Among the long list of adjectives that leap to mind in listening to Unburnt’s debut EP (and you’ll see many of those in the following paragraphs), the one that probably belongs at the top is “ferocious”. While the music is undeniably multi-faceted, the trip through the four tracks on Arcane Evolution is a turbo-charged rush. It propels us at high speed through a savage gauntlet of blackened death metal that’s attacking on all fronts, in breathtaking fashion. The fact that the band manage to integrate so many other experiences along the way, without ever lessening the wild savagery of the assault, is at least as impressive as their talent for obliteration.

The line-up of Unburnt combines the talents of Canadian performers from other established groups — guitarist Bo Louther (Odium), vocalist Eric Burnet (Samskaras, ex-Derelict), drummer Joe Mullen (Odium), and bassist John-Ryan Godfrey (We Are Human). They chose to form Unburnt as a vehicle for creating a different kind of metal than what any of them had been doing in their other bands, and on Arcane Evolution they’ve succeeded in splicing together an array of divergent stylistic elements in a way that’s coherent — and electrifying. Continue reading »