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Much stronger album from Grave. Since their rebirth with 2002's Back From the Grave, this band has been churning out exactly the sort of back-to-basics Swedish Death you would expect, though their output started out mediocre and rapidly got more so as they pedantically released an album every two years like clockwork. Dominion VIII was a pretty much perfect distillation of generic Swedish DM, and was as always competent but not exciting. Thankfully, their ninth album Burial Ground is a serious step up.

Everything is just better this time: better riffs, better songs, better sound, better vocals. Grave have not changed anything about their signature sound, but they have improved it noticeably. This is still a dead-on Death Metal album – neither aiming at nor hitting anything else – but it is much more fresh and invigorating this time, and the riffs have real catchiness and snap to them. Grave show more dynamic this time, switching up between faster cuts and more dirge-like numbers like the title track. Ola Lindgren's vocals are urgent and lively, and the guitar sound is thick and visceral. This is not a groundbreaking album or anything, but it has real guts. Grave may be going through the motions, but this time they mean it.