Seventh Circle

Seventh Circle
www.seventh-circle.com
Odor of Pears- Crown of Thorns

Even before I slid this CD into my player this group based out of Berkeley, California threw me for a loop. I adore when bands do something a little bit different to get them noticed with their press material. Odor of Pears took it one step further and actually altered the packaging that their cd came in instead, which is a definite first that I've seen...and does not go unnoticed. The packaging whcih included some hand done Egyptian inspired graphics I consider to be one of the coolest collector's items I have.

Now after that finding time to sit down and concentrate on their actually audio material I can now say that I was in for a little bit more. Right away Diana Blackwell's vocals astounded me (though everyone should know by now my particular fetish with female vocals), reminding me quite a bit of another one of the Seventh Circle's favourite ladies Sue Hutton (vocalist of Rhea's Obsession). Both are exceptional at pulling influences from other cultures into their musical styles.

The music side of things are equally outstanding. Odor of Pears have drawn comparisons to Nine Inch Nails, Siouxe and the Banshees, Die Form in the past and you can hear the reasoning at times behind it. Though the composition and programming behind standout tracks such as "Joan", "Dildo", and "Babies Without Faces" put Trent Reznor's capabilities to shame.

The only disappointment is that I get the impression that this band is even more amazing live, with a show that is unparrelled in the scene. From how much I like the cd, I hope that they consider making a trip to Toronto in the near future. Either that or I'll have to take a trip down to Cali.....too much sun there though....