Review Summary: With Love, NJP
There are a lot of cold hard facts that justify the computer tan’s and false praises of anonymous heart transplant patients. However, on the more real side of the equation, we must understand that all the literary references in the world won’t make this Burial’s greatest achievement. We know which one that is, and starting that debate is pointless; yet if the discussion never takes place how are we supposed to agree on Edward Nigmas and Kanye’s Yeezus Fart-Fest.
Here’s my consent I’m sending you: I hope you hear it. I just used this page break to pour more coffee and inject less sense into this argument. But Burial would never have been revealed as William Bevan, would never have inspired anyone, and certainly would never justify the deep rings around his eyes without a heap of Metal Gear samples. That’s exactly what happens throughout the runtime of
Truant / Rough Sleeper. It begins with something that would resemble a heartbeat in a human being, while providing a bassline that throbs like withdrawl. I suppose the man could be a heroin addict, but at the same time that’s his own business because I’ve never been a part of a tabloid.
He has a Just Cause, too (purposefully capitalized for the video game joke). A sandbox of jingle-jangle melodies and samples crying out for Clubroot to take notice (again); does the prodigy? Who cares? Will Clubroot acknowledge this review? No. Will I pretend that the end of Sons of Liberty made sense until Burial nods towards me and winks? (I have honestly no idea so sue me.)
Essentially, the bass reaches a forefront which was an absolute shocker on Kindred, at least for this reviewer. Zomby hypothesized that dubstep was always a sea of bass over a neon waterfall of binary. Was this always so? I have no idea and never will without the proper background listening, but Burial showcases his prolific echo-vocal-nonsense with lyrics that try to poke their head out (complete with exclamation marks) through the effects, yet will constantly be muddled with enigma until one finds lyrics on their favorite website.
Is it important what they are saying? Absolutely, so far as this opinion is concerned. The immediate example of “I FELL IN LOVE WITH YOU” becomes misunderstood, once the additional “cause you are the ONE” becomes relevant. Burial was searching for something this whole time and (avoiding the batman joke) I suppose he certainly murdered the track with that sample.
But the track shifts into much bouncier territory, and a track-by-track review does no one any favors. So leave the vocal sample discussion with this. Perhaps Burial secretly got married? Gay married? Gay??
Nah, he’s probably ragingly straight.
But realistically he explores every single bass line he would ever need to in order to maintain the throb of withdrawal present throughout each of the two tracks on the EP. On the other hand, Rough Sleeper (which is probably a wonderful title considering his probable circumstances) skips and (again) echoes through more progressive song structures and cries “BE STRONG.” His mashing of garage and variously scatterbrained genres is amazing, yet without “the lights surrounding you” everything means nothing.
In the end, was
Truant / Rough Sleeper either ~late registration~ or a *deep set computer tan*? It doesn’t matter what it was but what it remains is one of the finest dubstep offerings in modern times, provided by the scenes Solid Snake, Pliskin, and ironically enough Link, Hero of Time. He’s conquered every single territory he will ever need to conquer and I hope he thirsts for more.
But please God, not Bro-Step.
Anything but post-skrillex garbage, please?
