If you're going to be an extreme metal band dedicated to "crafting hymns to darkness" you could do worse than hail from Bangor—one for its name and second because it's the center of the slate belt in the eastern US. Slate—you know, that hard black stone delved from the underground. Not saying that PROFANE ELEGY is a byproduct of its environment, but you figure something had to go wrong in the upbringing of these four lads who crank out demonic Black Metal with ferocious precision and unexpected finesse.

PROFANE ELEGY is due to release their sophomore album, Herezjarcha, on January 30, 2026, promoted by C Squared PR. I ran the word Herezjarcha through Google translate and, well, it didn't go well. As it turns out, as the band explains, the album's title is a neologism meaning "arch-heretic" and underscores the band's unflinching drive to "question the sacred or confront the darkness within." Sonically speaking, I would say that while their intent is singular, their approach includes a fair amount of musical diversity leveraging both harsh and clean vocals and infusing a wide variety of styles including Black, Death, and Folk.

For followers of PROFANE ELEGY, the upcoming album introduces two new members to the lineup—David G (Bass) and Sean M (Drums). Expanding from a duo to a quartet, each member is freed up to focus with more intensity on their particular contributions. That's a personal observation and not something the band has stated. Another personal observation is that their songwriting has become more complex and refined with the new lineup. This may be more correlation than cause and effect, but the end result is still the same. Simply put, there has been clear evolution with this second release. In addition, the production quality of Herezjarcha is notably upgraded since their debut, though that's more of a norm than an exception.

Standout tracks include the opening track, "Exeunt Omnes" (trans: all go out), which is also featured in an early video. The band notes the track is inspired by Shakespeare's Richard III, reflecting "on fate, death, and the human desire to bargain for time as everything slips away. Drawing from the moment King Richard is abandoned on the battlefield, the band explores how much we are willing to sacrifice just to linger a little longer in a dying world." And if you're expecting mandolins, flutes, and a hurdy gurdy, sorry to disappoint. The band aptly describes the track as embodying "a balance of cold fury and orchestral gravitas — soaring tremolo guitars, thundering drums, and cinematic layering."

Another on my list of standouts is "And Then We are Gone" which oscillates soothing acoustics and clean vocals with surging and melodic assaults. The overall effect is one of cathartic release. Final on my list is the title-track, "Herezjarcha," another richly diverse piece. It's also the closing track and the longest, a bit of an exit salvo. This track explores a lot of bleak spaces. The first half is discordant and aggressive, a pure Black Metal onslaught; the second half, however, shifts into 'dark forest' energy and probes and ponders the edges of the abyss. This is PROFANE ELEGY at their best. 

All in all, PROFANE ELEGY delivers on several levels with their sophomore release, Herezjarcha. The album demonstrates a heightened level of songwriting and an impressive agility with shifts from the chaotic to the ordered. With an expanded lineup their trajectory has hit a serious upward inflection.