Maelstrom is a 5-piece band out of Glasgow, Scotland. They formed in 2006 and this is their debut release that already has been released by themselves in 2008, but has been re-released by Casket Music in the end of 2009.

This self-released album called The Shores At Dawn is an o.k. introduction of this black/doom/folk-metal influenced band. Maelstrom was named second best unsigned band by Terrorizer magazine in 2008. All though this album doesn’t sound bad at all, I have my doubts about the choice of Terrorizer.
 

This band is a mix of more keyboard orientated doom-bands like Morning Beloveth and old My Dying Bride, mixed with some folky keyboard parts and a dose of black-metal, especially vocal wise it is considered black-metal. It all sounds professional and smooth, but somehow I miss energy and a real dark, raw vibe to get me really into a dark, melancholic vibe, this music is suppose to give you!
 

They have some nice ideas worked out into some o.k. songs, but overall this disc sounds like moody, doomy wallpaper. In some songs the keyboards are too much in front of the mix. A band that comes in mind is Keep Of Kalessin, they have almost the same approach. One of the better songs is ‘With War We Wander’, which has a moody, doomy intro to transfer in a heavy, folky black/doom-metal song.
 

This is already an older release, so perhaps in the meantime this band has grown a lot, because they have nice ideas, but on this disc it didn’t sound matured enough to really convince me.