| CD REVIEW Burst |
 |
|
Band : Burst This Swedish act's history goes back to 1993, when lead singer Linus Jagerskog, bassist/ singer Jesper Liverod, and drummer Patrik Hultin formed Dislars with the intent to play fast paced heavy music. With the joining of guitarists Robert Reinholdz (also sings) and Jonas Rydberg soon after, the quintet was ready to unleash their own awkward mixture of Grindcore and Crust Punk onto the unsuspecting Swedish music fans, playing a few gigs across the country. As their skills improved, the boys moved towards a brutal style of Hardcore, at the same time incorporating Progressive elements in their music. Thus was the change compared to their initial musical direction, that they decided to alter their band name to Burst. The guys now also started taking their music far more seriously, and recorded a couple of demos. They then signed to Swedish imprint Melon Records for their first EPs (1996's Shadowcaster, a split with Lash Out titled Forsaken, Not Forgotten in 1998) and two studio albums (1998's Two Faced and 2000's Conquest: Writhe). As will oft happen with bands still in musical evolution, they weren't exactly content with the results, and therefore altered their music by adding more complexity. A result of which can be found on the couple of EPs (among which2002's In Coveting Ways was officially released) the band consequently released. The shift to international acceptance came when Burst signed to globally appreciated label Relapse in 2003. That same year saw the released of full-length Prey On Life (and a split EP with Burnt By The Sun), an album generally well received, partly due to the fact that Burst was allowed to tour with Dillinger Escape Plan, Mastodon, and other bands on the roster, as well as with Opeth...on top of which they were invited to play on several of the bigger European festivals. Which helped spreading the word about the band considerably, and so the band's popularity began to increase as these events took place through time. Musicwize Burst decided to push the envelope even further on new material as evidenced by their 2005 releases, the full-length Origo review by collegue Ivan posted on 02/11/2005) and the split EP with The Ocean, material which got very positive response from leading magazines such as Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, and Terrorizer. Their latest album is said to see the guys develop even more, now following their Metal muse. According to the biography we got with our promo copy, "...the songs are denser and hit harder than ever before, while maintaining the spirit of adventure that has become Burst's calling card. Never a band to submit to the confines of subgenres or the expectations of scenes, Burst refuse to be pigeonholed and in doing so have created nothing less than an epic sonic journey with Lazarus Bird."! Check out three of the new album's tracks (alongside one track off each previous Relapse release) at myspace.com/burstrelapse. Expect unexpected tempo changes, repetitive passages with sudden mood swings and odd time signatures which rather belong in the Jazz world (the latter's influence is most clearly heard on "Nineteenhundred" with its horn section passage, but regrettably the song was not posted). Expect your mind to be flexed to the utter maximum. Expect...well, expect to be baffled, really! In addition to the exhileratingly mood-changing music, there's also the changing vocal signatures, Robert singing the clean parts and Linus the screamed ones, with Jesper adding varied backings as well. If there's anything one can say about this quartet's music its that, in spite of its underlaying complexity, it is an emotional thing coming straight from the heart. On previous albums, the band was occasionally compared to the likes of Mastodon, Isis, and even Neurosis...but with Lazarus Bird they proove to be a natural force quite of their own! Personally, I dig any crossbreed hybrid in styles, because it's usually somewhat of a challenge to analyze such ventures, and for sure I'll take some time before putting this album aside! Heck, the promo we got was "protected" from copying by the label by dissecting each song in 12 parts, and therefore I was "unable" to copy to my mp3 player for more intense listening sessions, so...I'm simply gonna go out and buy the retail version of the album (hum...and all other stuff available at the same time) in order to do that anyway (kéép the album on the mp3 player to give it that occasional listening session in the future). With all that babblin' of mine you should've already come to the understanding that this is yet another addition to my "Best Albums Of 2008"-list, eh? In fact, to me this is an essential buy! You're free to decide for yourself what to do, of course! 98/100 Tony. |