Cerebral Circus Album Review

Release Date: 14/04/23

Label: Triple B Records

So-Cal’s finest Initiate back with their second release on Triple B records. The second album demonstrates growth and evolution since 2016. The band has steadily grown in stature since joining the elite Hardcore label Triple B. 2023 has seen the quintet touring hard in the US; this summer, the gang will be gracing the shores of Europe for the first time. Hopefully, they are bringing the California sun with them! They will be hitting big European cities with four dates in the UK, a couple of shows in France and Germany, and an appearance at the legendary Ieper Fest, joining fellow rising stars of US Hardcore End It and Buggin. Get ready, Europe. You’re about to wake up to a band that has been slept on for too long in this part of the world.

Initiate has embarked on a more melodic alternative rock journey with Cerebral Circus. The band are venturing into Hardcore’s new frontier led by Baltimore’s Turnstile. However, the intensity and ferocious energy of the band are still intact. Track one, ‘Waste Your Life’, sets the tone for the rest of the record. A remarkably catchy guitar hook greets the listener, only to be hit with Crystal’s feral screams. The track concludes with frenzied nu-metal-inspired guitar riffing and equally urgent screams coming from the very core of Crystal Pak’s being.

‘Alone At The Bottom’ follows with undistinguishable velocity; catchy melodies flow naturally from the guitars, and crushing beats are relentlessly hammered out on the drums. Initiate’s sound is refreshingly unique; lyrically, the band is always on point. Seemingly often profoundly personal, however, they are always very relatable. ‘Amend’ touches on the dark subject of grief and regret. A genuinely moving track, opened with the signature Initiate guitar-driven intro, Pak's signature howls are accompanied by soft bass tones and introspective guitar licks. It’s a hard punch in the feels.

Initiate go on to demonstrate their impressive versatility with ‘The Surface.’ Effortlessly transitioning from their usual sonic assault to a beautifully clean-sung chorus over irresistibly infectious guitar hooks.

The final track, Transparency, is a perfect way to round out an incredible full-length. Everything great about this album has been condensed into the final 3:26 seconds. Crystal's poetic prose follows the airy celestial guitar intro. This wonderfully melodic and vulnerable piece of music suddenly becomes urgent and intense in the way only Initiate can when Crystal bellows out the last verse, supplemented by smooth bass tones and rhymical thumping on the drums. The closing epic guitar solo feels conclusive, like the final curtain drop in a west-end musical.

I think it’s safe to say we will be seeing and hearing more of these Southern Californian creatives in the world of Hardcore. Cerebral Circus will almost certainly elevate them to the next level of Hardcore prestige. The greatest compliment I can pay this body of work is that listening to Cerebral Circus is 22 minutes of my life well spent.