EP Review: Would You Look The Other Way by Burn Slow
EP artwork for Would You Look The Other Way by Burn Slow
From making vocal appearances on the albums of Saltwound, 156/Silence, No Cure and many more, to being the appointed tour photographer for Lorna Shore, and also being the frontman of Beautiful Child of God, Nick Chance has gone from being “that guy who just does a lot of features” to “that guy who can do it all, and he does it fucking well.”
In the earlier part of 2026, Nick teased that he was working on yet another project; a collective where they’d write the music that they wanted alongside being in other bands. It was promised to us a thousand years ago that we needed to prepare ourselves for something exciting, but no amount of meticulous preparation could’ve got us ready for Burn Slow’s debut EP, “Would You Look The Other Way.” Written between vocalist, Nick Chance, and guitarist, Gabe Moya, the pair have tackled a multitude of ways of asking the same question, “If you’re dissatisfied with your circumstances, are you going to sit and wallow surrounded by your own despair, or are you going to do something about it and look the other way?”
Both musicians wrote the lyrical and instrumental parts of the record while moving home, and even while being on the road with other bands, and the dedication to producing something that you’d swear was created in perfect conditions is to be applauded. With a runtime of only 15 minutes, it would be easy even for an untrained ear to detect pockets of faltered quality, but Burn Slow have produced an astounding record to shake up the modern metalcore scene.
If fortification was required before pressing play, it would’ve been a wasted effort as the intro track, Tunnel Vision, will obliterate whatever defences you’d laid down with no mercy. It’s 2 and a half minutes of sheer aggression, perfectly setting the expectations for the next 5 tracks. You may find yourself focusing on the riffs that sound as though they’re bludgeoning something to death, until you’re blindsided by the catastrophic vocals delivered by Nick as he showcases just how much versatility he contains in those pipes. From brick wall Hardcore tones all the way through to embodying a creature risen from a nuclear fallout, his range effortlessly complements the instrumentals while unapologetically putting the fear of God in you when you least expect it. Panic sounds lie just below the surface as though they’re an intruder plotting in the shadows, mocking you as you fight for your life to subdue the fire burning in the corners of your chest. Accompanied by an unrelenting command of, “Do it, bitch.” which taunts you to disrupt your surroundings with chaotic mosh moves that you’ve made up on the spot. While you’re faced with back-to-back elements that make you have a knee-jerk reaction, the real surprise comes when guitarist, Gabe, enters with clean vocals so haunting, they turn the atmosphere from a battlefield into a paranormal trap.
If you’re a lover not a fighter, well, you’d better glove up and prepare to get your ass beaten because Embrace Me lays upon the foundation of the bodies of devastating riffs that might get your furniture to start swinging at you. The intro immediately launches into assault mode, quickly followed by machine gun tremolo picking with just as much power and destruction pushing behind it. The harrowing screams used to hold up the thickness of the track elevate and intensify the feelings of urgency and determination. Gabe once again brings that devious sound into the mix, as both vocalists instil contradicting feelings into your nervous system. Where Gabe’s voice acts as a mediator amongst the chaos, Nick’s ground-opening power rips apart any feeble sense of peace. Expect to feel your heartbeat drastically fluctuating as you become victim to the push and pull of what encapsulates you. Every riff and phrase is fuelled by fury, as though drenched in chemicals, and all you are is a victim waiting for the explosion that will bring flames and smoke down around you. Then it hits. The skull-caving, caveman stomp-inducing beatdown at the end is sure to turn any venue into a warzone and gain a multitude of noise complaints from passers by.
“Would You Look The Other Way” is yet another rendition of the creative mastermind that is Nick Chance. It’s apparent that everything he touches is done with deliberation and passion and time and time again we bare witness to all that he has to offer, while somehow always finding the right musicians to embark on the same journey, becoming a collective of minds that each accentuate the vision and bring it to life in ways that no one could have expected. What we see throughout this EP is not a band that are being heavy just for the sake of being heavy, rather they’ve entered into the ring of an over-saturated genre and made a purposeful mark with conviction. There’s weight, burdens, and accountability being carried triumphantly throughout the 5 tracks, and each one of them has a well-deserved place in the modern scene because when you put them together, the result is a debut EP overflowing with potential and breeding anticipation. The overarching statement of the record will resonate with listeners as an eye-opener and motivation, which further proves the need for modern music to be underlined with messages that are hard to swallow at times, rather than an abundance of bands finding a slightly different way to scream about how their life sucks. Burn Slow is a project that’s going to be added to the “Please, don’t let this be a one-off.” list, not because it’s attributed to a well-known and well-loved individual who already makes waves, but because the band as a whole have broken the idea that modern metalcore needs to follow the same formulaic recipe in order for it to be palatable. When a debut EP comes with the calibre that is contained in “Would You Look The Other Way”, it’s impossible not to want authentic art being continually put into the scene.
FFO: Orthodox, Moodring, Chamber
SCORE: 8/10
Would You Look The Other way is out now on all streaming platforms, released independently.
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