Black Metallers ANCIENT have set the release date for their long awaited 7th studio album, “BACK TO THE LAND OF THE DEAD“, the follow up to 2004’s NIGHT VISIT. The album will be released September 16th in North America via (Megadeth bassist David Ellefson’s) EMP UNDERGROUND/EMP LABEL GROUP, and in the rest of the World by SOULSELLER RECORDS.
The album is currently available for pre-order (in North America only) from EMP LABEL GROUP at EMP Merch, in various CD, LP and bundle configurations, with a European pre-order to follow.
The band has released the first track “Land of The Dead” for streaming on Bandcamp.
Formed in Bergen, Norway in 1992, ANCIENT was born as a solo project of guitarist Zel (pka Aphazel ) quickly developing into a full band with drummer/ vocalist Grimm. Ancient rapidly made their mark on the extreme Metal underground with the 1993 release of their now cult demo tape Eerily Howling Winds, followed by the 7” Det Glemte Riket in 1994.
Ancient quickly established an underground following with their own dark and atmospheric style of metal, displayed on their LISTENABLE / OSMOSE debut Svartalvheim, today considered a classic album in extreme metal. Shortly after having been approached by METAL BLADE RECORDS, Zel signed a 5 album contract, moved to the USA and recruited LORD KAIAPHAS as the new vocalist.
1996 saw the release of THE CAINIAN CHRONICLE, an album filled with big guitars and cold atmospheres, accompanied with female vocals by Kimberly Goss and Kjetil on drums. Chronicle also went on to be considered a defining classic in the genre. A video to “Lilith’s Embrace” saw regular rotation on MTV and the band embarked on a European tour.
In the 2 decades that followed, ANCIENT has continued to evolve and grow as a staple of the Extreme Metal Underground, releasing a string of critically acclaimed albums on Metal Blade capped off with 2004’s “Night Visit“. Now with a current lineup including legendary drummer Nick Barker (ex-Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir), Ancient returns from a twelve year studio hiatus to release BACK TO THE LAND OF THE DEAD, their long awaited latest opus exclusively in North America from David Ellefson’s (Megadeth) EMP UNDERGROUND/EMP LABEL GROUP, and in Europe through SOULSELLER RECORDS.
The awakening of the spiritually dead is about to begin. The ancient ones are coming…
