Burials (album)

2013 studio album by AFI

Burials

Studio album by

AFI

Released| October 22, 2013
Recorded| EastWest Studios, Los Angeles, California
Genre|

* Gothic rock[1][2]
* alternative rock[3]

Length| 49:21
Label| Republic
Producer| Gil Norton
AFI chronology
| Crash Love
(2009)  | Burials
(2013)  | AFI
(2017)

|
|

Singles from  Burials

1. "I Hope You Suffer"
Released: July 22, 2013
2. "17 Crimes"
Released: August 6, 2013
3. "The Conductor"
Released: October 1, 2013
4. "A Deep Slow Panic"
Released: February 24, 2014
5. "Heart Stops"
Released: August 22, 2014

Burials is the ninth studio album by American rock band AFI. It was released on October 22, 2013, through Republic Records.[4]

In a statement regarding the album, AFI frontman Davey Havok said, "This record is of silence, and the burials that result from that silence. It's of betrayal, cruelty, weakness, anxiety, panic - deep and slow - despair, injury and loss. And in this it is shamefully honest and resolutely unforgiving."[5][6]

## Conception and composition

[edit]

Vocalist Davey Havok has said the album has the darkest lyrics of any AFI album.[7] In contrast to previous releases, Havok described Burials as being "very layered and very rich", adding that it was "far, far less straightforward than what we did on the last record, which – much like every record we create – was the result of a natural growth, a natural indication of where we are as songwriters now".[8] This is the first AFI album to credit songwriters individually, as opposed to the band as a whole, since 1997's Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes.

## Recording and production

[edit]

The band worked with producer Gil Norton and engineer Andrew Scheps, while recording Burials in Los Angeles, California.[5][9]

## Release

[edit]

From April to June 2013, five black-and-white teaser videos were released on AFI's website.[10] The band was later announced to play Riot Fest 2013, as well as being signed to Republic Records.[11] On July 18, AFI's website was replaced with the single cover for "I Hope You Suffer" and a stream of the new song, which was made available for purchase on July 23;[12] the same day, the album's title and release date were announced.[13] On July 31, a music video was released for "I Hope You Suffer" Directed by directing duo Brad and Brian Palmer. It contained primarily shots of the band performing the song in black and white and contained similar imagery to the previously released teaser videos that where also created by Brad and Brian Palmer. The teaser videos paved the way for the art direction of the album. Images from the teasers can be seen on the inner sleeve and back of both the vinyl and CD releases.[14]

Another single, "17 Crimes", was released on August 6;[15][a] on August 16, a music video was released.[18] An EDM remix of the song was included on the soundtrack to the film The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. The third single from the album, titled "The Conductor", was released on September 9, 2013. A new song from Burials, "A Deep Slow Panic", was made available for streaming on the website for Spin, along with a new interview of the band on October 10, 2013.[19][20]

A new song from the album, "A Deep Slow Panic", was made available for streaming on the website for Spin, along with a new interview of the band on October 10, 2013.[21] "A Deep Slow Panic" impacted radio on February 25, 2014.[22] The song "Wild" appears on the soundtrack for EA Sports UFC.

## Critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsAggregate scores

Source| Rating
Metacritic| 74/100[23]
Review scores
Source| Rating
AllMusic| [24]
Alternative Press| [25]
The A.V. Club| B[26]
Rolling Stone| [3]
Sputnikmusic| 3.6/5[27]

