Demoncy – Enthroned is the Night (Forever Plagued Records, 2012)

The last time I heard US black metal OG Demoncy was 1999’s Joined in Darkness, an ultra-gnarly one-man affair that to this day is one of the most desolate, subterranean-sounding recordings I’ve ever experienced. I somehow missed out on 2003’s Empire of the Fallen Angel, which was apparently a full band effort and not nearly as well-received; I have a hard time imagining Demoncy as anything other than a solitary undertaking, both as an entity and a listening experience, as Joined in Darkness is surely one of those albums best digested in complete isolation, darkened room optional, but definitely preferred. Given my fondness for that now fourteen-year-old album, I was very much looking forward to a proper sequel, and I’m pleased to say that Demoncy mastermind Ixithra has delivered with Enthroned is the Night, released last year on Forever Plagued Records, a label that’s quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with.