the middle of the song propelled by Darin BRANNON’s drums under the fire of Dave BAINBRIDGE’s six strings (8/10). I found the fifth title “Temporal Thing” a bit messy, listenable without more (7/10), more rock than really progressive, even if the final part is more melodic.
The last word for the last title “Transmission Error” which peaks at nine minutes twenty-two, mid tempo again but totally progressive in its unfolding with a distinguished guest on violins (acoustic and electric) Joe DENINZON who joined a few months ago the legendary American combo of TOPEKA, I named obviously KANSAS, a (9/10) well deserved, a very little sung piece, barely two minutes in its entirety, which requires many listens to be fully tamed, the passage at 7:33 takes us directly to “Song for America”, no less.
Take your time with CIRCULINE, a record that requires patience to be fully appreciated.”
Profil Prog and Philippe – Thank you so much for these kind words.
Prog ensemble Circuline’s 2024 “C.O.R.E.” Virtual Tour begins Friday, January 12th, 2024, and will consist of 57 events in 48 weeks, with Single releases, Lyric videos, Official videos, “Behind the Scenes” videos, and Livestream Q&A events where the band is able to connect with their fans around the world.
Six years in the making, Circuline’s new album “C.O.R.E.”, released on the Inner Nova Music label, will be available as an album of eight tracks available in a gatefold digipak CD, with an eight-page booklet of lyrics and liner notes. The album explores themes in romantic relationships, surviving abuse, finding one’s own personal power, and the turbulent times in which we live. “C.O.R.E.” will be released on Friday, September 20th, 2024.
Circuline has a new lineup, with new band members Shelby Logan Warne (Kyros) on bass and vocals, and Dave Bainbridge on guitars (Strawbs, IONA, Lifesigns). Guest Artist Joe Deninzon (Kansas, Stratospheerius) on electric violin. Keyboardist/vocalist Andrew Colyer (Robert Berry’s 3.2 Band, The Tubes), drummer Darin Brannon (Downing Grey, Surface Tension), and lead vocalist Natalie Brown (Evita, Rocky Horror Picture Show) complete the band’s lineup.
Says Andrew Colyer, “With this international virtual tour, we have two goals: First, we want to get our music exposed to as many people as possible, to continue to grow our fanbase worldwide. Second, we want to deepen our relationships with the fans who are the most passionate. Releasing singles, lyric videos, and official videos accomplishes the first goal, and by doing these in-depth, ‘Behind the Scenes’ videos, we accomplish the second goal. Packaging everything together into a single 12-month celebration of the new album will hopefully capture more attention for future opportunities for live performing and touring, with this fantastic new lineup.”
Number #1 in Portugal. Top 10 in Japan. Prog-Award Nominated. Global Music Award Winning. With sales in 23 countries, Circuline’s fanbase is growing daily. The band has toured with Glass Hammer, repeatedly co-headlined the three-day Sonic Voyage Festival, and toured England opening for IO Earth. Circuline has performed at the International Rites of Spring festival (RoSfest), Philadelphia’s Liberty Music Fest, Chicago’s Progtoberfest, New Jersey’s ProgStock, and England’s Harmonix Festival.
Says Andrew, “We’ve had so much fun creating all the videos for this Virtual Tour! We’ve been ‘on location’ in train stations, on rivers, in parking lots, and on soundstage studios. The ‘Story Behind the Song’ videos were done in our newly remodeled studio, with professional documentary filmmakers. The ‘Gear Behind the Music’ videos were done on cell phones. The ‘Behind the Official Video’ series utilizes B-roll shot on location, with band members doing over-the-top commentary. This has been a lot of work, and a ton of fun! We hope the fans enjoy it.”
CORE Virtual Tour Dates:
January 12 – Song #1 – Single Release 19 – Song #1 – Gear Behind the Music 26 – Song #1 – Lyric Video
February 2 – Song #1 – Story Behind the Song 9 – Song #1 – Official Video 16 – Song #1 – Behind the Official Video 18 – Song #1 – Livestream Q&A 23 – Song #2 – Single Release
March 1 – Song #2 – Gear Behind the Music 8 – Song #2 – Lyric Video 15 – Song #2 – Story Behind the Song 22 – Song #2 – Official Video 29 – Song #2 – Behind the Official Video 30 – Song #2 – Livestream Q&A (Sunday is Easter)
April 5 – Song #3 – Single Release 12 – Song #3 – Gear Behind the Music 19 – Song #3 – Lyric Video 26 – Song #3 – Story Behind the Song
May 3 – Song #3 – Official Video 10 – Song #3 – Behind the Official Video 11 – Song #3 – Livestream Q&A (Sunday is Mother’s Day) 17 – Song #4 – Single Release 24 – Song #4 – Gear Behind the Music 31 – Song #4 – Lyric Video
June 7 – Song #4 – Story Behind the Song 14 – Song #4 – Official Video 21 – Song #4 – Behind the Official Video 23 – Song #4 – Livestream Q&A 28 – Song #5 – Single Release
July 5 – Song #5 – Gear Behind the Music 12 – Song #5 – Lyric Video 19 – Song #5- Story Behind the Song 26 – Song #5 – Official Video
August 2 – Song #5 – Behind the Official Video 4 – Song #5 – Livestream Q&A 9 – Song #6 – Single Release 16 – Song #6 – Gear Behind the Music 23 – Song #6 – Lyric Video 30 – Song #6 – Story Behind the Song
September 6 – Song #6 – Official Video 13 – Song #6 – Behind the Official Video 15 – Song #6 – Livestream Q&A 20 – Album Release Day! 20 – Song #7 – Single Release 21 – Album Release Livestream 27 – Song #7 – Gear Behind the Music
October 4 – Song #7 – Lyric Video 11 – Song #7 – Story Behind the Song 18 – Song #7 – Official Video 25 – Song #7 – Behind the Official Video 27 – Song #7 – Livestream Q&A
November 1 – Song #8 – Single Release 8 – Song #8 – Gear Behind the Music 15 – Song #8 – Lyric Video 22 – Song #8 – Story Behind the Song 29 – Song #8 – Official Video
December 6 – Song #8 – Behind the Official Video 8 – Song #8 – Livestream Q&A
Prog ensemble Circuline are excited to announce a new lineup! Keyboardist/vocalist Andrew Colyer (Robert Berry’s 3.2 Band, The Tubes), drummer Darin Brannon (Downing Grey, Surface Tension), and lead vocalist Natalie Brown (Evita, Rocky Horror Picture Show) welcome new band members Shelby Logan Warne (Kyros) on bass and vocals, and Dave Bainbridge on guitars (Strawbs, IONA, Lifesigns).
