Death's Storm, Unleashed: Maestus Conjures Doom on "Deliquesce"

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What was your first time on a boat like? Did you look down at the rippling current, imagining the horror of going overboard? Did you stare across the horizon, falling in love with the seemingly edgeless expanse? Or maybe you sat down, knocked back a beer and appreciated the tranquility and solitude? For me, I listen to the title track of Maestus’s second full-length Deliquesce, and the dizzying ebb and flow of my first time on the ocean returns, including my worst fears too. As the blasting climax of “Deliquesce” takes hold, brothers Stephen and Kenneth Parker narrate the storm that I see crashing around my meager vessel.

If “Deliquesce” liquefies the senses and drowns you in fear, “The Impotence of Hope” rather ironically allows the sun to poke through the clouds and present the next day. Mountainous chords — primed and lathered with Sarah Beaulieu’s cold, synthesized strings — offer that uneasy optimism that comes with the new morning. The younger Parker’s uplifting vocals even seem to hold your hand through those first hours. But the clouds and the downpour return — a Bolt Thrower groove plays the harbinger once more and drummer Cordell Cline thrashes all semblances of calm as the track nears its end. Hypothermic, greyscale death/doom is the glue that Maestus uses to adhere these evocative vignettes and scenes, and those cinematic moments transform Deliquesce into something more than a mere Peaceville-worship show. They’re rewardingly littered throughout the record, offering dishonest calm, oppressive crescendos, and the occasional merciful respite.

Deliquesce is a downer among downers, one that you’ll want to take over and over again. Check out an exclusive early full stream of the entire album below.

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Deliquesce releases Friday via code666.

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