Album Review: Katatonia – City of Burials

Album brings surging harmony 

Swedish metal band Katatonia are back with their twelfth studio album, City of Burials. The vocals are cutting edge with a touch of melody, the guitar playing is well done by having guitar notes light up each track and the drum playing is low key with a nice touch of rhythmic beats. City of Burials shows that Katatonia can still create good music.

“Behind the Blood” is a sweet tune because of Anders Nyström and Roger Öjersson’s guitar playing. Both guitarists have done a good job of creating crashing guitar music that compliments the theme of the song. Also the guitar solo at the beginning and middle is amazing because the electricity can be felt through the speakers. Katatonia has done a splendid job with “Behind the Blood.”

“Rein” has a nice quality of vocals due to how Jonas Renkse uses his voice to create harmony on the track. His vocals are filled with raw emotions which contributes to how he harmonizes the lyrics of the song. What is amusing about this song is how Renkse maintains to stay on the same vocal level through the entire track. In some ways, Renkse’s vocals add a classy touch to this piece by how he croons to the music. 

“Flicker” is a fun song by the steady drum beats that Daniel Moilanen creates. At the beginning of the song, Moilanen’s playing can be heard emerging from the background with low and steady drum beats. What is enjoyable about his drum style is how the drumming pattern rarely changes throughout the song. In some ways, his drum beats are more progressive rock on this track and that is a good thing because it adds more depth to the piece. Overall, “Flicker” is a well-played song. 

On “The Winter of Our Passing,” the band plays well together. When listening, the sounds from the instrumentation fills the atmosphere with the lively feeling of clashing guitars and drum playing. Also, what is noticeably enjoyable is how Renkse’s vocals complement the musical vibe; he maintains his singing voice on a lower level. When listening, the band is playing beautiful music while Renkse’s vocals provide a touch of dark melody on this tune. “The Winter of Our Passing” is a well-composed musical piece.

“Fighters” is a delightful song because of how impactful the guitar playing is on this track. At the beginning of the song, Nyström and Öjersson can be heard playing thunderous guitar notes in the background and the sounds coming from the guitars can shake the pulses of people who are listening. The absolutely best part of the song is the wicked guitar solo because the astounding sound bleeds metal music while it is blaring from the speakers. If listeners want to hear a track that can shake their veins, “Fighters” is the song for them.

Katatonia are back with well-written music and fans will not be disappointed.

Cait Stoddard: Hello! My name is Caitlin and my job is writing music news stories and reviewing metal music albums. I enjoy collecting vinyl, playing video games, watching movies and going to concerts.
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