{"id":314489,"date":"2026-03-05T15:35:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T15:35:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/314489\/"},"modified":"2026-03-05T15:35:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T15:35:15","slug":"desert-storm-buried-under-the-weight-of-reason-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/314489\/","title":{"rendered":"Desert Storm – Buried Under the Weight of Reason Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"For nearly two decades, Desert Storm has stood at the cornerstone of England\u2019s fuzz-drenched underground. One can imagine my surprise, then, to find that I claim the first review of their catalog here. The group\u2019s maturation has been a process of trial and error, evolving from smoky, blues-soaked stoner and southern rock roots into a heftier, sludgy, doom-infused form. Despite the unevenness of the Oxford outfit\u2019s earlier efforts\u2014Forked Tongues and Horizontal Life\u2014Desert Storm\u2019s more recent output (specifically Sentinels and Omens) found that sweet spot where sludge, doom, and stoner rock collide. While 2023\u2019s Death Rattle saw these lads largely revisiting their old psychedelic ways, their seventh record, Buried Under the Weight of Reason, reverses course with a Saharan surge of down-tuned, resonant grooves and explosive riff drops poised to shatter many a bong.<\/p>\n

As the opening notes of \u201cNewfound Respect\u201d hit, Buried Under the Weight of Reason reveals itself as a blunter, more dynamic beast than its predecessors. The guitars have thickened into a sludge\/doom\/stoner hybrid of epic proportions, blending Boss Keloid-like phrasing (\u201cRot to Ruin,\u201d \u201cNewfound Respect\u201d) with Baronessian textures (\u201cTwelve Seasons,\u201d \u201cLaw Unto Myself\u201d) and even the occasional djenty chug (\u201cCut Your Teeth,\u201d \u201cRot to Ruin\u201d). Huge, low-slung riffs drive Desert Storm\u2019s definitive songwriting pattern. Songs lurch between stampeding verses and clean, crestfallen bridges, often featuring playful bass flourishes and blues refrains. Elliot Cole\u2019s drums hit with massive, tom-forward authority. Each booming strike fuses with new bassist Andrew Keyzor (ex-Beard of Zeuss), carving deep pockets on tracks like \u201cWoodsman\u201d and \u201cShamanic Echoes.\u201d By the time the first few tracks roll by, it\u2019s obvious that Buried Under the Weight of Reason finds Desert Storm operating squarely in their wheelhouse.<\/p>\n

DESERT STORM \u2013 Buried Under The Weight Of Reason by HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS Records<\/a><\/p>\n

Desert Storm commits to a single mission on Buried Under the Weight of Reason: delivering crushing, irresistible grooves from start to finish. Though lesser bands often bail on a great hook too early, Desert Storm has the confidence to lock in and let a sequence breathe like a fine wine, avoiding the common pitfall of over-complicating a riff before it reaches its zenith. Their controlled songwriting approach shines on the \u201cWoodsman\u201d and \u201cShamanic Echoes,\u201d where the group adds nuance through minimalist, hook-heavy phrasing that feels both exciting and fresh. \u201cRot to Ruin\u201d and \u201cCut Your Teeth\u201d utilize spacious, bluesy transitions to reset the listener\u2019s palate before building toward massive payoffs. The latter succeeds because the quartet holds back, patiently waiting for the precise moment to strike with a mammoth closing riff. The album closes with \u201cTwelve Seasons,\u201d a standout track that balances technical complexity and eccentricity with Desert Storm\u2019s conviction to mine every ounce of a groove\u2019s energy until it runs bone-dry.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Matthew Ryan\u2019s vocals have historically been Desert Storm\u2019s hollow point, but on Buried Under the Weight of Reason, they arrive with a newfound polish and reliability. Hitting with a grizzled, Crowbar-like growl, Ryan provides a solid\u2014albeit largely safe\u2014foundation that underpins Desert Storm\u2019s low-frequency bulk. While Ryan\u2019s vocals struggle to elevate the plethora of high-caliber riffs, they sit comfortably in the mix, serving their purpose without overreaching. Inconsistencies surface, however, on \u201cWoodsman,\u201d where mechanical chanting feels like a unique angle tripped up by its own peculiarity. More jarring is \u201cDripback,\u201d where Ryan\u2019s barking cadence feels a bit too unhinged, overshadowing an otherwise great groove. Beyond the vocal performance, the compressed mix masks the finer nuances\u2014like the cowbell on \u201cTwelve Seasons\u201d\u2014and the quartet\u2019s commitment to the almighty riff sometimes results in songs feeling overextended. While Desert Storm\u2019s \u201cgroove-first\u201d philosophy is surely their strength, it leads to some bloat on the record\u2019s longer cuts (\u201cRot to Ruin,\u201d \u201cShamanic Echoes\u201d). Additionally, the inclusion of the interlude \u201cCarry the Weight\u201d feels pointless in the context of the album\u2019s flow.<\/p>\n

But for Desert Storm, Buried Under the Weight of Reason is a cause for celebration. By knowing and staying largely within their established limits, the group has created not only a good record, but easily their best to date. While it occasionally oversteps its bounds or struggles to maintain its momentum, the songwriting and groove are infectious enough to have every head in the club bobbing in unison. Their sharpest effort to date, with enough weight to kill an elephant, Buried Under the Weight of Reason is a damn good time and a reminder that sometimes, that\u2019s all a record needs to be.<\/p>\n

Rating: Very Good!
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb\/s mp3
Label: Heavy Psych Sounds<\/a>
Websites: desertstorm.bandcamp.com\/music<\/a> | desertstormband.com<\/a> | facebook.com\/desertstormuk<\/a>
Releases Worldwide: March 6th, 2026<\/p>\n

\n\tGive in to Your Anger:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For nearly two decades, Desert Storm has stood at the cornerstone of England\u2019s fuzz-drenched underground. One can imagine…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":314490,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[2246,837,45228,170734,86241,27571,170735,55017,170736,18333,156,170737,170095,157,111,139,69,762,763,78821,20092],"class_list":{"0":"post-314489","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-2246","9":"tag-3-5","10":"tag-baroness","11":"tag-beard-of-zeuss","12":"tag-boss-keloid","13":"tag-british-metal","14":"tag-buried-under-the-weight-of-reason","15":"tag-crowbar","16":"tag-desert-storm","17":"tag-doom-metal","18":"tag-entertainment","19":"tag-heavy-psych-sounds","20":"tag-mar26","21":"tag-music","22":"tag-new-zealand","23":"tag-newzealand","24":"tag-nz","25":"tag-review","26":"tag-reviews","27":"tag-sludge-metal","28":"tag-stoner-rock"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/314490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}