Review Summary: A more straightforward approach to emo does not signal a bland, overly dissonant EP, but an EP that shows experimentation, intensity, and catchy rhythms working together to form one of the decade's finest screamo arrangements.
To say that any music aficionado familiar with the first-wave screamo scene is aware of
As The Roots Undo is a generalization, yes; however, it is not an outlandish one in the slightest. Notorious for being a bravura performance that almost transcends genre, the album is a textbook example of what screamo
should be: a catchy musical composition that retains originality and sweeps the listener off his or her feet with its mounds of grandeur. However, this was not their original state.
Pyramids in Cloth, a split with Pg. 99, shows the more rigid punk side of Circle Takes The Square, but their self-titled EP shows a more straightforward sound that, while not possessing the innovation or the said mounds of grandeur, is a solid release that is a "place-holder" for
As The Roots Undo in a way.
From the get-go, it is obvious that Circle Takes The Square's self-titled EP was a building block for their LP,
As The Roots Undo. The introduction to “Houdini Logic” is like looking at the introduction of “A Crater To Cough In” as the post-rock aspects are evident, however, a progression is notable in terms of not only experimentation, but in intensity as well. Shortly after, Kathy Coppola and Drew Speziale scream in their own brand of “call-and-response” vocal stylings. Their voices here are raspy, and occasionally slip into the mix, like when the lyrics:
“Breaking into you is like waking the dead.
Burning inside you is like waking the dead.
Burning inside you as you bury your dead.”
seem to fade into the instruments. This is caused by the rigid production, which is a common characteristic in the emo aesthetic. And so is the lyrical content of the album. The lyrics are simplistic and often venture into violent territory; they, on occasion, become overtly emotional. Nevertheless, both these elements, the vocals and the lyrics, are competent; they just do not compare with the sheer catchiness or the musical innovation found on this EP.
“Eleven Owls Have Eyes” intrigues the listener with all of its harmonics and its proper execution of dynamics throughout, and “Disclaimer To Self” is a melodic break from the spasmodic dissonance found on the rest of the album, primarily “Houdini Logic” and “In The Nervous Light Of Sunday”. “Comes With The Fall” is a track that showcases the vocal talent of Coppola and Speziale. This track blends the intensity and chaos that grindcore is known for, the guitar-dynamics that make up post-punk, and the epic dynamics that can be found on some of the finest post-rock to make one of the album's highlights. The ending is a phenomenal, exhilarating part of the album, and the memorable nature of this track leads the release to be more enjoyable.
The hooks on this EP are numerous, from the shouts of “Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!” on “Eleven Owls Have Eyes” to the intense delivery of “Houdini Logic”. The amount of hooks do not detract from the experimentation though, as a clever assortment of genres is evident. The introduction to “Houdini Logic” is a perfect example of this. The combination of these two elements is executed well, and therefore, the release churns out some superb songs. These superb songs are in a fine order, and the release is a solid one that shows experimentation and perceptible rhythms working together to form one of the decade's finest screamo arrangements.
