Burial - Untrue

I'm going to come out and flat out say that I don't buy for a single fucking second, all of the hyperbolic statements that are being made by glowing music fanatics, blog posters and assorted ilk that claim this to be the next generation of everything that is electronic music. That we are going to be looking back years from now on this landmark of a record that redefined what it means to be an electronic musician. Honestly, the thought of people actually spewing this sort of drawl from their mouths makes me want to give up entirely and weep for any sort of dignity the online music world has left. These people and their excessive and mind numbingly effective hype that helps one artists career while subsequently killing ten others.

So no, this is not the second coming of Christ. It's not revolutionary. It's not as if there's no more room to explore in the electronic music world and that Burial is the only person to have done this. Frankly if Burial is all we have for the additional thousands of other new avenues we can explore, then I'd be a bit disappointed. Especially considering that he firmly roots himself within the framework of Dubstep.

But you know, I feel that it's a good album. I might venture to say it's great. My gripes (and I do have gripes) are for the most part comfortably outweighed by my enjoyment and perception of the album. Sure his use of vocal pitch shifting to align musical keys makes me want to smash my head into a brick wall, but taken as a whole this album is a great example of someone existing and working wonderfully well within the area of music he finds himself in, something I had thought of with his previous album as well.

This album may not be a revolutionary leap by any stretch of the word, and I may decry those who say such ridiculous things, but it's a certain step in the right direction. I'd be lying if I didn't think this hit the mark in many areas, and for this I would call it one of the better electronic albums released this year.

This is an unbelievably good album. I think it's the best dubstep album ever produced. It took me a good year to realize how good it is, not wanting to really listen to the R`n`B vocals that Burial samples. However, I found myself returning again and again to this masterpiece and it has really settled deep into me.

The music is intense and full of emotion. Untrue starts off very vulnerable with beautiful vocals in Archangel and Near Dark. It gets very dark further on in Etched Headplate and it manages to emerge from the experience with a sense of hope and relief in Raver.

The way Burial cuts up the sound in the European radio waves and transforms it into his own vision of what night and loneliness feels like is pure genius. It's like he holds a mirror to our culture and lets us hear what he hears. For me there is no better music that illustrates city life than this.

This album is as important to the UK electronic music scene as those from Aphex Twin, Plaid, Black Dog, FSOL, Boards of Canada etc. No doubt it will be held in such esteem as Massive Attack's Blue Lines or Roni Size's New Forms as being one that defines a homegrown genre.

The haunting pads and synths compliment the vocals perfectly sounding like an MK / Todd Edwards hybrid battling with hoodies in a studio somewhere. Whether it's hype or not this is a great great album - I've listened to it once and it's already up there as being influential.

Whether Burial wins the Mercury prize is neither here nor there - on the one hand new exciting music such as this should be supported to every level so Burial should win the £75,000 or whatever it is... on the other hand... I selfishly don't want the masses to discover this gem.

Disregard my last comment... everyone who has more than an interest in electronic music should check this.

This is one of the most unique sounding records of the decade. Somewhat less bleak than the first burial record, but with the same layer of white noise over it which adds a surreal warmth, even though the record is still pretty dark. There's a huge sense of that late night calm/isolation, mixed with 2-step/garage/dubstep beats. Some interesting old style rave vocals that have been pitch change processed to death. Apparently this record was made without a sequencer, and it is believable as there is this sense of nervous liveness to the tracks, it steps away from that rigid and perfectly structured sound that you often get with sequenced music.
Quite incredible.

Burial-Burial was one of the most well-received debuts of the past few years, seemingly effortlessly dubstep was put on the map (again), numerous ears were left anxious for more. Early november 2007 Burial releases a second album: ‘Untrue’, a worthy follow-up - continuing in the same gritty and melancholic style. What makes burial so neat is that his sound is raw - unpolished. sometimes almost cacophonic, chockfull of bass and sock-rocking, The samples Burial uses are inspiring and make one curious for what is next. Not everything on ‘Untrue’ is a retake of the old recipe, Burial manages to bring a bit more warmth and glee to this album - with sometimes even a hint of sunshine, he achieves this by focussing more on (sampled) vocals, understanding the words is something for a trained and patient listener, but the whole is a lovely package that deserves to be played over and over, a good reason to try that old repeat button.

As with the first album, there was a lot of hype and conjecture about this album, even before it was released. The debut album was rightfully praised by critics across the board, so all eyes were on Burial to see how he could follow it up. To be fair, Burial does a great job of promoting himself, whether he realises it or not. In a recent interview, he said this album took about 2 weeks to finish, yet I seem to remember the track "Endorphin" was uploaded onto his myspace page months previous...

Regardless of this, the music itself is very strong, taking all the hallmarks of his last album and developing on them to make a record which is powerful yet accessible. There are a lot more vocals on this record, but due to the way they are implemented (pitch shifted, doused in reverb, delayed etc..) they add a ghostly, ethereal quality to the already heavily atmospheric Burial sound.

