SUBTEMPLE
Dark Ambient, Electronic.
Hyperdub Records
Listening Format: Vinyl
Burial is undoubtedly one of the most exciting, revered and innovative Electronic musicians of the last 10 years or so. The publicity shy bedroom producer hasn't put an album out since 2007's modern classic 'Untrue', and neither does he look like he is any rush to follow it up. Instead Burial has been releasing vinyl and digital exclusive EPs dropping at random once a year ever since. In particular his two EPs 'Street Halo' and 'Kindred' have arguably been his greatest works to date. Burial used the EP format to the fullest, by making much lengthier and more experimental pieces than on his two studio albums. A trend he has continued with each year to this very date.
Whilst Burial has continued to experiment and innovate, the quality control of his work has sadly started to wane. The 'Truant / Rough Sleeper' and 'Rival Dealer' EPs had some great moments, but lacked cohesion as a whole. It felt like Burial was actually trying to escape the fantastic trademarks and signatures he had built up to give him such a unique and identifiable sound. Burial's latest works have definitely shown a decline in quality, yet the mystery of Burial still seems to fascinate. These 12" singles with super minimalist, near identical artwork keep on dropping once a year, almost like he is building his follow up album slowly, piece by piece, over multiple discs. The lowest point in his discography so far was his preceding 12", 'Young Death / Nightmarket'. Both tracks on this EP sounded like Ambient interludes that didn't seem to go anywhere, lacked memorability and didn't have enough "Burial-isms" to feel like a genuinely worthy release. This is the point where even die hard Burial fans started to ask the tough questions. Is Burial losing his magic touch? Is his music still relevant? Should his fans keep bothering to pick up these 12" releases or is it time for him to mix it up a bit more?
Roll on 2017 and yet another EP drops with the same faceless artwork. Except this time it is just a 10" vinyl. But essentially it is the same deal, with two side length pieces running at seven and nine minutes respectively. Critical response has been even less favourable than the forgettable 'Young Death / Nightmarket' 12", which is worryingly putting Burial's validity as an artist into question... 'Subtemple' consists of yet another two tracks which could easily just be described as "Ambient interludes". The kind of tracks that might hold a significant place sandwiched between two epic tracks on an album, but don't have much context released on their own. Is Burial taking his dedicated fanbase for a ride at this point?
Well, actually, I really enjoyed this release. In fact it is probably my favourite Burial release since 'Kindred' (although the actual track 'Rival Dealer' was a gem, if not the entire EP). Both tracks are nearly identical to each other in approach. Lengthy, minimal, Dark Ambient pieces that kind of glide on by. However I am quite a fan of Dark Ambient music, so this wasn't a problem for me. But I think there is actually more to these tracks than meets the ear. Unlike his last few releases, Burial is actually nodding back to his earliest recordings. In particular tracks such as 'Endorphin' from the 'Untrue' album (and yes, that was an Ambient interlude). 'Untrue' sampled heavily from Konami video games such as Metal Gear Solid and Silent Hill. It sounds like Burial may be revisiting those influences, because 'Subtemple' and 'Beachfires' both sound strongly reminiscent of Akira Yamaoka's incredible Dark Ambient scores for the Silent Hill games... Clearly a strong influence on Burial in the first place. What impresses me more, is that if you listen very carefully, some of those Burial trademark's ARE there... just very. very much buried in the mix. The coating of vinyl crackle and pops, the use of a pitch-shifted female vocal sample, the sounds of fractured drum samples... They are all there, just not at all in the forefront of the mix or composition.
If you pay close attention, it actually feels like Burial is coming full circle with this release. And given that it is 10 years since his highly praised album 'Untrue' it feels like an appropriate time for it. The atmospheric and fragile drum breaks may be absent, the awesome use of layering post-Dubstep sub-bass with Hip Hop inspired vocal samples and loops are absent too. This is still not on the level of tracks like 'Kindred' or 'Ghost Hardware', but it does show more promise than a lot of critics and fans have made out. I still don't think this release needed to be yet another standalone EP, but at least the tracks show promise. 'Subtemple' is an EP of great subtlety, and actually shows some of Burial's more inspired compositions of recent times. 7/10.
