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Savage Circus - Dreamland Manor review



Reviewer:
7.0

141 users:
8.22
Band: Savage Circus
Album: Dreamland Manor
Release date: August 2005


01. Evil Eyes
02. Between The Devil And The Seas
03. Waltz Of The Demon
04. Tomorrowland
05. It - The Gathering
06. Beyond Reality
07. When Hell Awakes
08. Ghost Story
09. Born Again By The Night
10. Ca Plane Pour Moi [Japanese bonus]

No no mates, you're not listening the new or unreleased album of Blind Guardian, but the first album of Savage Circus the new band of Mr Thomen Stauch ex drummer of the Guardians. If I must confess that I like the music and the album in general, I can't deny it, but I'm a bit upset too because this album is a total rip off of a Blind Guardian period "Imaginations From The Other Side". Evidently Thomen Stauch was and will ever be one of the souls of Blind Guardian, but I don't understand why he had to do something so similar?

When nowadays a band try to copy Nightwish everyone say that it is a rip off, that it is a shame, that we don't know where is the originality to do that, in two words that it is a big ugly crap. I read some reviews of "Dreamland Manor" and strangely I only see great reviewsa and I have two explanations maybe. First it's hard to find Blind Guardian clones and we're not pissed off yet by this music and Also Thomen Stauch played in the band then it's not so easy probably to do bad critics on his new combo. But, on the other hand the music is maybe simply good. I think that these two remarks are actually rights, the album is good no doubt but it seems to be hard to criticize it for some strange reasons.

Musically, "Dreamland Manor" is a great album of Power Metal. Melodic as hell with excellent choruses, great solos, powerful heavy riffs and strong tempos in reason of the powerful double Drum play of Thomen. A song like "Evil Eyes" for example is a real killer, but I have the feeling that I'm listening to a Blind Guardian song, and a good one... That's weird because it's good and I like it, but on the other hand my spirit say to myself "ho nice, Blind Guardian can take some vacations, we have something for the substitution?". That's the problem of this "Dreamland Manor", the production is good, the lyrics like the melodies are damn efficient but the originality is zero. In two words, if you don't care of the similarities with Blind Guardian, you'll find an excellent album, but if you care of such things, you'll probably be chocked.

I won't bow Savage Circus this time, and I will wait their second album to see if they can do something a bit more original and personal. If they can do it, we will have the proof that we're in front of an excellent band but now sorry, I want to wait their future. I can't give a great rating but on the other hand I can't bash this really catchy album that is for sure nearer of the top than the flop. To sum up, let's see how the Blind Guardian's fans will react now and later (especially when we will have ten others new Savage Circus) and we will have an answer on the real quality of this album.

Written by Jeff | 28.09.2005



Staff review by
Malcolm
Rating:
8.9
When a new band comes out and sounds just like an already existing band, chances are that they will be totally rejected by both the audience and the press.
But how is it when a member of a band leaves and creates a new band that sounds exactly like his old band?
Well, I guess this album will provide us with that answer.

Read more ››
published 03.09.2005 | Comments (9)


Comments

Comments: 2   Visited by: 58 users
09.08.2006 - 04:37
Endoftherainbow

I don't believe Thomen was really ripping off Blind Guardian I assume since Savage Circus is so similar to old Blind Guardian that he didn't like the direction they were heading and wanted to go back to playing this type of music again. Also alot of the reason behind no one critizing him them is because they have Thomen and all real Blind Guardian fans where really disapointed when he left and since Blind Guardian doesn't play this style of music anymore it's alright. If they still did though he'd still be with them and there'd be no Savage Circus.
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09.01.2014 - 23:38
Rating: 9
qlacs
"The Quaker"
The comment from 8 years ago is right. "Imaginations..." was the peak of Blind Guardian IMO, Thomen just likes the intensity of the old-school power BG, not the new-theatric one, he wanted to continue that, I guess the rest of the crew didn't. He quit and formed Savage Circuit...
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