Artist: Ancient Necromancy
Country: USA
Label: Perverse Homage
Formats: Demo CDr
Year: 2026
Eldrinacht, the sole force behind this project, is involved in a number of bands and projects, including Cult of Thaumiel, Gharmelicht, and the formidable Moonlight’s Empathy, and is also part of the American underground Black Metal institution Black Funeral. Personally, I consider Ancient Necromancy to be one of his best projects, but after the release of the debut demo in 2020 and the two splits with Pissmoon and Eishalle (both in 2021), there had been no sign of life. All of his previous work with Ancient Necromancy was released as a compilation CD via Dark Adversary Productions (owned by Azgorh of Drowning The Light) in the summer of 2024, but there was no trace of new work. Until now, that is…
What I particularly like about Ancient Necromancy is that the music clearly draws on different sources of inspiration, but these are brought together very naturally. The best example of this is probably the Hellhammer cover (‘Messiah’) that the band plays live. This shows that it certainly doesn’t just reap the fruits of contemporary Black Metal, with a slight leaning towards Dungeon Synth. The generally guitar-oriented sound draws on the tradition established by Darkthrone in Europe and Judas Iscariot in America, but characterizing Ancient Necromancy solely in these terms does not do it enough justice.
This new demo, which unfortunately is only available on CDr via Perverse Homage, is further proof of Eldrinacht’s excellent musical sensibility. Although there has been a five-year hiatus between the previous releases and this new demo, musically not much has changed. Once again, we are treated to fantastic musicianship that combines heavy riffs and powerful drumming with the aesthetics of Raw Black Metal. The atmosphere of 90s Black Metal and the raw production values come to life on ‘With Souls Stained, And Hearts Forever Black, We Gaze Upon…’, where it is clear that a lot of work has gone into creating songs with a solid structure. The songs are actual songs, built up from good, memorable riffs and equally catchy melodies. However, it never gets too ethereal or atmospheric; the emphasis is very clearly on the guitar work. Although I am not averse to the use of keyboards or other mood-enhancing elements, a purely guitar-based Black Metal record is never to be sneezed at. I should really say demo, but with a length of half an hour and the quality on offer, this could easily have been presented as Ancient Necromancy’s debut album.
Although it’s a shame that we had to wait five years for it, you could say, clichéd as it may be, that it was worth the wait. I eagerly look forward to Ancient Necromancy’s next revival.
