Styx - Circling from Above
by Kevin Wierzbicki
The new Styx album is for the birds! That's not a slam; to the contrary the band's avian-themed concept album
Circling from Above is a prog masterpiece that among other things, shows that the group is not content to sit back and rest on their laurels. And with so many hits like "Come Sail Away," "Renegade," "Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)," "Lady," "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)" and many others under their belts, it would be easy for them to do so. Instead
Circling from Above may be looked back on as one of the heights of their career. One of the cool things about progressive rock is that while the music takes you wherever you dare to go, the song lyrics, often cryptic, take you someplace completely different. And Styx have mastered this duality here. The album's title cut opens the record with a gothic keyboard intro from Larry Gowan before moving into an Alan Parsons-like, harmony vocal and guitar-filled groove that yes, is cryptic: "Wasteland in the skies/Open up your eyes/It's no surprise, it's a labyrinth in your mind." The song is short but it's an indication of the sonic labyrinth that's to come. "Build and Destroy" recalls Parsons too, gurgling like one of his robot-themed cuts and indeed the cut is futuristic, referencing the building of a machine and the use of AI; a secondary theme of the cut is the futility of it all, enhanced musically with lysergic guitar work and the chorus of "to build and destroy." A menacing aura hangs over "Michigan;" no surprise since the subject matter is how mankind is getting ahead of itself with technology it doesn't fully understand. What does all of this have to do with birds? That's the beauty of it; here's something for you to figure out if you are so inclined. Guitarist and singer Tommy Shaw is an avid birder and he wrote or co-wrote most of the album with Gowan and guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Will Evankovich and if birds inspired them then so be it. Certainly there is nothing overtly avian-inspired about the awesome slice of glam pop that is "King of Love," a cut with an irresistible singalong chorus. "It's Clear" has an anthemic feel to it and classic prog keyboard parts from Gowan that swoop and soar; "Forgive" ends the first part of the effort with a demure Pink Floyd-ish groove. "Everybody Raise a Glass" is not at all cryptic; it's a positive and hopeful song about someone (or a planet?) that is in resurgence that nods at a fondness for the Beatles (or McCartney) and to that end has a chorus that will quickly earworm the listener given half a chance. Perhaps the strongest song on the album, from a pop hit perspective, is "We Lost the Wheel Again," a really fun cut to singalong to that, with its big drum sound and vocal arrangement is an obvious homage to the Who, and a great one at that. Thirteen cuts in all,
Circling from Above is the kind of album that reveals layer after layer the more it is listened to. Shaw has stated that he wasn't sure if his bird-related songs would, uh, fly; fans will find out that it more than flies, it soars.
Circling from Above is available now at the
Styx website and at their live performances and will be otherwise released on July 18, 2025.
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