Burials has received generally positive reviews from music critics. At review aggregator site Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received a score of 74 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews based on 8 critics."[23] Jason Heller of The A.V. Club gave the album a B rating, drawing similarities to the Cure on various songs.[26] Matt Collar from Allmusic gave the album 4 stars out 5, saying, "With Burials, Havok and AFI don't just bury the castle of wrecked relationships, they put to rest any notions that they aren't kings of their dystopian rock kingdom."[24] He highlighted "I Hope You Suffer", "17 Crimes", and "Greater Than 84" as the best tracks from the album. Similarly, Jason Pettigrew also awarded the album 4 stars out of 5, saying, "Overseen by producer Gil Norton [...] AFI's latest is top-loaded with atmosphere-enhancing, widescreen production that's so grandiose, it should have Michael Bay's name all over it", and wrote that "With Burials, AFI are going larger than life to get back into the small of their fans' hearts."[28] However, Mike Powell conversely gave the album 2 stars out of 5 and gave a mixed review, saying, "'17 Crimes' and 'Greater Than 84' survive with the band's flair for camp still intact. Others drown in pools of eyeliner. Flamboyant, serious, plagued by problems he never gets too specific about, Davey Havok invents a role part Morrissey, part Bret Michaels – hair-metal pinup for the Hot Topic era."[3]

## Commercial performance

[edit]

The album debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 25,000 copies in the United States.[29]

## Track listing

[edit]

All lyrics are written by Davey Havok; all music is composed by Jade Puget.

Standard editionNo.| Title| Length

|
|

1.| "The Sinking Night"| 2:18
2.| "I Hope You Suffer"| 4:37
3.| "A Deep Slow Panic"| 4:01
4.| "No Resurrection"| 4:27
5.| "17 Crimes"| 2:57
6.| "The Conductor"| 3:41
7.| "Heart Stops"| 3:08
8.| "Rewind"| 4:12
9.| "The Embrace"| 3:25
10.| "Wild"| 3:11
11.| "Greater Than 84"| 4:17
12.| "Anxious"| 3:50
13.| "The Face Beneath the Waves"| 5:10
Total length:| 49:14

Best Buy exclusive and Japanese bonus track[30][31]No.| Title| Length

|
|

14.| "17 Crimes" (James Egbert remix)| 5:03

Best Buy exclusive bonus track[30]No.| Title| Length

|
|

15.| "17 Crimes" (ThankYouX remix)| 3:53

## Personnel

[edit]

AFI

* Davey Havok – vocals
* Jade Puget – guitars
* Hunter Burgan – bass
* Adam Carson – drums

Production

* Gil Norton – production
* Dan Austin – engineering
* Andrew Scheps – mixing
* Justin Hergett – assistant mixing
* Brendan Dekora – assistant engineering
* Stephen Marcussen – mastering

Artwork

* AFI – art direction, design
* Morning Breath Inc. – art direction, design
* Surround – art direction, photography, images
* Brad Palmer – album art photography, album images
* Chris Anthony – band photography

## Charts

[edit]

Chart (2013)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (ARIA)[32] | 10
UK Albums (OCC)[33] | 59
US Billboard Alternative Albums[34] | 3
US Billboard Hard Rock Albums[34] | 2
US Billboard Rock Albums[34] | 3
US Billboard 200[35] | 9

## References

[edit]

Footnotes

1. ^ "17 Crimes" was made available for streaming on the day preceding its release on the iTunes Store.[16][17]

