Desert Storm: Poetry In Sludge
Oxfordshire riff conjurers DESERT STORM have been delivering heavy weight rhythms and colossal sounds for the past nineteen years. Since their debut album, 2010s Forked Tongues, they’ve harnessed a sound that draws inspiration from stoner, doom, southern rock and pure adrenaline pumping rock ’n’ roll. Consistently delivering on subsequent albums such as Omniscient, Sentinels and Death Rattle from 2023. This latter release saw them coalesce their sound into a tight, unstoppable punch. Hugely powerful and utterly crushing yet with a balanced refinement running throughout.
2024 saw them take to the main stage of Bloodstock with their biggest gig to date. Following an excellent run with APF Records, 2026 sees them sign with Heavy Psych Sounds and releasing their new hard-hitting album Buried Under the Weight of Reason.
Being wary to not fall into the all-too-common trope of how the latest release is our best release, Elliot Cole is nevertheless keen to stress how excited DESERT STORM are about the new album. “We feel that that the songs are stronger and the production is fatter,” He explains with a smiler when referring to the development in sound from previous release, Death Rattle. For those familiar with the band’s discography will be aware that DESERT STORM are not ones to sit still in one genre, often incorporating elements of blues, rock progressiveness as well as the sludgy end of heavy.
“Our earlier stuff was more in that vein (when we discuss the blues influence). Then we got heavier, this record strikes a nice balance. It still has that blues and the heavy as well as the progressive side of it.” It is ultimately an album of enormous fun, ticking a lot of the genre boxes that many associate with DESERT STORM, and Elliot concludes, “we like to think that there’s something for everyone on there.”
Something that gives a lot of credence to the DESERT STORM sound is the way they incorporate authenticity, emotion and even vulnerability balanced with all-out heavy weight attack. While the musicality is capable of handling the crushing sonic presence, delivering riffs and rhythms that are as powerful as they are catchy, Elliot is quick to highlight and laud singer Matthew Ryan for the depth that DESERT STORM create. “The emotive weight comes down to the lyrics and Matt…he’s great at bringing that out into the songs.”
Going deeper into this and the creative process for the album: “A lot of it will come from a singular riff that we will then collectively work on, or sometimes someone will come in with a fully formed idea. In terms of music we write what we think sounds cool and then go from there. Lyrical themes though, those come down to Matt.” Discussing how the context and narrative of the lyrics are developed from the music, Elliot is confident in stating that that is the realm of Matt and his pen. “It comes from what he’s feeling. He’ll sit there quite often with a pen and paper and just listen to what we’re playing.” With his creativity rooted in this style, it’s small wonder that the lyrics seamlessly mirror the sound, yet are also able to conjure up deeply intense emotive weight. “He’s like a poet, a poet in a heavy metal band,” Elliot summarises with a smile.
There is an organic and genuine nature to the music of DESERT STORM. This comes to the fore on Buried Under the Weight of Reason. At times, the elements of songwriting, musicianship and production are all aligned to deliver a combined sound that encapsulates a band in an almost live setting. “This album is definitely more bass heavy compared to anything we’ve done in the past,” is how Elliot references the production. “It’s a more distorted bass tone, the last few albums have had a cleaner bass tone and we’re really happy with how it’s come out.” Speaking about the finished mix with a broad smile, “we’ve always wondered about a record in the past, have we quite got our live sound. Now, on this one, we feel we’ve captured as close as possible what we sound like live.”
For any band that creates heavy music incorporating sludge and doom, it’s important to stay grounded in the riffs without the music becoming convoluted and stagnating. One expert way that DESERT STORM use to navigate this potential pitfall is track listing. “We will listen to the album in multiple different orders to see which flows the best and doesn’t get stagnated. There are quite a few albums out there where you can get say three songs in and it starts to lose you.” While obvious attention to track listing is not revolutionary, the fact that DESERT STORM dedicate a lot of time and effort to getting it right is noteworthy. They also take time to consider the flip side of the process. As Elliot is quick to point out, “you have to be careful, because while you’re avoiding similarity, you don’t want to have songs together that sound so different it’s almost like different bands.”
With a humble admission, “I think we might have been guilty of something like that in the past, but certainly these last four albums we’ve improved upon it.” With 19 years under their belt, the band could be forgiven for playing it safe and continuing to tour and record based on a well-established formula. However, the dedication they show collectively to both songwriting and album formulation shows signs of not only continuing development but also an unwavering enthusiasm for what they do. They take nothing for granted and are keen to bring their sound to as many people as possible.
Buried Under The Weight Of Reason is out now via Heavy Psych Sounds Records. View this interview, alongside dozens of other killer bands, in glorious print magazine fashion in DS128 here.
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