Metal Shock Finland (World Assault )

Photo by Diana Lungu

Since 2018, NITE have proudly carried the torch for Bay Area metal. But the San Francisco natives are catching fire behind their white-hot new album. Cult of the Serpent Sun was named one of the best albums of 2025 by Decibel, New Noise, Invisible Oranges and other major publications, as well as Nate Garrett from Spirit Adrift. Now, as they prepare to ignite Inferno Festival, the blackened heavy metal band are celebrating the one-year anniversary of their latest critically-acclaimed LP with Bandcamp.

Today, NITE are thrilled to announce that Cult of the Serpent Sun was selected as February’s record of the month by Bandcamp’s heavy metal club. Curated by veteran metal writer J. Bennett, The Hard Stuff spotlights notable releases from across the world of heavy music.

“As 2026 gets underway, we here at The Hard Stuff would like to spotlight one more of our personal favorites from last year”, Bennett says. “Cult of the Serpent Sun sees the San Francisco-based NITE sharpening their melodic brand of blackened heavy metal into something undeniable. They’ve taken the strongest elements of their two previous records and distilled them into an all-killer, no-filler collection of songs steeped in traditional heavy metal, black metal and rock ‘n’ roll. Don’t blow it!”

“We are excited to be featured on this month’s The Hard Stuff”, NITE vocalist and guitarist Van Labrakis says. “We are very proud of what we did in Cult of the Serpent Sun. It’s a solid heavy metal album. We are glad that more people will discover it through this feature”.

Subscribers to The Hard Stuff receive a high-quality digital download of Cult of the Serpent Sun, plus an exclusive interview with NITE and a subscribers-only listening party where they can chat with the band.

Subscribe: https://bandcamp.com/club/the-hard-stuff

Cult of the Serpent Sun is available now on  Season of Mist. Order & Stream: https://orcd.co/nitecultoftheserpentsun

Tracklist

1. Cult of the Serpent Sun (4:56)
2. Skull (4:31)
3. Crow (Fear The Night) (4:11) [WATCH]
4. The Mystic (4:55)
5. The Last Blade (4:32)
6. Carry On (4:29)
7. Tarmut (5:14)
8. Winds of Sokar (3:52)

When darkness engulfs the world, NITE sets the sky ablaze with white-hot, blackened heavy metal.

Having journeyed to the stars on their last venture, NITE now faces the abyssal and shadowy mythology that has long laid dormant beneath society. Each of the eight epic battles on Cult of the Serpent Sun tests their mettle. But amidst the album’s blackened perils, the band emerges victorious.

“NITE strives to be a light,” says vocalist and guitarist Van Labrakis. “Cult of the Serpent Sun is about how we persevere in times of immense darkness.”  

Ever since banding together in 2018, NITE has carried the torch for Bay Area metal. Darkness Silence Mirror Flame debuted their blackened twist on NWOBHM. “…raucous, Marshall-fueled heavy metal that would be the envy of many a British band in the 1980s,” wrote Invisible Oranges. Follow-up Voices of the Kronian Moon upped the ante with more strutting tempos and windblown shredding, much to Stereogum’s delight. “It’s like speeding down a freeway at night in a Corvette with the top down, but everyone is wearing velvet capes.”

On Cult of the Serpent Sun, NITE wisely triples down on their trusty arsenal. Instead of scaling back, their third album adds more heft to the band’s armor. Labrakis and fellow guitarist Scott Hoffman’s molten leads duel with heightened showmanship. Drummer Patrick Crawford pummels and gallops while Avinash Mittur rattles the chest with his Rickenbacker bass. The title track charges with newfound urgency, slithery and venomous in its attack.    

The album’s “more is more” philosophy is guided by what NITE have learned from the road. Since their last studio stint, the band have stormed the stage at Northwest Terror Fest, toured with fellow statesmen Persekutor and Haunt and marched across the Southwest on the road to Hell’s Heroes VI. “Fans really responded to older songs like ‘Acheron’ and ‘Genesis’,” Labrakis says. “Cult of the Serpent Sun has more songs that are fast and upbeat and help lift people’s spirits.” Galvanized by a foundation-shaking groove, “Skull” defiantly crushes. “Crow (Fear the Night)” is a rallying cry, calling for fists to rise with power and might.

NITE’s classic weaponry shows no signs of rust on their third album. “The Last Blade” draws first blood amidst an acoustic flurry before thrusting onto the offensive. “The aim here is not to replicate that era but to explore and evolve,” Labrakis told Decibel when asked about the band’s influences. Cult of the Serpent Sun honors the trailblazing spirits of old by honing what separates this band’s particular alchemy from mere imitation brew. “The Mystic” expands their sonic palette, featuring a slow-burning bass line that stretches time and space into a hypnotic portal. With its whirling and enchanted melody, “Tarmut” glimmers like a desert mirage.

“We play a traditional style of heavy metal, but the blackened element takes us in a different direction,” Labrakis says. His road-hardened voice stands resolute in “Carry On,” denouncing the perils of war. “Dream on and find who you are,” he beckons on the album’s triumphant closer “Winds of Sokar.”    

On Cult of the Serpent Sun, NITE guards the altar of blackened heavy metal with sharpened blades and axes raised.  

Lineup:
Van Labrakis: Guitar / Vocals
Scott Hoffman: Guitar
Avinash Mittur: Bass
Patrick Crawford: Drums

Recording studio
210 Studios San Francisco and The Hoagie Container

Production credits
Recorded by Van Labrakis
Produced by Van Labrakis and Nite
Mixed and mastered by Van Labrakis at 210 Studios San Francisco

Follow NITE
​​​Apple Music: ​​https://music.apple.com/us/artist/nite/1499573755
Bandcamp: https://nitemetal.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nitemetal
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nitemetal
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6MjCnAA9RF0vy3j6QYyLG0
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nitemetal
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo7-UhuJNohvsMB2DP05LAQ