The Italian blackened deathcore band Drown In Sulphur present “Groan From The IXth Circle”, the second single from their upcoming EP “Strix”, which is due for release on 11 September via Noble Demon. Following on from the first single, “New Moon Rising On Florence”, the new track offers an even clearer insight into the band’s musical reorientation and shows the direction in which the new line-up is heading.
With “Strix”, Drown In Sulphur are deliberately opening a new chapter. The band combines the raw, raw energy of MySpace deathcore from the 2000s with dark black metal influences, whilst deliberately moving away from the more symphonic elements of their earlier releases. A hardcore attitude, aggressive riffs and uncompromising rhythms take centre stage, without sacrificing the dark atmosphere and conceptual depth that characterise the sound of Drown In Sulphur.
“Groan From The IXth Circle” encapsulates this new direction particularly effectively. Musically, a massive, purist deathcore assault collides with icy black metal riffs and a menacing atmosphere. The combination of brutal heaviness and a frosty sonic aesthetic directly reflects the song’s thematic concept.
Thematically, the band reinterprets the fall of Lucifer in the context of Dante’s ‘Inferno’ and takes the listener into the icy depths of the ninth circle of Hell, Cocytus. In Dante Alighieri’s ‘Divine Comedy’, this deepest region of Hell is reserved for traitors and is characterised not by fire, but by eternal cold and ice.
It is precisely this image that Drown In Sulphur translate into a musical landscape that is as dark as it is violent.
Yet the song goes beyond a mere interpretation of the literary source material. The lyrics pose a provocative moral question about the true nature of betrayal: who is the traitor – the figure who brings the fruit of knowledge to humanity, or a sovereign ruler who seeks to conceal knowledge and freedom from it? Biblical motifs, theological questions and the imagery of Dante’s Inferno thus merge with the track’s uncompromising musical intensity.
Yet the song goes beyond a mere interpretation of the literary source material. The lyrics pose a provocative moral question about the true nature of betrayal: who is the traitor – the figure who brings the fruit of knowledge to humanity, or a sovereign ruler who seeks to conceal knowledge and freedom from it? Biblical motifs, theological questions and the imagery of Dante’s Inferno thus merge with the track’s uncompromising musical intensity.
The upcoming ‘Strix’ EP arose from the band’s deliberate desire for change. Following line-up changes and a period of reorientation, Drown In Sulphur sought a rawer and more authentic sound that would both hark back to the project’s origins and allow for modern development.
Drown In Sulphur were formed in Milan in 2014. Even with early singles such as “An Epilogue to the Arrogant” and “Blackwind”, the band racked up millions of streams and views and made a name for themselves internationally within the extreme metal and deathcore scenes. This was followed by the albums “Sulphur Cvlt” (2021), “Dark Secrets Of The Soul” (2024) and “Vengeance” (2025).
With a newly formed line-up and their collaboration with Noble Demon, the next phase of their development is now beginning. “Groan From The IXth Circle” clearly demonstrates what Drown In Sulphur stand for in 2026: less symphonic elements, more raw energy, a stronger hardcore influence and a dark blend of deathcore and black metal. The EP “Strix” is due for release on 11 September via Noble Demon.
More information about the band: Drown in Sulphur
More information about the label: Noble Demon
