Desert Storm - Omens

When Omens was unleashed on 1 May 2020, Desert Storm from Oxford carved out more than just another heavy album—they created a soundscape where doom, sludge, and prog-metal collide with emotional depth. What begins with the spoken-word whisper of the title track quickly expands into an album of weighty riffs, haunting melodies, and a tension that refuses to let go.

Tracks like “Black Bile” and “Vengeful Gods” pull you into grinding heaviness, while “Pain, Grief and Suffering” introduces unexpected space and reflection—a mellow piano bridge cutting through the weight before the guitars crash back. It’s this push-and-pull between raw power and melodic release that gives Omens its emotional backbone.

From “The Path of Most Resistance” to “The Machine,” each song builds in scope: Sabbathian grooves, progressive structures, soaring vocal lines from Matthew Ryan, and vivid dynamics contributed by Chris White, Ryan Cole, Elliot Cole, and Chris Benoist. Everything recorded and mixed by Steve “Geezer” Watkins at Woodworm Studios, then mastered by Tim Turan, so the production holds both clarity and the kind of heft this material demands.

The packaging is just as deliberate—vinyl in white with blue & black splatter, limited edition LPs, digipak CD editions with artwork by Mattias Frisk and layout by Thomas Instone. It’s tangible, physical presence matching the music’s emotional weight.

Omens isn’t easy comfort. It asks you to feel the dark, the tension, the struggle—but it also offers catharsis. As a full-length, the album shows a band stepping into its fullest form: emotional, powerful, expansive, and deeply resonant.

1. Omens
2. Black Bile
3: Vengeful Gods
4. Pain, Grief and Suffering
5. The Path of Most Resistance
6. The Machine
7. Lockjaw
8. Rebirth

Music by Desert Storm
Lyrics by Matthew Ryan

Desert Storm personnel:
Matthew Ryan - vocals
Ryan Cole - guitar
Chris White - guitar, bass, keyboards, backing vocals
Elliot Cole - drums
Chris Benoist - bass

Recorded and mixed between August and December 2019 by Steve "Geezer" Watkins at Wormwood Studios. Mastered by Tim Turan at Turan Audio, January 2020.

Artwork by Mattias Frisk. Art layout by Thomas Instone.