Overview
“Untrue” is the second studio album by Burial (real name: William Emmanuel Bevan), a British electronic musician and producer from South London.
It was released on November 5, 2007, via Hyperdub.
“Archangel” and “Ghost Hardware” were released as singles.
The album inherits the lineage of British dance music—such as UK garage, 2-step, jungle, and hardcore—while fusing dubstep and ambient elements.
Commentary
Background of the Production
Burial (William Bevan) was born in the late 1980s and grew up in South London. Influenced by his older brother, he encountered 1990s jungle and garage rave culture, but he did not belong to the generation that directly participated in the scene. This “indirect experience” created a unique sense of nostalgia and alienation in his music.
After gaining attention with his debut album “Burial” (2006), he initially attempted to use more complex equipment for the second album. However, he discarded those attempts and completed the new work in roughly two weeks using the simple digital audio editing software Sound Forge. This limitation became the factor that produced uneven, human rhythms and raw textures.
Musical Characteristics
The sonic foundation of the album consists of vinyl crackle, field-recording-like elements such as rain sounds or urban environmental noises, distorted low-end bass, and R&B vocal samples processed through pitch-shifting and time-stretching. These samples blur the boundaries of gender and emotion, creating fragmented, ghostly textures. Due to Sound Forge’s non-quantized nature, the rhythms intentionally contain slippage and fluctuation, deviating from the standard 4/4 grid of traditional dance music.
Overall, it forms a dystopian and solitary soundscape reminiscent of nighttime London Underground trains, vacant lots, and late-night streets. Emotionally, it deals with the pressing sense of romantic loss and alienation while still containing remnants of hope. Compared to the previous work, vocal elements are significantly increased, marking a shift from abstract dubstep to a more melodic and emotionally accessible structure.
The opening track “Archangel” is the symbolic piece of this album. The processed R&B vocals unfold melodically, with grandeur and melancholy coexisting. Many critics regard it as the highlight of the album and Burial’s signature track.
Release History, Charts, and Reception
The album reached No. 58 on the UK Albums Chart (No. 18 on the download chart). It received widespread critical acclaim and was selected as one of the best albums of 2007 by multiple media outlets. In 2008, it was nominated for the Mercury Prize.
British music journalist Simon Reynolds described the album in a 2017 “Pitchfork” article as “the most important electronic album of the century so far.”
Historical Context and Influence
This work symbolizes the late-2000s dubstep scene while expanding club music into introspective home-listening territory. It inherits the emotionality of UK garage/2-step, abstracting and melancholizing it, thereby influencing later future garage, witch house, and contemporary electronic music.
Bevan’s sampling techniques and sound textures serve as an example of creatively utilizing the limitations of digital tools, influencing the production attitudes of subsequent artists.
Track Listing
13 tracks, approx. 50 minutes.
- “Untitled” – 0:46
- “Archangel” – 3:58
- “Near Dark” – 3:54
- “Ghost Hardware” – 4:53
- “Endorphin” – 2:57
- “Etched Headplate” – 5:59
- “In McDonalds” – 2:07
- “Untrue” – 6:16
- “Shell of Light” – 4:40
- “Dog Shelter” – 2:59
- “Homeless” – 5:20
- “UK” – 1:40
- “Raver” – 4:59
Japanese CD issue bonus tracks
- “Shutta” – 5:02
- “Exit Woundz” – 5:49
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