Upcoming Release: Ancient Thrones
260 BPM of Existential Terror: Ancient Thrones "Melancholia" Is a Masterclass in Controlled Chaos
Ancient Thrones aren’t just pushing boundaries with their upcoming album Melancholia (out Sept 19, 2025); they’re liquefying them. Five years in the making, this Halifax-born progressive death metal collective returns with a concept record that feels less like a listen and more like a neurological intervention. The title track and its new video, premiering via Slam Worldwide, are your first IV drip of pure sonic psychosis: 260 BPM of blast-beat fury, dissonant riff avalanches, and vocals that sound like a mind unspooling in real time.
But here’s the kicker, this isn’t just technical flexing for flex’s sake. Bassist Matt LeBlanc puts it best: “Not one instrument stands out more than the other.” And he’s right. The power of “Melancholia” lies in its suffocating unity: a single, seething organism where guitars (Dylan Wallace and Nick Leslie) spiral like fractals, Sean Hickey’s drumming borders on arrhythmic precision, and his guttural shrieks map the collapse of a colorblind protagonist drowning in hallucinogenic dread. The song even fractures at its climax, pivoting into eerie, almost melodic resolution. It’s chaos with a thesis.
The whole album, clocking in at 42 minutes, is a descent into what I can only call emotional extremity, not just brutality for brutality’s sake, but a narrative steeped in alienation, transformation, and the horror of seeing the world differently. Tracks like “Achromatopsia” (a 90-second tone poem of dissonance) and the doom-smeared closer “Vacant” frame a journey that’s as cerebral as it is crushing. Think Deafheaven’s atmosphere meets Archspire’s velocity, with a dash of The Red Chord’s structural madness.
And the production? Impeccably violent. Every layer was obsessively sculpted: tones dialed, performances honed over a year just to play the damn thing. You can hear it. This isn’t noise; it’s architecture. A cathedral of dissonance with stained glass made of feedback.
Look, if you need your metal with a side of soul-scraping introspection, Melancholia might just rearrange your synapses. It’s not an easy listen, but then again, nothing worth feeling ever is.
Pre-order now (vinyl/digital): https://ancientthrones.bandcamp.com/album/melancholia
Watch “Melancholia”: youtu.be/_LvSTJ78kd8
Lyric video for “A Moon Fused Key”: youtu.be/IfDBNhlJ0sI
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