Rareform [LP]

The Twin Cities' metal mavens, After the Burial, up the ante on their sophomore release, RAREFORM. Featuring a panoply of dizzying guitar riffs, mid-range yowls, and ever shifting staccato breakdowns, the eight epic tracks on RAREFORM meld melodic, technical, and death metal in new mutations. Grant Luoma ably replaces the original frontman Nick Wellman--who left amiciably before the RAREFORM sessions--with a gritty mid-range yowl that cuts through Justin Lowe and Trent Hafdahl's twin guitar work on tracks like the gymnastic opener "Berserker" and the near radio-friendly "Aspiration."