20th anniversary edition of Nachtmystium's breakthrough 3rd album, 2006's 'Instinct: Decay'. This new version features the original record completely remastered, with careful attention to detail by founding member and primary songwriter, Blake Judd, back in 2021. It then sat on a hard drive until this year for the 20th birthday of this important record in the bands catalog. What was once a murky mess of midrange and hidden details, is now clearer than ever with tons of things most people would've never heard in the original version now coming out from their hiding spots behind the 'murk' of the original.

This limited edition "mini-gatefold'' CD (packaged and presented like a miniature gatefold LP jacket. Even comes in a 3mm poly liner, just like an LP at a record store would be found on the shelf) features the remastered album + TWO UNRELEASED TRACKS from the album's recording. One of them ("Chemical Catharsis") was played live by the band in their sets around 2005 & 2006. This is the only song of the two unreleased tracks that's been released at all - and it was only on the (subscriber-only) Decibel Magazine flexi disc vinyl that came with the 2022 issue where 'Instinct: Decay' was inducted into Decibel's Hall of Fame. Very few people get those, and even fewer heard it / played it. The other song, 'Rites of Unbirth' is a longer track, clocking in over 6 minutes and full of energy and RIFFS. This was written primarily by contributing session guitarist Marcus Launsburry (who also toured with the band briefly in 2007 as a session bassist) This song felt right for the album when it was being recorded, but as we drew closer to the end of the sessions, it became clear that it was (like Chemcal Catharsis) an 'odd-man-out'.

"Rites of Unbirth" here is the final, instrumental mix and has been remastered with the rest of the original album. That's as far as we got with it. Fun fact - this was going to be the opening track (where 'A Seed For Suffering' sits on the actual release!) Can you imagine how different the album would've been in that case?

"Chemical Catharsis'' was a song primarily written by then 2nd-guitarist Mike 'Sinic' LeGros of Chicago death metal legends DISINTER. He and Blake worked out an arrangement of primarily his riffs (as Blake recalls) in Mike's basement during rehearsals for shows to promote 'Eulogy IV' in 2004/2005 and the band proceeded to begin playing it as a live song (which it was great for!) before the recording even happened. Like "Rites of Unbirth", though, it just felt like a stranger to the rest of the album upon completion. Fun fact about this track (or maybe not so fun but just true!) 'Chemical Catharsis'' lyrics were Blake Judd's first ever written about his struggle with substance abuse.

Finally there are two ADDITIONAL bonus demo tracks from the unreleased 2005 'Black Passage' demo, featuring Blake Judd on guitars and producer Chris Black playing drums. The two of them tracked demos for 'A Seed For Suffering' and 'Keep Them Open' during this session and these long-lost demos reappear on an official release finally for the first time ever on this 14 track remastered reissue disc!

ALL PURCHASES INCLUDE A FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD

Each CD includes a printed insert, multiple stickers, fliers, an 11x17" one sided (full color) poster of the classic album art by Rebecca Clegg. This poster can be signed if the purchaser wishes (just put a note in your order or send us an email!) The poster will come folded (twice) to fit in a 9x6" bubble mailer when these ship.

Limited to 200 copies ONLY! Cassette version will drop in a week or two as well (as of 6/20/2026) but this tape edition will only feature the album, the bonus tracks are exclusive to this CD version. Get one now while they're here!

'Instinct: Decay' officially turned 20 on May 30th, 2026.
Thanks to all who have supported and praised this weird record over the years, making it a noteworthy release for the genre as a whole, being one of the first truly daring and very experimental black metal records from anywhere in the world to be well received by audiences across the globe.

Brand new (July 2025) digipak CD edition limited to 100 copies. Features the original art from the first vinyl pressing of 'Reign of the Malicious', as this would've been the art for this recording (as 'Reign of the Malicious') had we been pleased with the original results. Hand-numbered, comes with an additional 8.5 x 11" insert and a folded 11x17 signed poster!

2026 limited edition jewel case CD version of the 2001 split demo tape between NACHTMYSTIUM & ZALNIK.

Features a 4 panel booklet and traycard.

