Burial - Untrue (Hyperdub, 2007)

They tell me that Burial practice a form of electronica known as dubstep. Dubstep is a very London-centric style of electronica; it is moody, sparse and places a strong emphasis on that which my dubwise brother could appreciate - the bassline. I picked up this album after I had seen it pop up on a number of musician's end of year lists, and I am rather happy that I did.
While my exposure to dubstep is limited, it appears that Burial - a highly secretive London-based producer - is the genre's crowned-prince; and therein, my friends, is the root problem with genre catgorization: Burial is creating music that is worthy not only of the high praise Untrue is receiving from within the electronica community and those savvy enough to be in the know. On the contrary Burial is worthy of a far greater audience, as he is creating music that is as forward thinking, creative, and just generally mind-blowing, as anything I have heard recently.
I have been listening to this album on repeat for the past five days and it has had me grasping for a thesaurus to come up with new words for 'awesome'. If there is a way to be both sparse and dense at the same time, then Burial has it figured out. Untrue is densely textured, with layer upon layer of sonic goodness folding in upon itself, as dis-embodied voices slink in and out of the action. The wonders Burial works with pitch and tempo dynamics has me forever having to pick my chin up off the floor.
In short: Buy this album.

Sounds A Bit Like: Music I have been wanting to hear for a long time.

Check Out: www.myspace.com/burialuk