Review Summary: Many a band goes unrecognized due to religion or similarities to other bands. I feel however that no band should be judged based on religion and Extol knew how to create a first album that was not necessarily unique, but still remained catchy as hell.
Back in 1993, a group of musicians from Norway came together to form a metal band. Their goal was to lift their God to the fullest through their music. After 5 years of small shows and 2 songs appearing on a Norwegian metal compilation called Northern Lights, they released their first full length titled Burial.
The way this band is the most unique is the vocalist. Some may say he sounds like Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth. Now this may be true to an extent, but I feel that his vocals are much more intense especially in the songs "Burial" and "Tears of Bitterness". The song "Burial" is truly one of the strongest on this album. It starts of with an amazing riff that repeats until you hear Peter Espevoll roar with full throttle. Throughout the song, and the album for that matter, he constantly changes his vocals from low growls to a higher black metal scream. That is definitely what is my favorite part about this album. Though there is not as much clean singing as on later albums Undeceived and Synergy, he does his job on the song "Jesus Kom Til Jorden For A do". He hits the high notes with precision, and though the production is a bit more raw, it still is excellent to listen to.
The second highlight would have to be David Husvik's drumming. Truly drummers tend not to get enough credit now, and I believe that he deserves full credit for what he does on this album. The song "Reflections of A broken soul" and "Embraced" are the two songs where he is at his strongest. Right from the beginning of "Embraced", he will keep you guessing at what he is going to play next, as well as making it flow throughout the song. The chorus of this song is my favorite from the whole album. As the song reaches the halfway point, you begin to here the build up to the final chorus that will show ever member of the band at their best. The melody that is played by the guitarists while Peter growls out the line "Surviving in a mysterious way" will stick in you head for hours later. It truly is an experience to listen to, and anyone who is into Opeth or death metal for that matter will find something to enjoy in this listen.
4.4/5
Strongest Songs
Burial, Embraced, Tears of Bitterness
Cons
Some may find the vocals to similar to Opeths. Solo's aren't very common throughout the album.