CD released by Jackson Pistols Club / Majestic Twilight Creations. (both imprints owned by the band....the original cassette edition was released under the Majestic Twilight Creations imprint and we've resurrected it for this and a handful of other demo-era releases!)

New, first-ever cassette edition of our seminal 2008 album, 'Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1'. We're doing a series of cassettes made by the band, totally DIY. We printed all of our Jcards on nice card stock. Everything's double sided and has sharp, clear and crisp print.

*Includes a free digital download (.wav format) of the entire 'Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1' album as well.

Taking a lot of time to design these and recreate the original layouts in (generally) 4 panel J card (two 'cover' sized rectangular panels + spine / back spine, printed on both sides)

Each release will have 100 cassettes made. Depending on the release and what other versions of any particular release have been put out (and how) will determine what extent we go to with packaging for each tape. Some will come 50 at a time, and the 2nd 50 might be totally different presentation-wise.

Cassette edition of this collection of mixes has been released by Jackson Pistol Club 2025 in a very limited edition of 50 hand made cassettes. Each one is printed, recorded (on a Tascam CD-A500 CD/cassette master deck producer in tended for studios to make production-grade master copies with back in the day) and assembled by Blake Judd himself. This has become a bit of a hobby as so much of our catalog hasn't been released on cassette and our labels, for years, have ignored our requests to produce some for those of us out there who just like fkn tapes. So, I'm doing it myself. This one turned out great.

Exclusive / alternative art for this recording from Ancient Dead, Poland. Features a slightly different piece of art on the free 8.5" x 14" printed (and folded) poster that is included with these tapes. Hand-numbered jcards on the cassettes out of 50 copies only!

Don't miss your only chance to own a physical copy of this obscure version of the 'Blight Privilege' recordings + a bonus track 100% unique & exclusive to this release ("Blue Line (Shadow Stepper Dub)".

As with all cassettes available on the store, a digital download of the album comes with the purchase of any physical copy! Out now!

**NOTE: Bonus track, 'Banished', is a download-only track and is NOT included on the cassette edition. "Blue Line (Shadow Stepper Dub)", however, is included on the cassette edition. You still get "Banished" as part of your free digital download with purchase of this (or any other) cassette or CD edition of a Nachtmystium recording.

NEW RELEASE 1-28-2026!! ALL CD / TAPE / VINYL editions of recordings on this site include a full digital download of the release when a physical version is purchased. To just purchase digital, head over to the "Music" page in the menu and you can buy digital downloads within each titles section!

23 years ago, a 19 year old Blake 'Azentrius' Judd, alongside - for the first time - renowned Chicago heavy metal musician, Chris Black (of SUPERCHRIST, DAWNBRINGER, and in later years HIGH SPIRITS) in the engineer's seat - a first for the band - as all prior records and demos were made on Tascam Porta-02 or Tascam 424-MKIII four track machines.

Also joining the duo - for the second time in a year - W. Obscurum, back for another round of drums after a very successful session the August earlier (August, 2002) when Nachtmystium recorded their highly-regarded self-titled MLP with Akhenaten of JUDAS ISCARIOT / SARCOPHAGUS / WELTMACHT)

Obscurum was one of the two brothers behind the legendary Chicago black metal barbarians, CULT OF DAATH, whom anyone here should be well familiar with by now!

Together, the three men working together for their first time ever, created the 'Demise' LP, released in 2004 on Autopsy Kitchen Records in three separate pressings (one digipak, two jewel case) before the band subsequently started blowing up a few years down the line and mighty 90's / early 2000s black metal powerhouse UK label CANDLELIGHT RECORDS picked up this record along with everything from day one up through and including the 2006 'Worldfall' MLP for a worldwide licensing deal.

This resulted in 'Demise' getting the best press opportunities it could've ever afforded. As a result, sometime in the late aughts or early 2010's, legendary UK metal magazine TERRORIZER famously did a first-ever "Best U.S. black metal albums of all time" list - as we'd finally been taken seriously long enough over here for albums good enough to be worthy of such a list to be created and promoted / absorbed and praised. 'Demise' was ranked the #2 Greatest American Black Metal Album.