Citations

1. ^ Clement, Kaitlyn (October 29, 2013). "AFI New Album 'Burials' Released". B-sides.tv. Archived from the original on July 2, 2017. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
2. ^ Yancey, Bryne (October 22, 2013). "AFI – Burials". Punknews.org.
3. ^ a b c "Burials". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
4. ^ "AFI to release Burials in October". punknews.org. July 23, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
5. ^ a b Carlin, Shannon (July 23, 2013). "AFI Announces Release Date for "Resolutely Unforgiving" New Album, Burials". Radio.com. Archived from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
6. ^ Whitt, Cassie (July 23, 2013). "AFI announce Burials release date, headlining tour with Touche Amore". Alternative Press.
7. ^ "Backspin: AFI on 'Burials'". Yahoo!. February 17, 2017. Retrieved December 19, 2020 - via YouTube.
8. ^ Reed, Ryan (July 23, 2013). "AFI's Davey Havok Talks Maximalist New Album". Rolling Stone.
9. ^ Lossing, Nee-Sa (August 8, 2013). "5 Directions AFI Could Go on Their New Album, Burials". Radio.com. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
10. ^ Whitt, Cassie (April 17, 2013). "AFI launch cryptic video on website". Alternative Press. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
11. ^ "AFI sign to Republic Records; plan fall 2013 album release – News – Alternative Press". Altpress.com. June 27, 2013. Archived from the original on June 3, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2016.
12. ^ "'I Hope You Suffer' Now Available On iTunes". AFI News Headquarters. Archived from the original on December 15, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
13. ^ "AFI's Davey Havok Talks Maximalist New Album". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
14. ^ "AFI – I Hope You Suffer (2013)". July 29, 2013.
15. ^ "Amazon.com: 17 Crimes: AFI: MP3 Downloads". amazon.com.
16. ^ "Media: AFI: "17 Crimes"". Punknews.org. August 5, 2013.
17. ^ Bird, Michele (August 5, 2013). "AFI streams new single, "17 Crimes"". Alternative Press.
18. ^ "REPUBLIC RECORDS, CONSTANTIN FILM, and SCREEN GEMS Reveal Artists for "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" Soundtrack Album – WSAV: News, Weather, and Sports for Savannah, GA". Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved July 2, 2013.
19. ^ "Hear AFI's Chaotic Goth-Opera 'A Deep Slow Panic'". SPIN. October 10, 2013. Retrieved May 6, 2016.
20. ^ "AFI – Burials (Vinyl) Review — Subjective Sounds". Subjective Sounds. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2025.
21. ^ McGovern, Kyle (October 10, 2013). "Hear AFI's Chaotic Goth-Opera 'A Deep Slow Panic'". SPIN. Retrieved February 24, 2025.
22. ^ "Alternative eWeekly". AllAccess. February 25, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
23. ^ a b "Burials by AFI". Metacritic. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
24. ^ a b Collar, Matt (2013). "Burials – AFI : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards : AllMusic". Allrovi. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
25. ^ Pettigrew, Jason (2013). "AFI – Burials". Alternative Press. November 2013 (304). Alternative Press Magazine, Inc.: 84. ISSN 1065-1667. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
26. ^ a b Heller, Jason (October 22, 2013). "AFI: Burials". avclub.com.
27. ^ "AFI – Burials (album review 3) – Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
28. ^ "#304 Panic! At The Disco – Magazine – Alternative Press". Alternative Press. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
29. ^ "AFI's "Burials" Debuts at #9 on "Billboard" 200". Rock 94.7. Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
30. ^ a b "AFI Exclusive Bonus Tracks with New Release". Best Buy. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
31. ^ "Burials". Apple Inc. iTunes Store Japan. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
32. ^ "Australiancharts.com – AFI – Burials". Hung Medien.
33. ^ "AFI | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
34. ^ a b c "Crash Love – AFI". Billboard. Retrieved October 10, 2009.
35. ^ "AFI Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.

* v
* t
* e

AFI

* Davey Havok
* Adam Carson
* Hunter Burgan
* Jade Puget

* Vic Chalker
* Geoff Kresge
* Mark Stopholese

Studio albums|

* Answer That and Stay Fashionable
* Very Proud of Ya
* Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes
* Black Sails in the Sunset
* The Art of Drowning
* Sing the Sorrow
* Decemberunderground
* Crash Love
* Burials
* AFI
* Bodies

Live albums|

* Eddie Picnic's All Wet
* I Heard a Voice – Live from Long Beach Arena

Compilation albums|

* AFI

Extended plays|

* Dork
* Behind the Times
* Fly in the Ointment
* A Fire Inside
* Black Sails
* All Hallow's
* The Days of the Phoenix
* The Missing Man

Singles|

* "The Days of the Phoenix"
* "Girl's Not Grey"
* "The Leaving Song Pt. II"
* "Silver and Cold"
* "Head Like a Hole"
* "Miss Murder"
* "Love Like Winter"
* "The Missing Frame"
* "Medicate"
* "Beautiful Thieves"
* "I Hope You Suffer"
* "17 Crimes"
* "Snow Cats"
* "Looking Tragic / Begging for Trouble"

Related articles|

* Discography
* "Prelude 12/21"
* Blaqk Audio
* XTRMST
* Dreamcar

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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