XXV. Death In June | Burial

DEATH IN JUNE
Burial
©Leprosy. UK, 1984.

"Industrial innovators Death in June emerged in 1980 from the remnants of the punk unit Crisis, reuniting singer/multi-instrumentalist Douglas Pearce and bassist Tony Wakeford; drummer Patrick Leagas completed the original lineup, which made its live debut late the following year with an opening slot for the Birthday Party. The 12-inch Heaven Street soon followed, and in 1983 Death in June issued their first full-length effort, The Guilty Have No Pride; from the outset, the group was criticized for its adoption of fascist imagery, and charges of Nazism dogged Pearce throughout his career".

Jason Ankeny

"By 1984, angry punksters Crisis had miraculously transformed into Death in June - gone were the leftist ideas and in came black uniforms adorned by the totenkopf. Still, the band didn't really sound like Nazi drummerboys at a Nurenberg rally. Burial is a weird record that bears a notable punk feel, clearly signifying what the band members practiced some years before. The actual studio tracks are but five, the rest of the album consisting of live recordings. Opener Death of the West still serves as one of the neofolk evergreens: a simple but emotional anti-capitalist anthem composed in classic Death in June fashion, concentrating on strumming acoustic guitar and vocals exclusively. Fields, Nirvana and Black Radio all possess a definite '80s sound, meaning they're unmistakably post-punk and have strong new wave leanings. Sons of Europe delivers more pathos: martial drumming, trumpets blowing and atonal singing - it is probably the strangest track of the album. The live section, recorded somewhere in London in late 1983, is predictably psychedelic and somewhat chaotic. Even more than the studio material, the live recordings deliver a mix of proto-industrial, psychedelic rock and punk-influenced wave sound that is impenetrably esoteric and avant-garde".
 

Chroniclesofchaos