After Extol released their brilliant debut album
Burial in 1998, it was clear that the fine young group of Norwegian headbangers had a long and productive career ahead of them. They immediately followed up the debut by releasing this six song ep in 1999 to tide fans over until their sophomore effort was released the next year. Half of the songs are new and the other half are industrial remixes of songs from
Burial.
The three original songs on
Mesmerized are a logical evolution in sound from what was heard on the debut. While some songs previously contained subtle black metal elements, the band chose to adopt a more full-on progressive death metal approach on this ep. The result is a heavier experience than what was heard on
Burial. Ole and Christer continue to trem away like there's no tomorrow and there are some really nice solos to be heard, particularly on "Storms of Disillusion" which remains one of Extol's greatest songs. Some brief but pleasant acoustic sections also sneak their way in amidst the madness. The drums and bass sound much cleaner and pack a bigger punch this time around, due in large part to the production which is a big improvement over the somewhat thin production of
Burial. Peter's vocals have taken on a very unique and brutal layered sound, a sound which he would also employ on the band's second full length. Overall, the first three songs on
Mesmerized serve as a nice companion piece to the band's debut, and a way of bridging the gap between the sounds of their first two full lengths.
While the first half of this ep is a great example of Extol's early progessive death metal phase, the final three songs are where things start to get dicey. The band recruited Swedish industrial/ambient groups Sanctum and Raison d'Etre to remix "Burial", "Renhetens Elv", and "Work of Art" from the debut. The final product of these industrial remixes is less interesting and more tiresome than one might expect. There are some interesting elements here and there, such as the angelic choir vocals on the "Burial" remix, but the songs are mostly comprised of meandering ambient sections and unpleasant static-filled sections. It is a shame that these remixes are so uninteresting since they take up more than half of the 35 minute run time on
Mesmerized.
This ep is an interesting and sometimes frustrating listening experience. The first three songs show how talented these dudes were at creating progressive death metal that was simultaneously crushing and uplifting. The final three songs are an interesting idea in theory, but they ultimately end up leaving much to be desired. It's tempting to say that
Mesmerized is for completionists only, however it is worth hearing for the three awesome new songs contained within this ep.
