Buried In Verona: Vultures Above, Lions Below

Sydney’s melodic metallers get a Swedish shot of adrenaline

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Beset by alleged management issues that makes the existence of their fifth opus a miracle, Buried In Verona have responded to their strife with a step up that’s produced their best album so far.

Returning to production wizard Fredrik Nordström and letting loose with some vitriolic lyrics (’I swear to God I used to love these lights,’ spits Brett Anderson on the record’s title track – no guessing as to his meaning there, eh?), the Aussie metalcore crew sound bigger, badder and angrier.

Nordström’s Swedish sheen gives the band’s sound much-needed sonic weight, beefing up the likes of Pathways, Dig Me Out and Reflection, which are packing riffs big enough to give a T-Rex diarrhoea, while Hurricane and Can’t Be Unsaid boast singalongs tailor-made for radio. It’s a simple formula, but when done right it’s capable of producing big moments, and this has plenty of them.

Merlin Alderslade
Executive Editor, Louder

Merlin moved into his role as Executive Editor of Louder in early 2022, following over ten years working at Metal Hammer. While there, he served as Online Editor and Deputy Editor, before being promoted to Editor in 2016. Before joining Metal Hammer, Merlin worked as Associate Editor at Terrorizer Magazine and has previously written for the likes of Classic Rock, Rock Sound, eFestivals and others. Across his career he has interviewed legends including Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Metallica, Iron Maiden (including getting a trip on Ed Force One courtesy of Bruce Dickinson), Guns N' Roses, KISS, Slipknot, System Of A Down and Meat Loaf. He is also probably responsible for 90% of all nu metal-related content making it onto the site.