Fast forward to 2020 and Blake Judd is expanding his (new at the time) home studio set up with new DAW, Presonus' Studio One 4 Professional. A pet project he'd always wanted to embark on was remixing the original 'Demise' ADAT tapes recordings, and during said-hypothetical session, he'd have laid down thicker guitars and bass than what's present on the SUPER-THIN original recording.

The OG version has it's charm, but as an artist -Blake felt that considering it was given the #2 "greatest USBM album ever" tag - maybe it was time it sounded like it.

In the spirit of not re-writing music that was created in a different time / place and doing his best not to "vandalize my album" (as he put it to friends in the know). the now 39 year old Judd, still in the early days of post-heroin life / on methadone, trying to put it all back together.....the combination of getting to have this highly cathartic personal moment of triumph by simply being alive, off the drugs, living in a normal situation for the first time in many years AND to have the ability to record and do something he'd thought he'd never get to do was just too cool.

The end result here is PRECISELY the album 19-year-old Blake 'Azentrius' Judd intended to make.

There are no fancy solos added, no over-playing of parts - cheapening the originally intended bleak atmospheres. The only things added that weren't entirely planned for originally are two of the 3 or 4 sets of samples that occur in certain tracks throughout the album.

Blake Judd on 'Complete Demise', January 2026: "You will not find a grimmer, darker, more hopeless black metal record anywhere in the USBM back catalog than what I did here with this finally "correct" version of 'Demise', our second full-length and also - according to Terrorizer Magazine - the #2 USBM album of all time. Wait til they hear this!"

CD features same track listing as the original, however - the Intro on the original 'Demise' by LUEDKE has been replaced with the intro the band used at their three 'farewell!' live performances in Los Angeles, Sacramento and San Diego, California in the summer of 2017.

SIDE NOTE FOR ANYONE READING THIS - our old drummer from this era has an amazing new band called UNAPPROACHABLE LIGHT!! Obscurum's first new music in probably between 12 and 15 years if memory serves us right today. Again - GO LISTEN TO THIS IF YOU'RE HERE - you'll dig it! https://unapproachablelight.bandcamp.com

2026 is NACHTMYSTIUM's 25th anniversary

The fact that Blake Judd survived the decade+ run with heroin / opioid addiction that nearly cost him everything (especially this band and it's core audience) is still something that those of us within the 'inner circle' don't take for granted. Most people don't come back from the place he and several other members have gone down the road of during their Nachtmystium tenures. This band truly embraced the idea of 'never stop the madness', and we definitely had no shortage of madness either.

Released through new vinyl service for artists & labels in the UK - ELASTIC STAGE (whom we HIGHLY recommend you check out, if you're an artist yourself and are reading this and might want to have your music released on vinyl someday) 'Complete Demise' is Blake Judd's 2020 pandemic project where he completely re-recorded his 2nd LP, 2003's 'Demise', at his home studio.

This LP is limited to 200 copies and ONLY available from Elastic Stage DIRECTLY at the link below: https://elasticstage.com/nachtmystium12inch/releases/complete-demise-album

Again this LP DOES NOT SHIP FROM US IN CALIFORNIA - you must order it from Elastic Stage directly at the link provided above. This listing here is just to let you know it's available, what it looks and sounds like and where you can buy a copy.

Extremely limited 2026 (first-ever!) repressing of the 2002 'Nachtmystium' / self-titled MLP. This is considered by the band our first "real record". Engineered and mixed by black metal legend Akhenaten (JUDAS ISCARIOT / WELTMACHT / SARCOPHAGUS, etc.) on his Tascam 424-MKIII tape four-track recorder, the same one he used to make such legendary recordings as 'Heaven in Flames', 'Dethroned, Conquered and Forgotten' and 'To Embrace the Corpses Bleeding'. You know what to expect sound-wise if you're familiar with this recording!

This is also the single NACHTMYSTIUM release featuring a different vocalist - our brother since the mid-late 1990's - Peter "Zmij" Kenar - from Polish / American black metal outfit ZALNIK (whom we'd done a split demo tape with a year earlier as well) gives the most violent vocal performance ever on a Nachtmystium recording.

