This EP must be kind of a snack before they dish up a new album. There are six songs on this disc of which only one is really new, recorded in 1999. This song, Enthralled, shows Extol's at the top of their strength. They play technical deathmetal but in this song they are closer to blackmetal than ever with shrieking vocals and some faster than fast passages. The second song (The Prodigal Son) was a song previously released on the Japanese version of the Burial album only. The death grunt vocalizing is more prominent here. Storms Of Disillusions is an old song (1997) that was not released before but it's mainly the same old technical deathmetal. Interesting, however, are the clean vocals by Ole Borud, making this song cool to hear. The last three songs on Mesmerized are industrial remixes. The first two remixes are made by Sanctum. They remixed the Burial titlesong and Renhetens Elv. The result is a bizarre potpourri of sounds. They still have the heaviness of Extol's originals but they are strangely different. The remix of Work Of Art was done by Raison D'Etre. This is ultra-orthodox industrial. I'm sure many will think this is just Extol playing in the basement while it's recorded in the room above where they have a vacuum cleaner which they forgot to pull off. You only hear bits and pieces of the band in the distance. It's unbelievable that Raison D'Etre only used original sounds! My conclusion about this album is that it's diverse and it has some great songwriting on it. I recommend any Burial to listen to Mesmerized first. What else I want to say about this EP is that the Solid State release is a special digipack version though the Endtime version has a lyrical sheet plus an extra bandphoto. Choose what you like.
Other coverage for this album
HM Magazine #81Reviewed by David BixlerAfter the tremendous success of Burial, the mighty Extol has released a very interesting EP. This version by Solid State is basically just a repackaging and U.S. release of the European version that has been available since June. What's cool is that Solid State didn't skimp on the packaging or anything, keeping the fancy digipak and great artwork. So, if you don't have the European release, you…The Phantom Tollbooth 2000Reviewed by Joe RockstrohWith some bands, you get the feeling that if you had a $10,000 stereo it would sound that much better. With Extol, there's so much in the beats, the riffs, the growls, that you really feel as if you can't get it loud enough. Considering the current glut of sub-par metal and hardcore bands that are filling the Christian market, Extol seem all the more brilliant. While the excellent Burial broke…Bandoppler 1999Reviewed by James FlorenceHoly cow! I just used the term "mind-blowing" in another review for the band Sick of Change. But I have suddenly gained a completely new perspective on that term, now that Norway's Extol has completely redefined its meaning for me. Extol turns all music to mush, as they will turn your brain into mush. Your opinion has now ceased to have any significance. Extol is truly mind-blowing in the truest…Similar sounding releases
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