Part 3
Rush - Clockwork Angels
This was an album I was very much looking forward to this year, as I have always had a soft spot for Rush, I mean c'mon, who doesn't?! This album seemed more like a safe album to them as compared to their other albums, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. Geddy Lee doesn't sound like he used to, but he knows how to use his voice to make it sound great. To me, it sounds more like an AOR album than a prog album, because I didn't really notice any significant prog influences in this album with the exception of a few songs here and there, but overall, I wouldn't consider a prog album. Even if we disagree, which i'm sure we will, I still find it to be a fantastic album from a band that has never released a disappointing album, and only being 3 band members, it's a tough thing to do, shows that the chemistry is still strong with the members.
Circa Survive - Violent Waves
When I first saw that this album was going to be released under Circa Survive's personal label, I thought it was going to sound "garagey" and non produced. In a sense, I was sort of hoping to hear a more pure Circa sound, but this album was a typical Circa Survive album with some of the same elements as their other releases, which is pretty fine by me, considering I have grown to really enjoy their sound. Hopefully in some newer albums, they will branch out and try something completely out there, because I think they have the potential. I did and still do enjoy the album for what it's worth, it's another album by a favorite band of mine, so naturally i'm going to look for more pro's than con's. Probably not in my top 5 of the year, or in my top 10, but it certainly deserves a spot on my favorites albums of this year.