Circle Takes the Square

Listening to Circle Takes the Square feels like being caught in a beautiful, terrifying storm. The music is a dense thicket of interlocking guitar lines and frantic, technical drumming that constantly shifts under your feet. It is never just noise; there is a meticulous, almost architectural precision to the chaos, where every sudden stop and explosive re-entry feels earned. The dual-vocal attack of Drew Speziale and Kathy Coppola creates a unique texture, their screams overlapping and weaving together like a desperate conversation held in the middle of a hurricane.

What truly sets them apart is their narrative ambition. While their peers often focused on personal diary-style angst, CTTS built entire mythologies. Their sound incorporates the atmospheric builds of post-rock and the jagged, mathematical precision of grindcore, yet it remains anchored by a raw, DIY hardcore heart. It is music that demands your full attention, rewarding repeated listens with hidden melodic flourishes and lyrical layers that reveal a strange, occult-tinged world.

Start with their 2004 masterpiece, 'As the Roots Undo'. It is the definitive document of their sound, capturing a band at the height of their creative powers. From the opening frantic energy of 'Kill the Switch' to the epic, multi-part structures that follow, it serves as a perfect gateway into their singular, challenging, and ultimately transcendent sonic universe.