It's such a rare pleasure to be randomly assigned your favorite track to premiere from an album, especially from an album you've been waiting for for a while. In retrospect, Dessiderium (the project of one Alex Hadad, who also plays in Nullingroots), can be placed firmly within an emerging and, to my knowledge, disconnected micro-genre of super busy, heavy, and progressive death and black metal. The main touch point here is Christian Cosentino, who no, I won't shut up about, and the upcoming Dessiderium release (titled Keys to the Palace) solidifies that connection even further. It is an ambitious and sweeping sort of album, a work of many layers and progressive exuberance. In the words of Hadad himself, it "reaches for triumph", which is such a beautiful way to describe music. Check out "In the Midst of May", the opening track from the album, for what this all sounds like!
What can I say? I am thoroughly in love with this track and album. That "reaching for triumph" that is quoted above rings so true, especially for this track; the synths in the background, the endless agility of the bass, the mix of harsh and clean vocals, even the track name itself, all speak to a rising and uncontainable energy and light. And yet, the track stays uncompromisingly heavy through out, once again calling forth Cosentino to our mind (listen to this track and tell me you don't hear the connection). However, Hadad has his own unique voice (literally) on this one, going even deeper into progressive rock influences and ideas, which further lend Keys to the Palace a hard to resist sheen and verve.
The end result is a challenging and intensely maximalist album but also one which is spell binding in its richness. It has shot right to the top of my releases for 2025 so far and I can't wait for you to hear it when it drops on March 14th. For now, head on over to Dessiderium's Bandcamp below to pre-order this scintillating beast; you do not want to miss it.