Once again, production-wise, he seems to have stuck to his near-legendary wave editor/sample approach. A few of the samples I seem to recognise (I think that deep vocal sound used in "Near Dark" and "Homeless" is lifted from the classic deep house/garage track "We Life Our Hands In The Sanctuary" by DJ Oji & DJ Una) Some of the horns and strings have been carried over from the first album too. Most remarkable of all is how he managed to turn the god awful by-the-numbers R'n'B failure "One Wish" by Ray J into something as astonishing as Archangel. Truly a feat in itself. For the most part, the source material is edited and manipulated to the point where it becomes a ghost of its original self.

Like in his first album, there are ambient interludes in this, which I feel are easily as strong as the "proper" tracks. "Dog Shelter" in particular is quite beautiful. I'd love to hear him do a full-length album of these kind of tracks one day.

As for negative criticisms, they are few and far between. It took me a long time to get past the cheese of "Etched Headplate" which still reminds me of something a chav would play at the back of the bus on his or her mobile phone. But it is slowly growing on me. I'm not entirely convinced by "Homeless" either, which is probably the weakest track on the album. The vocals just don't work in the context Burial gave them and it recycles far too many sounds from both his previous work and samples used on this album. It does however have a great breakdown about 2:40 into the track, which I wish was developed further.

As a previous reviewer mentioned, it isn't the complete paradigm shift in electronic music, which some journalists would have you believe. It is however a deeply enjoyable 50 minutes of music. Like the first album, it is better suited for home/car listening than the dancefloor and if you let it, the music is sure to touch the heart.

Well I love this album, but I do think people are over-praising it. Its a good album, but its nothing that we haven't heard before. The first thing you'll notice is the amount of vocals Burial uses on this one. Personally I think all the vocals take away from the magic that the first album had. I remember getting excited hearing "Distant Lights" and "U Hurt Me" because they stood out from other tracks due to the vocals. For Untrue, its rather hard for me to pick out any standouts because they all blend in too much now. Despite my petty complaints, the album IS good and if you're a dubstep or Burial fan then you'll no doubt enjoy this one. I have to admit that Archangel is extremely catchy with it's "loving you" lyric.

There is so much hype and mystery about Burial. It's impossible to figure if this is just brilliant marketing, and it definitely is that, or whether Burial wants to be a normal person in real life and just get his, or her, music out there. Whatever the truth is, this is a major, singular slab of audacious genius. This is original, and so little can be labeled as such. Broken dub beats that meander and go nowhere in particular, skittering distorted weather field recording sounds, ghostly chanting, Boards Of Canada-style prettiness, skattered piano fragments and deep, very deep bass lines all compete with each other, and complement the overall overpowering effect.

Firstly I’d like to say that I’m VERY new to this Dubstep genre, so I’ll base my review on my musical knowledge thus far & my feelings summed upon listening to this seminal album.

Found accidentally as I was referred by a friend late Friday night (perfectly timed). I was aghast at the very sound of this album. The gritty, crunchy sounds that eminate so well. Also how it encompasses late night loneliness as well as conjure up ‘burned in’ memories of nights back from bars in London, with friends in the past. Summoning thoughts of lost opportunities, as well as found ones.

It’s clear that if ever Dubstep needed a voice of it’s prowess on the scene in the new millennium. It being that 'Can it stand on its own two feet?' This really clarifies that statement.

Almost as if it’s UK Rave, Garage heard on a broken Radio ‘post holocaust’. A person looking onward, out their rain battered window, pondering on memories past & present, crystallised with the pain of loneliness.

Of course, despite it’s dark, decadent feel, there’s another feel of something euphoric & positively uplifting trying to rise up through it‘s grainy canvas.

From these words I state, it’s obvious, this evokes strong feelings from me & the words just flow…which is unusual for me.

So I say, Burial. Wherever you are. Rise my son. In my opinion: You have truly captured the voice of generations present & past here. Astounding & moving stuff!

Go away. This album is horrible. I swear I heard ghosts when I listened to it. Voices drifted in and out and haunted me. Forever. The scattered breaks did nothing but terrify me. The bass lines did nothing but show a dark door outside the rave I was supposed to be attending. This album is a monster. It's dark and scary, and the voices aren't going away as I write this. Fractured breaks and broken sub basses and vocal samples that have been ripped from oblivion. We call this music? Yes, we do.

This is the greatest album the underground has ever let loose. This is an album that isn't so much a work of an artist as it is someone pulling spirits from the air and putting them on a recording. It's brilliant, but it's dark and you aren't supposed to "get it." I really don't want to know you if you don't get it. Frankly, you aren't my friend. This is the record that defines everything, regardless of genres and styles. This is what we will clutch in our hands and say music matters some 20 years from now.

Like I said, this album is horrible. You shouldn't listen to it. Mostly because anything you hear after it won't mean anything.