AFI’s ninth album, “Burials,” incorporates songs of multiple genres including electronic, industrial, pop and goth rock. It is also the first album to be released by AFI since 2009’s “Crash Love.” The mash-up of genres gives the album a very unfocused sound, and was a big deterrent for me.

The album starts out with the extended intro “The Sinking Night” which then leads seamlessly into the first single, “I Hope You Suffer.” Nine Inch Nails was the first thought that crossed my mind when the track started, and Davey Havok, AFI lead singer, displays a full range of vocal capabilities on the industrial track, making it one of the top three tracks on the whole album. The song also features an easy-to-remember chorus that will have you screaming along in no time.

Next up is “A Deep Slow Panic” sounding more along the lines of goth rock such as The Cure. Only a couple of tracks later comes “17 Crimes” which begins in a similar fashion and sticks to the goth rock theme.

The best track would have to be “The Embrace.” The soft intro shows no hint to the harder sound that jumps in without warning. The flow of the song is overall pleasing to the ears as well.

Another great track is “The Conductor.” This is one of the more pop tracks, but the beat is great and the vocals are strong.

The ending track, “The Face Beneath the Waves,” has a slow and depressing sound. The chorus is a little quicker and louder, but the tone is the same. It sounds like the song that would be playing during the end credits of a remade version of Titanic, or something similar.

As for the album as a whole, it is OK. It does not have one definite genre, and I would consider that a downside. They could have easily made the entire album to be along the lines of industrial rock as opposed to including pop, or the electronic, “Wild.”

Burials had hits and misses, inconsistent sound, and showed heavy influences as opposed to being really original. But, the good songs were really good.

3/5