September 2025 Featured Release - The Sphere Edition

So just like that we find that a new month is upon us which of course means that we’ll be nominating a brand new monthly feature release for each clan. This essentially means that we’re asking you to rate, review & discuss our chosen features for no other reason than because we enjoy the process & banter. We’re really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on our chosen releases so don’t be shy.

This month's feature release for The Sphere, nominated by me (Shadowdoom9 (Andi)), is the 2016 4th album by New York-based industrial metal project Circle of Dust, Machines of Our Disgrace. Celldweller founder Klayton reformed Circle of Dust the previous year after regaining rights to the project and got to work on this album, and boy, what a comeback! This is for many fans of industrial metal and those who have listened to Celldweller and want to hear more of his earlier project while picking up some vibes from his main one.

https://metal.academy/releases/4252

I've done my review, here's its summary:

Creativity and technology were really advancing in the 90s. ONE MAN, Klayton decided to put his music skills to the test as a once-unknown man determined to fulfill his vision. His project Circle of Dust takes on industrial metal fury that has given him a reasonable fanbase. Turmoils over record labels and the target audience caused the end of the project. He would start his next project Celldweller and formed his own label FiXT, having more electronic rock/industrial metal freedom. Early hints of Circle of Dust returning came in 2015 with a couple remixes of Celldweller and Scandroid (his electronic side-project) tracks. Later that year, it was announced that he finally regained to the albums he made as Circle of Dust, as well as Argyle Park, re-releasing them in remastered forms with a huge array of bonus material. While he has completely brought all of his 90s work back to light, there was one thing left to prove that Circle of Dust isn't dead... A new album! Machines of Our Disgrace, released in late 2016, has the blazing aggression of industrial metal you've known from Circle of Dust, probably the best album since Brainchild. Some of the best lyrics, riffs, keys, and samples can be found in this album. There's more of the cyber complexity from the first two albums as well as the synths and beats of Disengage. Well-produced compositions push through the limits of industrial metal, coming out as another perfect achievement. The music and lyrics are both heavy and compelling, with the concept of striking back against the mechanical atrocities of the world. Klayton has proven himself to be a master of industrial rock/metal, and longtime fans can enjoy this music that's so complex and intense. Circle of Dust has returned, and the vision has come full circle!

5/5

Recommended tracks: "Machines of Our Disgrace", "Contagion", "Humanarchy", "Hive Mind", "Outside In", "Neurachem", "Neophyte"

For fans of: Argyle Park, Blue Stahli, Celldweller