Desert Storm - Omens

Desert Storm - Omens

APF Records / Purple Sage PR - April 2020

Sludge, stoner, progressive, doom

Rated: ****

Since 2008's self-titled LP, Desert Storm have been a national treasure of the UK heavy scene with their thunderous mix of sludge, stoner, and southern rock, and their sixth effort Omens sees them firing on all creative cylinders. Following 2018's crushing "Sentinels", Omens adds even more layers of atmosphere and progressive technicality, and succeeds in the impressive task of balancing raw, touching emotion with unrelenting heaviness. The titular spoken word intro sets the scene with eerie rhymes and occult vibes, and then the gates are blown open with the massive, roiling riffs and venomous bellows of "Black Bile". The low end divebombs in Torche fashion between the twin guitar attack's jarring grooves, all grounded by pulverizing drumwork. It's no small feat to compete with this wall of sound, but the agile vocals prove more than up to the task, taking charge with a wide range of growls, melodic cleans, and sludgy roars that add an emotional weight and element of storytelling to take the music's impact to another level. This is most apparent on following track "Vengeful Gods", a tale of struggle against an ancient evil told over pummeling riffage and atmospheric keys that make the threat feel all too real. The expertly crafted songwriting is maintained throughout the rest of Omens, with passages of slower, haunting melancholy peppered in to offset the band's earth-shaking assault. Desert Storm are at the top of their game on Omens, a powerfully affecting record that sees them continuing to evolve and experiment even after twelve years, to devastating results.

(Written by Shasta Beast)

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