Burner: The Doom-Fueled Metallers Soundtracking a Chaotic World
For anyone furious about the state of the world, London band Burner offer a welcome – and unsparing – blast of catharsis. Formed in 2021, the four-piece released their debut single Ingsoc later that year, combining scrambling hardcore punk drums, face-scrunching death metal riffs and aptly Orwellian lyrics. It was produced by Lewis Johns (Rolo Tomassi, Svalbard, Ithaca) and released on Church Road, the label founded by Justine Jones and Sammy Urwin of metalcore brutes Employed to Serve: all beloveds in the UK underground.
From Debut to Acclaim
Their 2023 album It All Returns to Nothing expanded into post-metal, black metal and grindcore, but kept the band’s incensed heart beating in overdrive. Now preparing to put out follow-up No One Is Coming to Save Us, Burner have collected more impressive endorsements. They have played 20,000-capacity Midlands festival Bloodstock Open Air and supported death metal veterans Deicide.
Intense Lyrics and Guest Appearances
It’s even more impressive when you consider the intensity of their lyrics. Singer Harry Nott predicts a nuclear holocaust on recent single Sunrise, Parabellum, which features guest screams from Matt Heafy of US arena-fillers Trivium. And Blood River condemns humanity’s violent ways, snarling, “In this endless war for territory, everybody bleeds!”
A Soundtrack for Descent into Chaos
In a time of fury over the climate crisis, global conflicts and the upper classes hoarding increasing amounts of wealth, Burner are a welcome blast of catharsis. They won’t save the world, but they’re an apt soundtrack as it descends into chaos.
This Week’s Best New Tracks
Brennan Wedl – Pretty Little Fantasy: Your new alt-rock obsession: meeting at the snarling midpoint of Courtney Love and Lucinda Williams, the Minnesota native seethes at gender norms on this instant-classic grunge ripper (co-produced by Waxahatchee and featuring guitar from Snail Mail).
Ravyn Lenae – Saturday Night: In the sweetest of spots between Italo disco and Rhythm Nation-era Janet Jackson, this is pop for spinning around to with your eyes closed, and deserves to be even bigger than her breakout hit Love Me Not.
Desire – Summer Skin: It feels illegal to listen to Johnny Jewel and Megan Louise’s return without a spritz, a Vogue cigarette and an infinity pool. House piano and a bongo breakdown raise a toast to seasonal sensuality – and ephemerality.
Beabadoobee – Sun Has Set: Following the No 1 success of 2024 dreampop album This Is How Tomorrow Moves, the British singer-songwriter has hired the cream of alt-rock for the follow-up (Hayley Williams, Turnstile, Deftones, Basement et al) – and she really chimes with the squalling groove-emo here.
deBasement – Cut the Line (ft Nikki Nair and DJ ADHD): Forbiddingly cool woman recites withering club dispatches in a deadpan, substance-addled rasp as blown-out bass rattles the walls? Sign me up! From ketamine casualties to line-cutters, the narrative is actually surprisingly gripping.
Cold Light – Riot: This is a collective spanning Portland, Bristol, London and Hungary, with a similarly broad stylistic range: dub-minded ambient hip-hop thrumming around riveting rapped soliloquies about wayward youth.
The Tubs – Who’s Gonna Love You Now?: Frontman Owen Williams gives himself a lovingly stern talking-to, floundering between commitment and endless fresh starts – set to hurtling powerpop, all ducking, diving guitars and twinkling festivity.
