MAERE - ...And The Universe Keeps Silent
April 16, 2024, a week ago
(Transcending Obscurity)
Transcending Obscurity Records is coming out hot here with new ones from Replicant and Maere both leaning heavy into left-field Gorguts/Ulcerate/Immolation-worshipping territory.
Replicant totally nailed it, heavy on the Gorguts side of things, while Germany's Maere are dirtier and down in the caves more here on their debut.
Opener “All Those Things We've Never Been (The Grandeur Of Nihilism)” is enormous, eight minutes of subterranean terror, like a crustier Immolation, like Incantation's rawest and slowest points, all atmosphere and mood, and I'm here for it. With only five (long) songs here, the band wastes no time in crafting that mood, and it's suffocating, man, the roof is sinking in, the riffs are sideways because I can't breathe, the blastbeats are welcome to keep my heart beating during the extended periods of 0 bpm sludge DM.
“Traumlande (Ascending The Abyss)” has a hynpotic vocal part that is actually memorable, and also just plain weird, Maere's personality shining through, and it's awesome. I wanna say post-metal, but not really, just building a wall of sound, using repetition and heaviness as cinema as much as anything, every one of these songs worth investing some time in, especially album highlight “The Darkness Is Your Mother”, ridiculous drumming, skronky guitar solo, mood and atmosphere for miles.
I don't give out a lot of 9s these days, but Transcending Obscurity just released two of 'em.
