This is the third album from US doom/post-metal band Aequorea.
Spread out over five engaging tracks, Departure is a 41-minute amalgamation of doom, post-metal, sludge, and blackened elements. This is my first encounter with Aequorea, but they make a good impression.
Departure‘s musical components are fused together well, each one informing and supporting the other. The songs are textured and layered with feeling. Whether this presents as walls of emotive distortion that crash down on the listener, or as a garden of introspective post-rock delights, Aequorea’s music never lacks for rich feeling.
The music is well-composed and executed. Aequorae make good use of structuring to let the music breathe and expand into the places it wants to go. There’s a dynamic and emotive energy here that’s infectious, even at the music’s darkest. Despite the focus on longer, doomy, immersive formats, there’s a sense of classic songwriting that sits at the heart of these tracks. You can pick up on 70s and 80s influences that colour the melodies and rhythms, lending the music a catchy/hooky edge that’s absent from much post-metal/doom/sludge of this variety – essentially a deathrock aspect of sorts, at least in places. It works well, making for songs that are instantly appealing, while also deepening their impact through compelling substance.
Finally, I just want to highlight the guitars. They are the driving force across Departure, whether delivering hugely captivating riffs, (that are frequently very hummable too), bright winding melodies, or liquid metal solos, the guitars are really a massive asset to the songs.
I suppose, if you think of Departure as a mix of bands such as Neurosis, Atriarch, In the Company of Serpents, Paradise Lost, Isis, Generation of Vipers, and Usnea, you’ll be on the right lines. Aequorea have a personality of their own though, despite these reference points, and Departure is an enjoyable and satisfying slab of emotive heaviness.
Very highly recommended.
Wonderbox Metal 