Evocative thought provoking yet tinged with a darkened melody that comes from the classic underground bands. David Scanlon (guitar) created Deliria in 2017 and the project has evolved into a full line-up including Adam Rupp (vocals), Brent Rockwell (guitar), Jade Forsythe (Bass), and Brandon Clevenstine (Drums). Its melancholia and bleak tones are the vital core to the new album Phantasm. Yet their music is a conundrum very much like their name. What is Deliria? Is it excitement and confusion in equal measure?
‘Yeah, that's fair. It's a mess of perception.’’
And its creation is it a project unique to your others? The need to create something different?
‘’That's our biggest motivation, to create something unique. Offering something genuine that sounds original.
It also has that unique Gothic inspired rock sound that is missing these days.
‘’Sure, Sisters of Mercy and Fields of the Nephilim are big influences on me. Not that many bands have combined that sound with extreme metal, and it creates a really nice atmosphere with the chorus laden guitars.
There is a feeling of dread within the recording.
‘’I mean, that's good to hear. First because I want to communicate those feelings in an everyday sense. And second because actually I dread the recording process. So, it's nice that comes through.
Almost an inevitability and being unable to change certain outcomes?
‘’True, we are resigned to face what the day delivers. On occasion we might feel the drive to make the day our own, but that translates to the heavier, more powerful riffs on Phantasm or Spellcraft.
Is that where parasites within Gemini come from?
''Maybe. They are everywhere. And they masquerade around in authority.
The inspiration for sombre melodies?
''It just comes out. The closer Oblivion is very manic. A lot of these songs were revised a lot in structure, but I didn't mess with that one too much from the original drafts. I wanted it to remain a genuine flow state. It was written back in the Nausea days if it wasn't obvious.
The idea of merging the occult and the consciousness? Are they intertwined and does one influence the other through perception? Or an opened mind?
‘’Consciousness is the occult, there is no separation there. Open mind or not, reality is only changed from consciousness. Metaphysics, not the new age section in the bookstore, but it's what there is. What exists.
How do you define post black metal?
‘’In terms of how it comes out, yeah. That's what I would say too if I just came across these albums as a listener. But it used to irritate me because I don't write from that perspective. I always try to write doomy riffs. But yeah, I can't deny it sounds like post black metal, with some different influences.
The passion for extreme music and its many forms?
‘’Actually, I can hardly listen to it. But it's not so much of a choice for me.
New versus old? Are classic bands unbeatable?
‘’The advantage a classic band had was their creative mind. It's why those records were so much more unique. Now there is a complete assault on our minds, from pervasive social media and propaganda, prescription drugs, and garbage lifestyles. Anyone from the past was lucky to be able to explore more of their mind and create something worth doing. They're not unbeatable, but for the same reason AI riffs are terrible. Music communicates experiences, and most people today don't have anything to offer there.
Final thoughts and future plans?
‘’We are about to release the Phantasm album and promote that. After that, we're gonna make a pop album. Maybe.
Top 6 albums of all time
Katatonia - Dance of December Souls
Forgotten Woods - Sjel Av Natten
Shining - III: Angst
Candlemass - Nightfall
Twin Tribes - Shadows
Motorama - Alps
Fields of the Nephilim - Elizium
Amesoeurs - Amesoeurs
Rapture - Futile
Slumber - Fallout