| ANCIENT TORMENT emerged from the bleak New England winter of 2016, summoned into existence by guitarist Tormentum. For two years, the band remained cloaked in obscurity before making their live debut on Halloween night 2018 in the grimy underbelly of Olneyville. In 2019, they unleashed their first recorded offering, Satan’s Legacy Come Flesh, through ETERNAL DEATH. The following year brought the Of Wolves and Pain demo via their own Old Pain Records, marking the start of a new chapter.
Following a series of lineup shifts, ANCIENT TORMENT now stands at their strongest. The current formation features vocalist/bassist Tabarnak (Abaroth, ex-Abnormality), guitarist Taino Sangre (Sanguine Moon, ex-Crypter), founding guitarist Tormentum (Witch King, I, Destr-yer), and drummer Zealot (Witch King). Musically, the band draws deeply from the cold majesty of Finnish black metal and the sorrowful grandeur of Québec’s scene, with roots firmly planted in the bins of Providence’s legendary Armageddon Shop.
Lyrically, ANCIENT TORMENT rejects fantasy tropes in favor of themes steeped in blasphemy, lust, death, intoxication, and the haunted soil of old New England. Their Satanic worldview stands in direct opposition to Christian Nationalism—not with costumes or theatrics, but with raw, confrontational authenticity born of their working-class Rhode Island heritage. No masks. No face paint. No illusions. Just fire—like the Gaspee, ready to ignite the world.
This split release presents two scorching new tracks from ANCIENT TORMENT, matched in spirit and force by their Rhode Island allies, HAXEN.
Founded in 2000, HAXEN have long waged war in the American black metal underground. After a string of demos throughout the 2000s, their self-titled debut arrived in 2013 via ETERNAL DEATH, delivering a savage blend of Finnish bleakness and East Coast venom in the tradition of Profanatica and Blood Storm. Following a 2019 split with Perdizione, HAXEN return with three brand-new songs for this collaboration with ANCIENT TORMENT.
Each track reveals a different facet of their sound: the unrelenting, skull-rattling attack of “Blood on the Fire,” the shadow-drenched atmosphere of “Cave and Solitude,” and the melancholic momentum of “Black Eyes of Dog,” which rises from primal aggression into soaring sorrow.
Together, these six tracks form a searing testament to black metal’s enduring vitality—raw, unflinching, and free from the bloated trappings of trend and gimmick. ETERNAL DEATH remains a bastion for true American black metal, and this latest split captures that mission in full force.
Face the Howling Gale, or be shattered on the jagged rocks of the Atlantic.
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