Russian Circles

It’s always a challenge for small instrumental rock outfits to keep an audience’s attention, but Chicago’s Russian Circles, drawing from the crushing math-rock of Don Caballero, find novel ways to keep their sound evolving thanks to imaginative progressions and primal riffs. Though they’re only a three-piece, they’ve proven they can rock out with even the major metal acts, as a tour with Tool affirmed. While they’ll probably never draw the crowds that Tool gets, their fist-pumping post-metal rocks just as hard.