Burst
Origo

THE REVIEW

Given the premises set by 'Prey on Life', with expansive sounds, excessive use of effects, and broad-ranging songs, Burst's future seemed destined for a calm post-core/post-rock drift à la 'Isis' or 'Cult Of Luna'. Prediction incorrect.

However, the feeling is that the Swedish quintet of former Nasum member Jesper Liverod has unintentionally left something important behind: the very element that made a record like 'Prey On Life' great and which 'Origo' lacks.

'Prey On Life' naturally and spontaneously blended genres, while 'Origo' sounds artificial, stubborn in chasing the previous cumbersome model, unable to break away from the well-trodden path. The psychedelic excesses are now incorporated into a sound that's compact, solid, less experimental, and somewhat repetitive.
Stormwielder and Where The Wave Broke rebel against the norms, not coincidentally the most noticeable tracks, while Mercy Liberation opens with an (inadvertent?) homage to Morricone, only to evolve without further pursuing this intriguing contamination.

The tracklist seems to be crowded with too many fillers, in contrast to the remarkable run of masterpieces that was 'Prey On Life'. The increased use of Robert Reinholdz's pleasant clean voice serves no purpose when it goes hand in hand with the worsening performance of Linus Jägerskog, monotonous if you will, less sharp than before.

We might as well think of 'Prey On Life' as the seal that closes an era for Burst; 'Origo' is nothing more than the first step in a new evolutionary process: the result lacks well-defined contours and sometimes loses sight of the goal to be pursued but gives hope for what will be the endpoint.