At last, Sutekh Hexen's earliest tracks from their first three legendary demos (2010's "Constellation", "Ritualistic" and "Altars”), plus the "Order of Nine" single, get finally mastered for the first time ever (courtesy of death industrial master Grant Richardson) and released on vinyl and CD also for the first time ever, consolidated into a singular assault of unrivaled raw black metal/noise mastery and consecrated into a definitive document of unwavering sonic disembodiment. The seven primeval spells here finally reproposed in their definitive form represent the earliest (and for some, favorite) stylistic incarnation of the band, when their horrific output was violently synthesized from a miasmatic vortex of feral raw black metal and scorching harsh noise, immersed into a cryptic plasma of suffocating ambience and wretched incantations. When the sinister Californian black noise sect first emerged in San Francisco around 2010 with these initial soul-disintegrating hexes, their evident greatness instantly reverberated with massive waves throughout the underground, leading to the birth of a revered cult that would dominate American abstract black metal, power ambient and blackened electronics for years to come. These debut recordings not only crowned Sutekh Hexen as absolute masters of their craft, but also established a formula that has remained imitated and definitive beyond purely experimental circles for years, ordaining the infamous black noise style into a coherent new movement that is revered and thriving to this day.
Tracks 1-2 originally self-released as the "Constellation" demo tape, 2010
Tracks 3-4 originally self-released as the "Ritualistic" demo tape, 2010
Track 5 originally self-released as the "Order of Nine" single, 2010
Tracks 6-7 originally self-released as the "Altars" demo tape, 2010
Sutekh Hexen emerged in the late 00’s from the burgeoning experimental underground of San Francisco through the visions of visual artist and guitarist Kevin Gan Yuen and multi instrumentalist Scott Miller. With influences as diverse as Merzbow, Sunn O))) and Leviathan, it did not take long for the project to assume its initial form as a wretched audial specter blending in equal measure noise and raw black metal to create a disembodied aural abomination entirely their won, as exemplified by the band’s infamous and now unfindable first three demo tapes (2010's "Constellation", "Ritualistic" and "Altars”). Tape loop manipulator and soundscape artist Lee Carnfield joined the band for a short time afterwards, expanding the band’s sonic horizon and giving rise to the band’s first three highly praised full-length albums: 2011’s “Luciform” and “Larvae”, and 2012’s “Behind the Throne”, all of which began to showcase the band’s evolution from its foundational raw black metal/noise assault into a ritualistic power ambient beast still rooted in black metal but more broadly influenced by dark ambient, power electronics, witchcraft, and experimental soundtrack and ritual music. As one of the first entities to fully develop and establish the so called black noise subgenera on American soil, the status of cult and visionaries became soon indissoluble with the band’s name, leading to a highly praised and prolific output both in the studio (with numerous releases and collaborations published by respected underground labels like Magic Bullet, Holy Terror, Aurora Borealis, Cold Spring, Handmade Birds, Black Horizons, etc.) as well as on the stage with their cacophonous and hallucinatory live sets being shared across the American West Coast throughout the years with the likes of Lycus, Necrite, Lluvia, Hell, Ash Borer, Volhan, Hissing, Terror Cell Unit, Thou, Arizmenda, Trepaneringsritualen, Atriarch, Monarch, Trees, and many more. Scott Miller exited the band in 2012 and the band’s lineup was extended with the entry at first of noise musician Andy Way (of Thoabath), and shortly after of noise legend Ryan Jecks (of Dispirit, Crash Worship, Deathroes) and of baritone guitarist Joshua Churchill (of Plumes). This four-piece lineup lasted several more years and toured extensively, peaking with the creation of “One Hundred Year Storm”, the band’s now infamous live collaborative performance with Trepaneringsritualen at the Stella Natura festival, which soon became one of the most famous and praised dark experimental underground live albums ever created. Toward the end of 2017 this incarnation of the band of Yuen, Way, Jencks and Churchill dissolved, leaving Sutekh Hexen as a one man operation of only Kevin Gan Yuen at the helm, aided throughout the following years and to present by an ever-changing congregation of studio and live collaborators and contributors (among them Damien Johnson of Great Falls/BLSPHM, Mackenzie Chami and Sam Torres of Terror Cell Unit, Ryan Jobes of Sunken Cathedral and Night Worship, and many more). This solo/collaboration-based era of the band has marked a more diverse and experimental output compared to the band’s early days, cementing a continuative decade-long relationship with Sentient Ruin, and later also with French dark ambient label Cyclic Law, both of which continued the band’s incursions into the audial unknown with 2019’s self-titled double LP, and 2023’s collaborative double LP with field recording master Funerary Call titled “P:R:I:S:M”. The long-planned reissue of the band’s iconic first three demos finally now sees the light in a mastered form on LP and CD formats for the first time ever as the upcoming "Constellation Ritualistic Altars : Demo(n)s" compilation, officially out March 7 2025 on CD, LP, and digital formats worldwide via Sentient Ruin.