Maximum Metal Reviews

Maximum Metal Rating Legend

5	Excellent - Masterpiece. A classic.
4.5-4	Great - Almost perfect records but there's probably a lacking.
3.5	Good - Most of the record is good, but there may be some filler.
3	Average - Some good songs, some bad ones at about a half/half ratio.
2.5-2	Fair - Worth a listen, but best obtained by collectors.
1.5-1	Bad - Major problems with music, lyrics, production, etc.
0	Terrible - Waste of your life and time.
Note: Reviews are graded from 0-5, anything higher or not showing is from our old style. Scores, however, do not reveal the important features. The written review that accompanies the ratings is the best source of information regarding the music on our site. Reviewing is opinionated, not a qualitative science, so scores are personal to the reviewer and could reflect anything from being technically brilliant to gloriously cheesy fun. Demos and independent releases get some slack since the bands are often spent broke supporting themselves and trying to improve. Major releases usually have big financial backing, so they may be judged by a heavier hand. All scores can be eventually adjusted up or down by comparison of subsequent releases by the same band. We attempt to keep biases out of reviews and be advocates of the consumer without the undo influence of any band, label, management, promoter, etc. The best way to determine how much you may like certain music is to listen to it yourself.

Band

Circle of Nero

Title

Brutal Harvest Demo

Type

LP/EP

Company

Independent

YOR

2003

Style

Nu/Rapcore

Popular Reviews

8/26/2003 - Review by: Frank Hill

Deftly weaves down the fine line between metal genres

Circle of Nero 2003 Demo - reviewed by: Alpha

Track Listing1. Sanguinarian/Bloodplay
2. Stigmata
3. Serial X
4. Scattered Remains
5. Time Is The Killer

I almost hate to call this Nu metal or Prog metal or Thrash or anything else because the 5 songs on this demo weave their way down the fine line between metal genres pretty deftly, careening headlong into one style and storming through another until they eventually shift back to that ragged path straight to Hell.

"Sanguinarian" starts off the CD with some atmospheric keyboards and a short, twisted "Dearly Beloved" intro speech marrying the listener into the dark Circle of Nero. All Hell breaks loose for the standout second part "Bloodplay" with its Mudvayne style, stutter bass and Gary McCaffery's lucid vocals switching between a Pantera-type growl and higher pitched Manson vox. "Stigmata" is probably the most accessible with the friendly chorus--"On a bed of nails I await like a living sacrifice". "Scattered Remains" circles from atmosphere to pit-thrashing violence and back. "Time Is The Killer" is another of my favorite tracks. It's probably the most emotionally draining number with its DIE...DIE...DIE chants, its melodic keyboards and its cathartic, smash-and-destroy-the-place ending.

Any fan of modern, heavy bass, rhythm-oriented metal should do well with Circle of Nero and it will be interesting to see what will happen to the band with their amalgamated sound: will it keep them from finding a niche audience or will it keep them from being drawn into a corner with other genre-specific bands that lose audience when trends fades?

The disc is definitely one of my favorites so far this year and if I'm not sure what I want to listen to I just drop it in and all is right as rain...a very red rain.

Alpha - 08.26.03