It's been two years since Pallbearer unleashed their towering debut Sorrow and Extinction on the world, although it seems like much, much longer. Sorrow and Extinction was a stunning achievement in doom; it didn't reinvent the wheel, but it re-crafted the wheel into the band's own image, an image drenched in mournful melodies and staggering under the weight of sublime riffs. Doom metal bands live and die on the strength of their moods and riffs, and Pallbearer managed to be simultaneously despondent and invigorating over six odes to gloom. Album closer "Given to the Grave" is one of the best doom songs I've ever heard, with only six (powerful) lines of lyrics amidst its eleven minutes of steadily building and finally erupting lamentations. Sorrow and Extinction marked Pallbearer as a band to watch, and after an eternally long two years, the band has returned with its sophomore effort, Foundations of Burden. After such a stellar debut, can Pallbearer possibly top themselves?
