After many years of silence, the legendary Death Metal force of Necrophagia, one of the very first Death Metal acts, has reawakened. The band’s revamped line-up have signed to Time To Kill Records for the release of their final album, ‘Moribundis Grim’. The album is set to be released on May 10th 2024.
Guitarist Serge Streltsov commented:
“‘Moribundis Grim’ is a song I co-wrote with Killjoy and Shawn back in 2017. Shawn had a couple riffs that I ended up adding to and making a whole song. Killjoy took care of the lyrics. Unfortunately, Killjoy passed away in the middle of tracking the vocals for this song; it was never finished vocally until John (McEntee) stepped in to finish it. Killjoy and John were great friends so it made perfect sense to bring him along”.
In the years of 2016-2018, the band’s last line-up – Killjoy, Serge Streltsov, Shawn Slusarek and Jake Arnette – composed and started recording what became their final opus, ‘Moribundis Grim’.
Unfortunately, in 2018 Killjoy passed away before finishing the album. In 2022 with the help of special guests and former Necrophagia members – John McEntee from Incantation, Titta Tani (ex Goblin) and Mirai Kawashima from Sigh – the album was finally completed.
In a way, it is quite sensational to see another Necrophagia album released at this point in time, meaning 40 years after their first demos were released!
Serge Streltsov adds:
“‘Moribundis Grim’ is Killjoy’s final album. These are his last vocal performances. The album features the last Necrophagia live line up: Killjoy Desade, Serge Streltsov, Shawn Slusarek and Jake Arnette, along with special guest John McEntee and previous members Titta Tani and Mirai Kawashima. These songs are the demos the band and Killjoy worked on up until Killjoy’s passing. Also featuring re-worked versions of songs from the first album and a Samhain cover. Once again the bastard children of horror and gore capture the true essence of what Necrophagia is all about. Killjoy and Fulci Live! Gore Forever!”.
John McEntee adds:
“With the utmost respect to my fallen brother Frank “Killjoy DeSade” Pucci, I was deeply honored when Titta Tani (Necrophagia, Goblin, and many more) asked me to help finish a song that Killjoy unfortunately was not able to complete before his untimely passing. This was a very difficult undertaking for me, because Killjoy was not only a huge influence on me, but also a cherished friend. Not gonna lie, I had my doubts. I spent a lot of time thinking about it and talking with my wife and close friends of Killjoy before taking on this honor. It was very important to me to pay tribute and ensure that it was done with 100% respect for Killjoy’s vision and honor.
Completed from a remote creative exchange, with ideas being bounced back and forth between all members to create an eight-track barrage of Death Metal, ‘Moribundis Grim’ is an incredible achievement.
More info: Necrophagia; Time to Kill Records;