Subtemple/Beachfires may disappoint those who admire Bevan mainly for his distinctive and influential beats, but no one sounds quite like him, and this distinctive piece of work is no exception.
"Beachfires" conveys sacred spaces—places of worship and natural landscapes—with a clarity that illuminates Burial's inner world. On "Subtemple," he sounds lost in a void.
As Burial continues to explore the outer reaches of ambient dub, he is just sailing endless gray swamps. Is it relatively unexplored territory? Sure. But maybe its unexplored for a reason.
Burial moves into ambient territory on this one... and it's frustrating. These tracks go absolutely nowhere and the attempts at atmosphere never reach the emotional heights that made his previous efforts great.
Subtemple: 4
Beachfires: 6
Score:
5
Average
I guess this is a sound collage ambient EP??
If that's the case it's not a good one that's for sure.
Edited: The EP has a similar feel to Burial's recent re-release with Four Tet, which was put out earlier this year, and includes a fully ambient-focused single entitled 'Nova'. Like 'Nova', the 2nd track on this EP, 'Beachfires' is dependent on Burial's interpretive ambient wave pad and a set of experimental expositions into what I can only refer to as the sound of figurative ether. 7.5/10.
Edited: The EP has a similar feel to Burial's recent re-release with Four Tet, which was put out earlier this year, and includes a fully ambient-focused single entitled 'Nova'. Like 'Nova', the 2nd track on this EP, 'Beachfires' is dependent on Burial's interpretive ambient wave pad and a set of experimental expositions into what I can only refer to as the sound of figurative ether. 7.5/10.
This Ep develops a bit more on the textures found on his previous release and it's even a little better. This chilling atmosphere is extremely interesting but paired with the soundscape and production it sounds extraordinary.
Beachfires (53) has some chilling atmosphere, but that's about it. And I swear Subtemple (20) is a white noise with added vinyl crackles that gets passed as a "song". What a waste of time.
1 | Subtemple 7:23 | 69 |
2 | Beachfires 9:50 | 70 |