Metal Shock Finland (World Assault )

Five years after acclaimed last EP and DMP-debut “Also sprach Futura“, LYCHGATE are poised to return with their fourth full-length on December 19th. “Precipice” is progressive Extreme Metal plummeting inside a black hole: scorching, twisted and transfixing. The band have upped both the dystopic prog-Death quotient and their sense of experimentation, moving with formidable, mechanised poise and a surrealist’s sense of dread.

Tracklist:

01. Introduction – The Sleeper Awakes
02. Mausoleum of Steel
03. Renunciation
04. The Meeting of Orion and Scorpio
05. Hive of Parasites
06. Death’s Twilight Kingdom
07. Terror Silence
08. Anagnorisis
09. Pangaea

The album was mixed and mastered by Greg Chandler at Priory Studios. Cover artwork is courtesy of Nadiia Skidan, layout by SRWo.

“Humanity offered up its life
To be a slave of its own creation
Its state from commander to commanded
By the anvil that breaks the hammer” (‘Hive of Parasites‘)

As an initiation into this mind-manglingly intense and progressive work, LYCHGATE unveil a key piece as first single. With intelligent, labyrinthine songwriting and suffocatingly dense production, ‘Hive of Parasites‘ is an unsettling blend of grandeur and decay.

‘Hive of Parasites‘ stands as the centrepiece — and longest track — of our forthcoming album “Precipice“. Lyrically, it delves into the record’s core inspiration: E.M. Forster‘s “The Machine Stops“. Musically, the piece unfolds like a descent and resurgence — beginning in calm, brooding contemplation before erupting into passages that are rapid, atmospheric, and at times violently intense. Following a climactic crescendo, the track sinks back into an introspective, hypnotic trance, only to reveal a final twist on an earlier theme.

“Precipice” will be released on CD, vinyl – including an exclusive DMP variant – and digital on December 19th. A special t-shirt design will accompany the launch. Pre-orders are possible via DMP’s EU, US and Bandcamp.

LYCHGATE was formed in 2011 by Vortigern (guitars) with the collaboration of Greg Chandler (vocals and guitars), Aran (Bass) and T. J. F. Vallely (drums). In 2012, the self-titled debut was recorded and then released in the first quarter of 2013 through Mordgrimm and Gilead Media. The material on this album was partly inspired by demo material from a pre-LYCHGATE project known as ARCHAICUS; demos that would later be released through Cult Never Dies and entitled, “The Early Years – ‘Beneath the Horizon’ and Other Demos, 2002​-​06“.

Between January 2012 and December 2013, Vortigern wrote material for the second album entitled “An Antidote for the Glass Pill“, which was thematically inspired by Bentham‘s concept of the Panopticon. It was recorded almost entirely at Priory Studios intermittently in the second half of 2014. It was then released through the Finnish label Blood Music in August 2015. The album was a significant step in the development of LYCHGATE‘s sound, with the utilisation of organ as a compositional backbone to all tracks, along with influences from late 19th century/early 20th century art music, Rock in Opposition, musique concréte and 1940s-70s cinema. Besides the core line-up and addition of Alan Webb on bass, the band invited Kevin Bowyer to perform all organ parts.

The press received “An Antidote” highly, with praise given to its uniqueness and forward-thinking approach. It has been featured in lists for the top metal albums of the 2010s, from Angry Metal Guy and Invisible Oranges. Shortly after the release date, a European tour was conducted with NIGHTBRINGER in November 2015. The following year, the band performed the entire album with real organ at Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, the Netherlands.

In August 2017, LYCHGATE entered Orgone Studios with producer Jaime Gomez (ULVER, PARADISE LOST, ORANSSI PAZUZU) to record the third album for Blood Music, entitled “The Contagion In Nine Steps“, in which the band adopted generally slower tempos, and psychedelic atmospheres. The album was inspired by the Stanisław Lem novel “The Invincible (Niezwyciężony)” and variations on the theme of group-think and crowd psychology.

During August/September 2019, an EP entitled “Also sprach Futura” was recorded at Priory Studios, inspired by the film “Metropolis” (1925/1927), and Lem‘s “Golem XIV” (1981). The work was quicker paced, and more similar to “An Antidote” than its predecessor. It was released on Debemur Morti Productions in March 2020. A subsequent European tour with WHITE WARD was regrettably cancelled due to the global pandemic at the time.

In 2025, LYCHGATE entered Priory Studios to record “Precipice“. It is due to be released in the winter of 2025 through Debemur Morti Productions.

LYCHGATE 2025 are:

J.C. Young “Vortigern” – Guitars, Organ, Piano, Orchestration
Greg Chandler – Vocals
S.D. Lindsley – Guitar
Tom McLean – Bass
T. J. F. Vallely – Drums