Invisible Circles

Invisible Circles
Studio album by
Released25 March 2004 (2004-03-25)
RecordedJuly–October 2003
Studio
Genre
Length59:03
LabelTransmission
Producer
  • Hans Pieters
  • After Forever
After Forever chronology
Exordium
(2003)
Invisible Circles
(2004)
Remagine
(2005)
Singles from Invisible Circles
  1. "Digital Deceit"
    Released: 20 May 2004

Invisible Circles is the third studio album by Dutch symphonic metal band After Forever. It was released on 25 March 2004, by the small Dutch label Transmission Records. It is After Forever's first full-length album since the dismissal of guitarist and composer Mark Jansen, whose musical tastes had strongly influenced the sound of their first work Prison of Desire (2000) and their successful second offering Decipher (2001).[1] In this work After Forever choose a new musical direction, mostly revolving around elements of progressive metal instead of the gothic and symphonic metal of previous albums. The creative process for Invisible Circles took more than a year and required the use of three recording studios in the Netherlands and Germany. A long tour to support the album brought the band to some of the most important European rock festivals and to Central and South America.

Invisible Circles is a concept album about the dynamics of quarrelsome families and psychological child abuse. The theme was inspired by guitarist Sander Gommans' work as an art teacher, in direct contact with dysfunctional families and teenage problems.[2] It is also a metal opera, with a storyline that follows the lives of an abused child and her parents since her conception to adulthood.[3] The album was received with mixed reviews, but entered the charts in the Netherlands and Belgium.

  1. ^ "Mark Jansen profile". Epica Official Website. 12 April 2006. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
  2. ^ Vermeere, Ralph (21 May 2007). "After Forever with Sander Gommans". Rockezine.com. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
  3. ^ Ivor (30 June 2004). "After Forever - Invisible Circles review". Metal Storm. Retrieved 11 April 2010.