Blackened doom metal trio DESICCATION will release their new full-length album, Legatum Mortuorum, on May 15th via Carbonized Records. The band also dropped a new track, “The Alchemy Of Grief.”
About DESICCATION
Coming out of Nevada City and Sacramento, California, DESICCATION formed in 2022. The band consists of husband and wife team James Bratt (guitars, vocals, synths) and Soell Bratt (vocals), alongside Patrick Hills (drums, bass, synths, background vocals).
They mix doom, death, black, and post-metal. Their sound paints a bleak picture, with glimmers of hope in the wake of collapsing nations and burning ecosystems. Inspired by bands like Emperor, Evoken, and Blut Aus Nord, James and Soell Bratt grew up in the solitude of Northern California’s forests. This collective focuses on doom-driven weight, patience, and repetition, creating atmospheric extremity rooted in black and death metal. Expect ritual, grief, and transcendence through layered sounds.
Legatum Mortuorum Details
On Legatum Mortuorum, blasting drums and tremolo guitars shift into spacious, slow riffs and synths. Lyrically, it deals with loss and grief, but also moments of transcendence. Aggression, beauty, hope, and hopelessness all weave together, pulling inner experience into the outer world.
The album builds on their 2022 debut, Cold Dead Earth. It adds deeper synth layers over more aggressive black/death riffing. The emotive melodies and sludgy death-doom elements are still there, but now with a stronger extreme metal backbone. All three members contribute vocals, fitting their long-form songwriting.
Ahead of the release, the band dropped “The Alchemy Of Grief.” They said,
“Grief is non-negotiable. The depth of our grief mirrors the depth of our love for one another, and those we’ve lost.”
Legatum Mortuorum was composed and arranged by James Bratt in Nevada City. Patrick Hills tracked, mixed, and mastered it at his EarthTone Studios in Sacramento. Cover art is by MFAXII, inner artwork by Blial Cabal, and audio sigil by View From the Coffin.
The record also features guest appearances: Alex Miletich (Vile Rites, Mortuous) plays lead guitar on the title track. Karl Cordtz (Feral Season, Chrch) provides additional vocals on “The Alchemy Of Grief,” “Ashes Unto The Abyss,” and “Lamentations Beyond The Veil,” plus additional guitar on “Lamentations Beyond The Veil.”
You’ll find the record on CD, LP, cassette, and digital. Preorders are available now.
Legatum Mortuorum Track Listing:
- All Light Is Gone
- Cursed In Cold Silence
- Legatum Mortuorum
- The Alchemy Of Grief
- Ashes Unto The Abyss
- Lamentations Beyond The Veil
DESICCATION Lineup:
- James Bratt – guitars, vocals, synths
- Soell Bratt – vocals
- Patrick Hills – drums, bass, synths, background vocals
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