Search - Evergrey :: Inner Circle

Welcome to the inner circle of Evergrey

Murat Batmaz | Istanbul, Turkey | 02/05/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The common Evergrey characteristics are still predominant on their fifth studio release The Inner Circle: dark vibe, emotional vocal delivery, deeply moving subject theme and mesmerizing artistic aesthetics.



This is a concept album. To quote Tom on it, this is what TIC aims to deal with on a conceptual level: "Throughout the album we will follow a fragile person with low self-esteem who leaves his family for a cult, and who makes drastic changes in his life in order to fully live out 'the inner circles' way of life." Apparently Tom Englund once again focuses on the themes of religion and religious zealots who are so keen on influencing individuals' personal beliefs and shaping them up in the way they believe is so perfect. We had a similar insight on this on the band's In Search of Truth CD where the individual was trying to fight the society in order to get some credibility. Here we're facing a similar approach but different concept. There are plenty of spoken intermissions injected both inbetween and during the tracks where we hear this weak individual who is all devoid of his own beliefs trying to manipulate other human beings. It's sort of like the intro of ISOT's "The Masterplan". It is exactly this misconception that Tom Englund so rightfully objects to and makes it the focus of his artistic messages which he so (painfully) conveys.



To put it frankly, The Inner Circle might have more replay value for me in the future compared to their previous album Recreation Day; however I am undecided at this moment whether it will reach the depth and perfection of their older work such as Solidute Dominance Tragedy or In Seach of Truth, the latter of which was their pinnacle of success in my opinion. That said, Recreation Day was a more complex album writing-wise. On The Inner Circle the most noteworthy change is the new drummer Jonas Ekdahl who replaced Patrick Carlsson who was the only other Evergrey member save Tom Englund who had been in the band since the very beginning. Patrick was much more of a technical drummer and almost invariably made his presence heavily felt while Jonas is more laid-back and likes to keep up with the tempo of the song. This line-up change has given The Inner Circle a thorough new vibe and has its appealing factor to fans from both ends of the (progressive) spectrum. I personally like Pat's approach better but Jonas is still doing a nice job cause honestly the compositions on the new album don't really call for more complex drumming.



Like every other Evergrey release, Tom Englund's vocals and expressive delivery is the focal point of each song and since it's Englund's singing that sets this band apart from any other out there that's exactly the way it should be. The initial goal was to get Ayreon mastermind Arjen Lucassen to do the production job but Arjen declined as he feels the Evergrey guys need to be themselves, not an Ayreon variant. Therefore Tom Englund handled the duty himself and much to many fans' surprise he pulled it off very well.



The album has a running time of 48 minutes and Carina adds her own vocal harmonies and leads in various parts of the album and needless to say she does an awesome job, especially on "In the Wake of the Weary". Englund and Danhage's guitar work seems more textural here while they were more riff-oriented on albums like Solitude Dominance Tragedy. The new album however still carries the direct approach of The Dark Discovery and SDT and retains the dark vibe of their earlier work. It also utilizes a more subtle keyboard work that was lacking on Recreation Day maintaining a fitting atmosphere. The band has hired a real string symphony orchestra which is widely prevalent on "Harmless Wishes" and "Faith Restored". Overall this album is quite heavy but the hair on your neck will still raise when you hear "Waking Up Blind" or the repeated chorus of "The Essence of Conviction". They're the kind of Evergrey songs that have the trademark Englund stamp all over them."

Another Killer Album

Mr D. | Cave Creek, Az United States | 02/02/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There are two kinds of people in this world. Evergrey Fans and those who have never heard them. If you are of the former group, don't worry The Inner Circle is another five star album in the string of five star albums. For the latter group, read on.



Sweden's Masters of Morose Metal are back again. The Inner Circle's is hot off the press and be assured, it's at least as good if not better than their best, which of course is better than anything else around. Evergrey's fifth album is another concept album. This time we hear the story of a impressionable member of an esoteric cult called The Inner Circle



Although I think this is a fantastic album, I don't really think the music is that much different from previous albums. It's still the same Evergrey sound even though the current lineup is entirely new, excepting the brilliant singer/guitarist/songwriter Tom Englund but I do think Evergrey has matured in it's approach to the music. The arrangements are now more complex and items that were only hinted at in previous releases are featured in The Inner Circle. Orchestration, background vocals and choirs, items that teased us in previous releases, are now integrally featured for a bigger more impressive sound.



I suppose comparisons to Queensryche and their fabulous 1988 album Operation Mincrime are inevitable. After all it is the standard to which all concept albums are measured and it too was about a cult.



So how does it compare? It's close, very close but I'm not going to judge. You be the judge!"

A Genre changing Masterpiece

Shane Bush | Rochester, NY | 02/28/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this CD at a store about 6 weeks ago. I knew very little about the band. I had heard the song "Sorry" on MTV head bangers ball and was floored. So I picked this CD up. I have listened to it, from start to finish no less than 25 times. I have turned on a bunch of friends to this and they are hooked like me. I have since went out and bought every release they have available and will be getting the latest Live CD. I have been waiting for this type of band my entire life. I love Prog. music and Metal of all types. But this band has somehow managed to combing METAL, PROG., a little doom etc. and blended them with total perfection. There is trually no other band that sounds like EVERGREY. I love everyone in Prog. / METAL from YES, DREAM THEATRE, OPETH, etc. But these guys have finally found the perfect formula at last. I can't trually describe how perfect this band is. I am 35 and have been a musician, music lover my entire life. THESE GUYS ARE TRUALLY MIND BLOWING... THIS IS JUST INCREDIBLE MUSIC. Not a single bad track. These guys are now my fav. band."