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Born from the depths of the underground and forged in fury, The Calling of Fire marks the merciless debut from BLOOD MONOLITH—an unholy alliance featuring members of Nails, Undeath, Ulthar, Genocide Pact, and more. This isn’t just another extreme metal side project—this is a declaration of war.
Formed in 2023 by guitarist/vocalist Shelby Lermo (Nails, Ulthar, ex-Vastum) after relocating to the politically scorched landscape of Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia, BLOOD MONOLITH emerged with a singular mission: to channel rage into something uglier, stranger, and more unrelenting than anything before it. Lermo quickly teamed up with guitarist Tommy Wall (Undeath), and together they sculpted the feral backbone of the band’s debut. The addition of bassist Nolan (Genocide Pact, Shitstorm) and drummer Aidan Tydings-Lynch (Deliriant Nerve, Brain Tourniquet) completed the lineup, solidifying a unit built to destroy.
Everything about BLOOD MONOLITH feels wired for confrontation. Their geographic roots—soaked in political rot, historical violence, and institutional failure—bleed into every riff, every blast beat, every growled lyric. The Calling of Fire isn’t just an album title—it’s a mantra, a warning, and a weapon. It channels both inward rage and outward disgust, striking like a mid-day execution in the town square. No mercy. No retreat.
This is death metal with a mission. BLOOD MONOLITH stand apart from the sea of carbon-copy bands saturating the genre right now. Their aesthetic is unique, their intent razor-sharp, and their sound—a whirlwind of cavernous growls, violent tempo shifts, and riff-after-riff carnage—is rooted in the spirit of Morbid Angel and Cannibal Corpse, but filtered through a modern lens that nods to innovators like Defeated Sanity and Dead Congregation. DIY ethics and a hardcore background sharpen the edges even further, giving this debut a manic, almost feral energy.
Engineered and mixed by Shelby Lermo and Matt Michel (Goetia, Left Cross, Antichrist Siege Machine), and mastered by Adam Tucker at Signaturetone (Ulthar, Maul, Obsequiae), The Calling of Fire is a fully realized vision of chaos. The record also features disturbing, instantly iconic cover art by Nick Blinko, frontman of anarcho-punk legends Rudimentary Peni—a perfect visual for the auditory violence within.
The Calling of Fire dropped on Friday, May 16, with CD, LP, and digital formats via Profound Lore Records. The album is now streaming in full on YouTube—listen here. Purchase all formats here.
