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Circle Takes the Square

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Circle Takes the Square
Kathleen Stubelek (front) and Caleb Collins (back) performing in Leipzig, Germany in 2012
Kathleen Stubelek (front) and Caleb Collins (back) performing in Leipzig, Germany in 2012
Background information
OriginSavannah, Georgia, U.S.
GenresScreamo, post-hardcore, experimental rock[1]
Years active1999–present
LabelsGatepost Recordings, Robotic Empire, HyperRealist, Perpetual Motion Machine
MembersDrew Speziale
Kathleen Stubelek
Caleb Collins
Past membersDavid Rabitor
Jay Wynne
Bobby Scandiffio
Josh Ortega
Colin Kelly
Robbie Rose
Websitewww.circletakesthesquare.com

Circle Takes the Square is an American screamo band from Savannah, Georgia. It is composed of founding members Drew Speziale and Kathleen Stubelek, as well as Caleb Collins. Their debut release was a 6-track self-titled EP released in 2001, followed by a 7" split with Pg. 99 in 2002. In 2004, they released their debut studio album As the Roots Undo on Robotic Empire, which released the CD, and HyperRealist Records, which released the gatefold LP. The album gained them considerable acclaim and the band toured extensively to promote it during the year. This included a six-week east coast tour that took the band into Canada for the first time, supported by Arkata and Raise Them And Eat Them.[2] The band's second album, Decompositions: Volume Number One, was released after an 8-year silence on December 21, 2012, as a digital download; physical editions of the album were released in April 2013.

Musical style

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Stubelek performing with Circle Takes the Square at The House of Culture in Stockholm, Sweden in 2012

Ben Sailer of Noisey wrote that As the Roots Undo, which Drew Speziale describes as "just a punk rock record from 2004", has long garnered praise from both the press and fans alike for its forward-thinking blend of 90s screamo, fractured grindcore, and experimental post-rock.[3] Metal Injection described their style as a "blend of progressive experimentation and DIY hardcore, metal, and noise [...] characterized by a natural fusion of the off-the-wall structures of grindcore and the sweeping guitar dynamics of post-punk".[4] The band themselves have described the sound as "...a punk rock band with reverence for the Mystery."[5]

Legacy

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Metal Injection called Circle Takes the Square "legendary".[6] Writing for NPR music, Lars Gotrich credited Circle Takes the Square alongside Pg. 99, Orchid and Majority Rule as pioneers of emotional post-hardcore.[7]

Members

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Current
  • Drew Speziale – guitars, strings, piano, keyboard, vocals (1999–present)[8]
  • Kathleen Coppola Stubelek – bass, vocals (1999–present)[8]
  • Caleb Collins – drums, percussion, samples, programming, synthesizers (2007–present)[8]
  • Anthony Stubelek - live production (2004–present)[8]
Former
  • Robbie Rose – vocals (1999–2000)
  • Collin Kelly – guitar (1999–2002)
  • Jay Wynne – drums, percussion (1999–2005)
  • Bobby Scandiffio – guitar (2004–2006; died 2011)
  • Josh Ortega – drums, percussion (2005–2007)
  • David Rabitor – guitars, backing vocals (2007–2013)
Timeline

Discography

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Studio albums
EPs
  • Circle Takes the Square (2001, self-released/HyperRealist)
  • Document #13: Pyramids in Cloth (split w/Pg. 99, August 2002, Perpetual Motion Machine)
  • Decompositions: Volume Number One, Chapter I: Rites of Initiation (2011, Gatepost Recordings)
Compilations
  • "In the Nervous Light of Sunday" (Alternate version) 10" vinyl only(2004, Monocore Records)
  • "Crowquill" — Building Records Presents 60 Songs (November 2003, Building)
  • "Non-Objective Portrait of Karma" — Robotic Empire Sampler No. 2 (2004, Robotic Empire)
  • "The Conspiracy of Seeds" — 65daysofstatic - The Destruction of Small Ideas (April 2007, Monotreme)

References

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  1. ^ "Circle Takes The Square premier new song Way of Ever-Branching Path". Espy Rock. August 22, 2011. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  2. ^ Julien, Alexandre (August 7, 2012). "Raise Them and Eat Them Official Biography". Abridged Pause Blog. Archived from the original on March 20, 2017. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  3. ^ Sailer, Ben (April 7, 2014). ""It's Just a Punk Record from 2004": Circle Takes The Square Discuss the Ten-Year Anniversary of 'As The Roots Undo'". Noisey. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  4. ^ "Circle Takes the Square is in the studio". Metal Injection. June 15, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  5. ^ Taylor, Darren (April 4, 2011). "EXCLUSIVE: CIRCLE TAKES THE SQUARE - IN THE STUDIO". Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  6. ^ "Circle Takes the Square is in the studio". Metal Injection. June 15, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  7. ^ Gotich, Lars (August 17, 2011). "pg. 99: A Document Revisited". NPR. Retrieved December 30, 2011. [...]there's a renewed interest in the emotional post-hardcore that bands like pg. 99, Orchid, Circle Takes the Square and Majority Rule pioneered, mostly by an audience that was far too young to hear it the first time around.
  8. ^ a b c d Taylor, Darren (April 4, 2011). "Exclusive: Circle Takes the Square – In the Studio". Rock Sound. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
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