August 17, 2004 - Seven Circles

A week after my last release and just under three years since "The Interzone Mantras", The Tea Party released their seventh album "Seven Circles" on August 17, 2004. The Tea Party continue to play their unique blend of world music and hard rock, but this album has a lighter, more positive vibe with less of the dark themes and styles seen in their previous works. Not sure how I feel about that, but let's not judge before we listen!

The album kicks off with it's lead single "Writing's On The Wall" and right away Jeff Martin is cueing up the main riff and once the rhythm section comes slamming in we have quite a heavy and cool main riff with some catchy and cool guitar by Martin driving things. Martin sings a loud and epic verse that matches the mood pretty nicely and things quickly move into the hard-hitting and pretty catchy chorus with Martin sounding pretty good on guitar and vocals. This is a short and slightly repetitive song, but it's heavy and solid the whole way through and is a great mix of being quite heavy while still being very catchy. Great way to start us off! Up next is "Stargazer" and it's got a simpler and lighter main riff, but things still sound decent and fairly catchy even though my head is no longer banging. Martin sings a nice verse to match the mood and the volume picks up in the chorus with a catchy guitar riff and a smooth chorus. This song was also a single, and it fits that bill pretty perfectly with it's very made-for-radio feel, but it's nowhere near as exciting as the previous one. Track 3 is "One Step Closer Away" and it's got some music box-esque keyboards to start us off in an eerie vibe and Stuart Chatwood adds some super low bass that nicely adds to the vibe. Jeff Burrows completes the riff with a decent drumbeat and Martin sings another solid verse in his typical low baritone voice. When his guitar joins in it sounds pretty epic in the verse and they segue nicely into a catchy and upbeat chorus with a cool new guitar riff by Martin and a pretty solid chorus. After the next round Martin shouts a cool verse that sounds pretty sweet, then it's back for a predictable but still solid finish. Pretty cool tune! The next track was another single called "Oceans" and it's pretty unique with some atypical and very interesting keyboards keeping the pace and some epic strings are present eight away as well. Chatwood'a bass in the background sounds solid as Martin starts a slightly sappy guitar riff and a light verse to match the mood. The chorus takes the pop-y, sappiness to a whole other level and this was a no-brainer of a single, I guess, but it's certainly not what I'm looking for from the Tea Party. They do a good job, don't get me wrong, things are epic as can be for this style, but it's still a sappy and light style. Track 5 is "Luxuria" and it's the first real sign of Tea Party's typical "world music" with some droning, haunting synths by Chatwood and a cool percussion drumbeat by Burrows. Martin sings a soft verse to match this mood, but then things suddenly shift into a groovy, pretty heavy and quite awesome new riff! The guitar riff is loud, hard-hitting, but also bouncy and Martin sounds so epic overtop as well! Everything sounds great and somehow they continue to blend in the interesting opening part with this awesome heavier part. It's a really cool song! Up next is "Overload" and they jump right into a groovy and heavy main riff with some pretty sweet bass by Chatwood and of course some smooth singing and smooth guitars by Martin. The chorus is more radio-friendly but still sounds pretty solid, especially the rhythm section with some cool bass and nice drum fills. After another solid round they jam out a heavy new riff that is also pretty cool and this is definitely another pretty cool tune! Track 7 is "Coming Back Again" and the rhythm section starts us off nicely with a cool drum beat but Burrows and some cool bass by Chatwood before Martin enters with some world-y guitar. Martin sings a smooth verse to match the mood nicely and it rolls into a similar first chorus. During the second round things pick up and they segue nicely to a heavier version of the same riff. There's not a solo, bit there is a solid little guitar break that starts light and finishes heavy before they finish off this pretty cool tune. The next track is "The Watcher" and it's got a pretty sappy and light vibe to it with some strings adding to the sadness and Martin singing in a snappier voice to match the mood. The chorus is louder, but that doesn't make it less sappy as Martin goes for some super high notes that are just not his thing, his voice is naturally so low! It's not awful, but it's easily the weakest song on the album for me; it takes ballad to a whole other level. Track 9 is "Empty Glass" and it's got a slower but interesting and slightly offbeat main riff leading the way. The verse is pretty simple and not their best, but the interesting riff returns for the chorus where things sound better. After another round Martin does deliver a decently epic guitar solo and follows this with a nice heavy new part! This part was great, and it takes us right to the end of the song! Up next is "Wishing You Would Stay" and Chatwood is all over things with some slow lead piano and also all kinds of interesting other keyboards in the background, like a fast beat. Martin sings a nice verse in his low voice and on this song he's joined by a guest singer Holly McNarland and she adds a high voice that I usually wouldn't be a fan of, but it compliments Martin pretty nicely. Things eventually get louder and sound pretty solid and smooth, especially the chorus where Holly nicely provides some backing vocals. It's pretty repetitive and a little pop-y, but it's still a good song. The final song on the album is the title track "Seven Circles" and Martin opens it by himself with some trippy guitars and light vocals. When the other guys finally join in we get a loud and pretty cool chorus! Cool lead guitar and a nice full sound along with some smooth vocals by Martin combines for a great chorus. After a few rounds Martin just starts to let loose with a super long solo that takes us all the way to the end of a fadeout! What a pretty awesome way to wrap things up!

That is the end of "Seven Circles" and I thought it was another solid album by The Tea Party! These guys just don't make bad music and although there are some lighter, blander parts there's also some great heavy parts and everything in-between! I think it's along the same lines as their last couple albums; I think it's a little better than "The Interzone Mantras" but not quite as good as "Triptych" so 5th place will have to do. This is the last we'll hear from the Tea Party for a long time, but don't worry, they aren't finished yet!