If it were released today—in an age where countless bands adopt the “dungeon synth” qualifier—Rites of the Black Mass would not only blow up, but perhaps even spawn a new microgenre. Séance metal, maybe? More likely, the demo-turned-album would remain an anomaly among a crowd of dabblers and straight-up larpers.
Now as ever, the unserious steer clear of Acheron’s 1992 debut. For this dark artifact possesses both horripilating sincerity and undeniably heavy death/black riffs. Rites of the Black Mass is an essential addition to any modern heavy metal fan/occultist’s collection, as it has been since it was first issued—hence its many forms over the years.
Even temporally, the creation of Rites of the Black Mass is a strange tale. This story takes place from roughly 1990 through 1992, beginning in Pittsburgh. Enter Floridian transplant Vincent Crowley, who recorded the demo version of Rites at Alternative Studios in Penn Hills, just outside the Steel City. At the time, Crowley didn’t realize it, but he was a few steps closer to achieving his goal of creating the most “authentically sincere” satanic death/black metal album ever. However, this story does not end in Pittsburgh, but in Tampa.
After the demo was recorded, Acheron would move to Florida—in the sense that Acheron was always Vincent Crowley. The other two members listed on the record, drummer Jim Strauss and lead guitarist Peter Slate, only met for the first time years after the album’s release. Despite numerous setbacks, Rites of the Black Mass remains a haunting work of raw blackened death metal. As its origin story reveals, it was nothing short of fate that this album was spawned and unleashed upon the world.
Need more classic Acheron? To read the entire seven-page story, featuring interviews with all three members who performed on Rites of the Black Mass purchase the print issue from our store, or digitally via our app for iPhone/iPad or Android.
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