Originally only pressed ONCE on LP via now-defunct, cult Belgian label PAINIAC RECORDS (hail Fred! wherever you are!) ltd to 400 hand-numbered copies.

This new version, limited to 200 black LPs comes in a single sleeve jacket w/printed inner sleeve. ANYONE OUTSIDE OF AMERICA SHOULD USE THIS LINK TO PURCHASE - DO NOT BUY IT FROM US THE SHIPPING WILL BE RIDICULOUS!!! https://elasticstage.com/nachtmystium12inch (you can also find the equally limited 'Complete Demise' 12" vinyl release here too!)

WE ARE VERY SORRY FOR THE HIGH PRICE, WE BOUGHT 25 COPIES OF THIS FROM ELASTIC STAGE DIRECTLY AND THE COST PER-UNIT AFTER SHIPPING WAS $37.00 TO US!! This is why we only got 25. We won't be getting more.

Get yours now if you want one. Because of the high price, you can expect bonus goodies in with your LP purchase, should you decide to buy one. ;-)

ALL PURCHASES INCLUDE A FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD! AUDIO HAS BEEN REMASTERED FOR THIS SPECIAL RELEASE - AND THIS IS ALSO THE DIGITAL VERSION INCLUDED HERE.

HAIL THE FUCKING UNDERGROUND!

QR CODE IN PHOTOS WILL LINK YOU DIRECTLY TO ELASTIC STAGE'S NACHTMYSTIUM LP PAGE!!!

For our year-ending gift to any of you still hanging around here....

We've fulfilled a 20 years long bucket list. How this title escaped ever having a cassette version back when it came out in 2002 is beyond me....we did every release on Cd / LP and casssette up until we started touring all the time.

Nachtmystium's 2002 EP, recorded by Akhenaten (Judas Iscariot / Weltmacht / Sarcophagus) Considered by many of our more conservative black metal fans to be their favorite release of ours. It's the only to feature our original live vocalist (as I couldn't sing/play guitar well enough yet), Peter 'Zmij' Kenar, of the excellent Polish / American black metal band ZALNIK whom we released a split demo tape with in 2001, our second release.

Originally released in late 2002 on CD by New Jersey-based label Regimental Records in an edition of 1,000 CDs. Pressed onto black vinyl (just once) in 400 units by cult Belgian label, Painiac Records (RIP!) simultaneously to the CD release

'Nachtmystium' was later part of a large, multi-album licensing deal with British label Candlelight Records UK in 2007 and Candlelight Records USA the following year. Candlelight pressed this title amongst about 6 or 7 others (back catalog and our then-new releases) The band toured heavily in the UK during this time and the "second push" Candlelight had given these albums was incredible, it was like they were new all over again.

Help celebrate 20 years of the 'Nachtmystium' self-titled MLP, and 25 years (!!) of NACHTMYSTUM's voyage through the underworld by grabbing a copy! This cassette is ltd to 100 and includes a full color four-panel jcard, and two colors of cassette shells (off white & red) w/printed label stickers. All hand made by the band, like we did our original demos back in the day. It's become a hobby for me (Blake) I put a lot of time and energy into each one of these and then try and sell them for a cheaper price than most others share their factory-assembled cassettes.

New / exclusive art was created by Matt (Eerie) in 2013 / 2014...his last name is escaping me. I've not heard from or spoken to him in years - but hey Matt if you see this - shoot the band email a message and I'll send you a box of tapes.

Two of three demos were cassettes. We recorded our first show in November 2001 and pulled the audio off one (VHS) tape and put it onto another, releasing our first 'live album' during the demo years ('Live Onslaught'), and then our debut album 'Reign of the Malicous' was issued in 500 cassettes by Australian label Asgard Music in 2002 or 2003 (?), Total Holocaust Records from Sweden (Hail Halkan, where ever you are! THR RIP!!) released our 2nd full-length, 'Demise', via tape in 2004, And, with a few exceptions in the 2010's, that was it for our tape output until recently.

Join us in the Nachtmystium cassette revival and grab one before they're gone!