Reviewed by Gavin Hand

With the metal genre as flooded with releases as it is right now, a band has to be pretty special to stand out from an ocean of screams and guitar riffs. The Burial manage to do this and more with their latest album. Opening track "En Hakkore" begins with a calm orchestral passage which slowly mellows down in a diminuendo to almost nothing, and then it blasts out with blistering double kick drums, a very fast bass guitar lick and heavily distorted guitar riffs before the vocals come growling in. The Burial are definitely not a stereotypical metal band. In the track "In The Taking Of Flesh: Diakonos" their sound shifts from something that should weigh five tons to something light and melodic with the guitar shedding its distorted sound to take on a completely clean effect with a splashing of delay and chorus to help fill out the sound. Then, when the familiar metal sound returns, the guitar delivers solos that are very reminiscent of Metallica and thrash metal,. With a variety of classic metal styles evident, every track seems familiar yet they retain their individuality. All in all, The Burial really outshine the competition with 'In The Taking Of Flesh' and any fan of the genre should investigate.

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