Six years in the making, Circuline’s new album “C.O.R.E.”, released on the Inner Nova Music label, will be available as an album of eight tracks available in a gatefold digipak CD, with an eight-page booklet of lyrics and liner notes. The album will be released on Friday, September 20th, 2024.
This album explores themes in romantic relationships, surviving abuse, finding one’s own personal power, and the turbulent times in which we live. Where does the album title come from? Collectively, we’ve all lived through a unique time in history, and the band has had quite a few personnel changes, which are discussed in the new “Behind the Scenes” Album Launch video. We are Circuline. We are Original. We are Reimagined. We are Evolving. We are the “C.O.R.E.”.
Says Andrew, “Written and recorded between 2018 and 2023, for this album we really wanted to keep all of the writing “in-house” within the band. So, the majority of the material was written by myself, Darin, and Natalie. Billy Spillane had input into almost every song before he decided it was time to move on. Two of the songs were co-written with Matt Dorsey, who is still a good friend and colleague of ours – I’m performing with his band at the International ProgStock Festival this year. Alek Darson had invaluable input during the writing and arranging stages. Shelby and Dave brought new perspectives and their own unique artistry to these songs, and we couldn’t be happier with the result. The icing on the cake is to have our good friend Joe Deninzon (Kansas, Stratospheerius) as a Guest Artist for some killer electric violin parts!”
The 2024 “C.O.R.E.” Virtual Tour begins in January 2024, and will consist of 56 events in 48 weeks, with Single releases, Lyric videos, Official videos, “Behind the Scenes” videos, and Livestream Q&A events where the band is able to connect with their fans around the world.
Number #1 in Portugal. Top 10 in Japan. Prog-Award Nominated. Global Music Award Winning. With sales in 23 countries, modern progressive rock band Circuline’s fanbase is growing daily. Circuline has toured with Glass Hammer, repeatedly co-headlined the three-day Sonic Voyage Festival, and toured England opening for IO Earth. Circuline has performed at the International Rites of Spring festival (RoSfest), Philadelphia’s Liberty Music Fest, Chicago’s Progtoberfest, New Jersey’s ProgStock, and England’s Harmonix Festival.
In closing Andrew has this to say to the band’s listeners, “We are all part of the human condition on this planet. We all have to find a way to coexist. From a band perspective, just keep going! Never give up. When there’s a goal you want to accomplish for your life, only seriously consider the opinions of people who have actually accomplished what it is that you want to do.”
Track Listing
1.) Tempus Horribilis (6:22) – out of the gate, a proggy epic about the turbulent times we’ve been living in…..
2.) Third Rail (4:20) – a short-form song about the hazardous topics in relationships…..
3.) Say Their Name (6:18) – think “Steven Wilson meets Pierre Moerlin’s Gong”…..
4.) All (7:54) – co-written with Matt Dorsey, it’s a prog epic in 9…..
5.) Temporal Thing (5:51) – a song about the ambivalence that can present in long-term relationships…..
6.) You (6:22) – dark, man…..
7.) Blindside (6:08) – co-written with Matt Dorsey, it’s your power ballad anthem…..
8.) Transmission Error (9:23) – another song about relationships, “finding yourself”, or space creatures. We still can’t decide. It’s your 10-minute prog epic to close the album!
Recorded at:
The Cave, Red Hook, New York. Engineered by Andrew Colyer.
Old Street Studios, London, England. Engineered by Shelby Logan Warne
Open Sky Studios. Baltimore, Maryland. Engineered by Dave Bainbridge.
Joe’s Place. Kansas Touring Rig. Engineered by Joe Deninzon.
Mixed by Billboard-charting veteran producer Robert Berry (Keith Emerson, Carl Palmer, Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, John Wetton, Jordan Rudess, Ambrosia, Sammy Hagar, December People, 3.2 band, Six by Six band) at Soundtek Studios in Campbell, California.
Artwork – The album cover was painted by 98-year-old New York artist-activist-actor Henrietta Mantooth Bagley. Band photography by Chris Nostrand and Don Chaffin. Graphic design and packaging by Darin Brannon.
