Bottom – Yusuf Rashid – Bass, Craig Schmul – Vocals, Joey Ferretti – Drums
Inspired by 80s horror movies, horror games, and HP Lovecraft, Chicago’s Necronomicon Ex Mortis is putting a gory new touch on classic, old-school death metal. The members, guitarists Michael Nystrom Bala and Manuel Barbará, bassist Yusuf Rashid and drummer Joey Ferretti are good friends from Berklee and that training and long-term friendship shines through in their morbid, shredding metal. They are eager to release their debut self-titled EP this March, and ahead of that, are releasing the first single “Celestial Tomb”. The band explains the single:
“It was a relatively difficult song to write because Michael wanted that classic Gothenburg melodic death metal song but he didn’t want to do what At The Gates did 20 years ago and better. He tried to use a slightly subversive song structure as well as some more “outside” chords and melodies in the chorus as well as in Manuel’s solo section. Lyrically, it was inspired by the chalice dungeons in Bloodborne.”
Necronomicon Ex Mortis intends to draw listeners in and trap them in an 80s horror movie, on VHS of course. This EP acts as the trailer for their music much like a movie trailer advertises a feature-length film. This release promises the gory good time that future releases will have.
Keeping old-school shred gods such as Yngwie, Vinnie Moore, Paul Gilbert, and Derek Taylor in mind, Bala is the primary songwriter. He believes that songwriting is a combination of fulfillment and subversion of expectation. So the writing process becomes a hilarious tug-of-war between the two extremes that often leaves him without sleep. The EP is recommended for fans of Obscura, Arsis, and Racer X.
Watch and listen to “Celestial Tomb” via its lyric video premiere on TheCirclePit YouTube channel – https://youtu.be/gWSmqWpGVCI
Digital – https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/necronomiconexmortis/celestial-tomb
The debut self-titled EP is due out March 31st, 2023, and is available for pre-order at Necronomiconexmortis.bandcamp.com.
Track Listing:
1. Celestial Tomb (4:35)
2. Earth Cancer (4:22)
3. Nocturnal (4:00)
4. The Burning (4:59)
EP Length: 17:58
For more info: Necronomiconexmortisband.com | Facebook | Instagram.com/necronomiconexmortisband