Labels: Transcending Obscurity Records
Formats: Vinyl/CD/Digital
Release Date: 24 Apr 2020
Tracklist:
1. Seeping Into The Earth
2. Condemned To The Boats
3. Swing Of The Pendulum
4. The Crypt Of Slumbering Madness
5. Rotting On The Rope
6. Winds Of Solace
7. Cemetery Fog
Us Brits are never satisfied. We hate cold and wet weather, yet when it's warm and sunny it's too hot. Certainly far too hot to be reviewing the newest album from UK death//doom/thrash band Live Burial. Released on 24th April via the rapidly growing Indian extreme metal label Transcending Obscurity Records, Unending Futility features seven songs and guest appearances from Kari Kankanpaa (Sepulchral Curse/Solothus) providing vocals and Dan Rochester (Vacivus/Cruciamentum) providing acoustic guitar. The album was released on various formats with a choice of packages, and festooned with artwork by Luke Oram (Monolithian, Slugdge).
I’ve been slow with reviews over the last week, as I’ve felt the tiredness come back into my arms again from typing (probably because of poor posture at work/home). I don’t think this heat has helped. Thankfully, the slow and heavy sound of Live Burial gives me ample time to rest in between paragraphs. Opener ‘Seeping Into The Earth’ is an epic song filled with expertly played death metal with additional doom and thrash.
That’s probably underselling this record rather a lot, as musically and vocally Live Burial are spot on. ‘Condemned To The Boats’ dials up the pace and the evilness thanks to a sound that’s much more rooted in the old-school, while also having it’s fair share of black/thrash too. There’s a lot of intricacies involved, especially where the bass guitar and drums are concerned, meaning that things are a lot more progressive too. I’m blown away by how good this is so far!
‘Swing Of The Pendulum’ is another five-minute plus rager, with equal tempo-changes between crawling and sprinting. The vocals are a mix of rasping old-school growls and utterly devastating roars, making for the perfect accompaniment to the fully-engaging instrumentation. I use accompaniment because they don’t sit at the top of the mix, but amongst it, surrounded by the rest of Live Burial and that’s why this record sounds as good as it does.
The mid-way point in the album is reserved for the mightiness of ‘The Crypt Of Slumbering Madness’, which in fact is a pretty apt title. It’s also the point where the songs begin to increase in length, as things become gloomier and more expansive. That’s insignificant though when you consider just how heavy and precise this album is, and believe me, it’s heavy.
There’s an uneasy tone to the opening riffs of ‘Rotting On The Rope’ and it doesn’t get any easier the further in you go. Live Burial seem to have a great dynamic and I know that can be hard to tell on record, as opposed to in a live setting, but they wouldn’t have been able to produce this record without that. Confidence is gained through experience and their collective experience of playing in similarly heavy bands is worth it’s weight in gold, as they temper that uneasy atmosphere with subtle quiet parts and off-kilter passages. The melody later on will remind you of some of the Finnish/Swedish bands that stand side-by-side with Live Burial.
Penultimate song ‘Winds Of Solace’ features the acoustic guitar of Dan Rochester and with his help, Live Burial creates something that’s elaborate but also enchanting, which seems to embody the cover art that adorns this record and leads you into album closer, ‘Cemetery Fog’. This is the most gruesome song on the album and the added guest vocals from Kari Kankanpaa only make it more so.
Unending Futility is a stunning example of extreme music. Live Burial will more than likely end up being talked about in exalted tones come the end of the year and they deserve it.
You can stream and purchase Unending Futility via Bandcamp below:-
You can also order various vinyl and cd packages from Transcending Obscurity Records above.
Live Burial - https://www.facebook.com/LiveBurial/
Transcending Obscurity Records - https://www.facebook.com/transcendingobscurityrecords/
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