Their demeanor is pretty awesome, actually. Plus, "Circle of 8" has all the external qualities of a great album, like fantastic vocals, shredding solos, and even a consistent platter of gnawing riffs. Still, the equation seems buffed. Going back to basics, Martyr's style is a rather simplistic representation of heavy/power/speed metal swaying in and out of the respected terminology separating each sub-genre, if you will. They often times reflect harsh, ripping tunes or some which lean towards a slower direction, and to much avail...usually. The opening numbers are just fantastic, with speedy tracks like "Afterlife" or "Insensible Scream" running into a hallway of great riffs and vocals. Martyr's strength don't let up during the title track or the rocking instrumentation throughout "The Uninvited" either, and they keep things pretty consistent throughout the first seven songs or so.

And after that slew of top-notch material, the monolith begins to crumble. Notice how I said there were seven tracks? Well, five more are served after these chunky cuts that all follow the same routine. There's only one problem: they really aren't good, at all. Rather than expelling the majestic goodness of the record's first half, songs like "Scene of Hell" and "Fake" feel rushed, lacking, and bedazzled with redundancy up the kisser. More importantly, the drive that made the opening tunes so strong remains totally absent, a poorly-timed loss, I'm sure. "Locked" is easily the weakest track, feeling even more tired and flaccid than the other flops, yet it bumps on in dire straits for six minutes.