Ceremonial Castings

Ceremonial Castings
From left to right: Bloodhammer, Lord Serpent, Old Nick
Background information
Origin	Battle Ground, Washington, United States
Genres	Symphonic black metal
Years active	1996 - Present[1]
Labels	Dark Forest Productions
Website	http://www.ceremonialcastings.net/
Members
Jake Superchi (Lord Serpent) Nick Superchi (Old Nick) Matthew Mattern (Bloodhammer)[2]

Ceremonial Castings are an American black metal band from Washington. They describe themselves as "American Deathphonic Black metal",^[2] but predominantly play symphonic black metal with prominent use of keyboards and some death metal influences. To date, their most notable live performance has been with folk metal band Finntroll.^[3] But they have had more notable performances opening for 1349 in September 2008, and then opening for Watain in October.

History

Ceremonial Castings formed in the summer of 1996, by vocalist/guitarist Jake Superchi (going under the pseudonym "Lord Serpent") and keyboardist Nick Superchi (under the name "Old Nick"). from Battle Ground, Washington. Lord Serpent's other band, Crimson Death, had quickly ended, giving him time to focus on Ceremonial Castings. Their first demo was a four-track tape from 1996, with another released in 2001, two more in 2003 and another in 2004. It took until 2004 to find a live drummer in the form of Matthew Mattern (alias "Bloodhammer"). 2005 saw the release of their first full-length, Immortal Black Art, released through Dark Forest Productions, with their second release Barbaric is the Beast released the following year on June 6. Beginning in mid-2007, Ceremonial Castings began the writing of their latest offering, Salem 1692, which is based on the trials and executions of accused witches in Salem, Ma in the year of 1692. Even more so to its authenticity, Lord Serpent and Old Nick are in fact descendants of the late Judge John Hathorne, who was one of the judges during the trials. This album was released May 9, 2008. During the recording of the album, strange occurrences such as voices showing up in the mix, recorded tracks being out of key, and even hospitalization of band members took place.

Both Lord Serpent and Old Nick are involved in musical projects ranging from death metal, to black metal, to ambient. Links to these various projects can be found on Ceremonial Castings' Myspace page.

The Brothers Superchi also happen to be related to the renowned author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, as they are direct descendants of Nathaniel's great-great-grandfather, Judge John Hathorne.

The Ceremonial Castings logo, drawn by Kris Verwimp

Discography

Albums

• Into The Black Forest Of Witchery (2002)
• Midnight Deathcult Phenomena (2003)
• Universal Funeral March (2003)
• Immortal Black Art (2005)
• Barbaric is the Beast (2006)
• Salem 1692 (2008)
• Into the Black Forest of Witchery (remastered + bonus tracks 2008)
• Beast In Black (2010)

Demos & EP's

• Witchcraft (tape 1996)
• Vampira (1997)
• Demonic (1998)
• Blood Like Wine (2000)
• Vampira - The Second Coming (2000)
• 13 Roses (2000)
• The Garden of Dark Delights (2001)
• The Chaos Chapter (2002)
• Fullmoon Passions (2002)
• The Extermination Process (2003)

Other projects

The Dead

Nick The Gremlin - Vocals, Guitars, Keys, Bass
Jake O' Lantern - Drums

• They Come For Brains (2001)
• Start Killing (2006)
• Cadaver Cuts (Split) (2007)

Mysticism Black

Old Nick - All Instruments

• War Hymns Of The Dark Communion (Demo) (2002)
• The Rite Of War (Split Album) (2003)
• The Dark Erudition (2006)

Serpent Lord

Lord Serpent - All Instruments

• Battle Horns (Demo) (2003)
• The Rite Of War (Split Album) (2003)
• The Order Of The Snake (Demo) (2004)

Sources

• Ceremonial Castings on Myspace
• Official Ceremonial Castings site

References

1. ^ *Ceremonial Castings history page.
2. ^ ^{a b} Ceremonial Castings Official Website.
3. ^ Steven J Holetz (2007). "Finntroll, Studio Seven, Seattle. October 2nd, 2007". http://bonehand.com/finntroll07.html. Retrieved 2007-10-18.