Hertfordshire death metal thrashers, Burdensome, bring the excitement wherever they play. They feel the power of every riff, maximise the adrenaline with every triplet, and let their guts throb with every growl. And yet they don’t repeat the cliché of turning their music into a death metal makeover of Scorpions and UFO (ahem, Sweden, we’re speaking to you). Four years in the making, their debut EP contains tracks that the local scene know from their live shows, and they bring them together in an official release for the first time. This band are proud that their art is “oppressively heavy”, but it’s not oppressively technical. As with London’s Phobetor, they show that extreme metal can enthrall if handled in the right way.
Ringing chords and a powerful count in from the hi-hat accelerate the adrenaline before the crisp snares form their first beat in ‘Damaged Deliverance’. Declan O’Hara’s guttural voice has a wonderful zest to it with a sustained emphasis on prolonging the agonising pain of each word. Unlike most of today’s death metal, Burdensome are gruesome and exhilarating. Listen to the half-timing chorus and guitar triplets receive their dues from the double-kick pedal of Joey Lovette as fingers pull off strings in fast movements and embroider the gaps with murderous delight. The structure is not obvious on first listen, but neither is this song a maze.
The band’s Carcass and early Opeth influences prevent them from seeking comfort in traditional formulas. Nonetheless, ‘Terminal Misery’ reveals their thrash metal instincts and a head-banging fury that’ll leave you with tense limbs. Here, the plectrum action is sharper than laser eye surgery. Owen Palmer lends his malevolence to the vocals with the relish of a retired assassin called back into duty. Listen how the two axemen harmonise in the middle-eight as the bass guitar holds the low-end with imaginative finger dexterity on the mid-range frets. Glimpses of Gojira furnish your hands with the desire to thrash at an air guitar. Pinch harmonics squeal in ecstasy. There’s no mindless shredding here.
By contrast, ‘Grief Leech’ works through the rapid double-kick rhythms with a dual vocal approach. Close your eyes and it could be a hardcore band paying homage to the death metal greats. Here, the tremolo riffs maintain a high state of tension with the promise of finding a release, but Burdensome are not in the habit of giving you what you expect. Observe how the drummer takes control of the direction like a marcher lord leading his troops to a new city. The biggest insult would be to call this “melodic death metal” on the basis that they put thought into their solos and appreciate flamboyance. Let’s be clear: this is from the Chuck Schuldiner school of metal. Each component received an obsessive attention to detail and went through many stages of refinement before they made them seamless. Apart from the bass, the audio mix is crystal clear in the clarity of each instrument.
Burdensome know their purpose is to annihilate the listener, but they exhibit their progressive influences with pride on the closing title-track by combining thrash extravagance with the precision of Norwegian masters, Blood Red Throne. It’s also the only time Declan O’Hara dares to try a clean voice, and it seems hesitant at first and content to hide among the catacombs. You’ll find its emotional vulnerability more effective on the second and third listen once you understand its place in the overall song. His roaring aggression in full-throttle mode is flawless, just as the choice of chords in the outro is imaginative in its use of neo-jazz intervals flattened under an automaton of down-picking chugs.
They took four years to produce Hell is Dark. Imagine what they could do with eight years if they set their sights on a double album for their next release.
Kirk Houghton
Verdict
Release Date: 23/04/2026
Record Label: Self-released
Standout tracks: Damaged Deliverance; Grief Leech
Suggested Further Listening: Carcass – Despicable EP (2020), Overtoun – This Darkness Feels Alive (2021), Catharsis – Human Failures (2021)