Noctivagum is a black metal band working between Germany and Italy. The project started in March 2025, led by drummer D., who had previously been active in the Lazio scene with Korrigans and later Hagalaz. After a handful of rehearsals, he and guitarist Lightning began writing together and quickly built the material that became De Arcanis et Ritibus Sulphuris.
The lineup expanded soon after. Wolf, known from Gort in Naples, joined on vocals and handled mixing and mastering at his studio in Italy. More recently, Einherjar Ingvar, also linked to Gort and Nigra Mors, came in on second guitar and bass and is already contributing to the band’s upcoming full-length.
For D., this project brings together what he had been trying to do across earlier bands.
“The album itself is conceived as a journey, and I recommend listening with headphones, preferably in the dark and alone.”
De Arcanis et Ritibus Sulphuris feels built around a full ritual arc, from “Initium Caerimoniae” to “Finis Caerimoniae”. How did that structure take shape when you were writing the EP?
D.: I conceived this EP, especially the lyrics, as an initiatory journey, a musical representation of alchemical and philosophical concepts, with references to classical demonology, Egyptian occultism, Hermeticism and more. I wanted to bring together ideas drawn from various grimoires and esoteric books that are important to me. I conceived the concept and lyrics as a kind of initiatory journey for the listener. The album itself is conceived as a journey, and I recommend listening with headphones, preferably in the dark and alone.
The writing process was very intuitive and direct. The tracks are in the order in which we composed them, and they are meant to be a continuous flow, like a circle that closes itself, but at the same time never really begins and never really ends. Our approach was very primitive and direct, like black metal should be. But on the upcoming full-length you will hear a big step up in composition, recording, mixing and mastering, while still keeping it raw and loyal to the true spirit of black metal.
Noctivagum exists between Italy and Germany. What does working across two scenes and two different physical environments bring into the way the band writes?
Since Lightning and I live in the same city in Germany, there are no songwriting issues. We communicate in English or German, so language is not a problem. We wrote the EP together, riff by riff, blast beat by blast beat, in just over seven months, then sent everything to Wolf in Italy, at Wolf’s Lair Abyss Studio, for mixing and mastering. Einherjar recently joined the band as bassist and second guitarist, and even though he is also in Italy, the internet has made it easy to write and share riffs and ideas in real time.
On this release, As Pestis handled distribution, but the next album will be produced and released through the label from the ground up. What changes for the band when that relationship moves earlier into the creative process?
As Pestis helped us put our music on the digital platforms, and we are thankful for that. I still handle all the physical sales of our EP, as well as the recordings and all the social media. We are currently working on the full-length. We still have to decide how and where to release it, but since As Pestis did a good job, we might consider releasing it with them, of course. Nothing changes in the creative process. We have total freedom. I decide most of the concepts and help my guitarists compose the riffs according to the direction the band has taken. I also write the lyrics, and then we all discuss the ideas we have put together and decide on the best outcome for the songs.
The acoustic framing pieces at the beginning and end do a lot of work in defining the record. At what point did you know this release needed those opening and closing thresholds?
The EP is structured as an initiation. So I decided to give the listener a clear point of beginning and end, asking my brother Emiliano “Torc” Bruni, a very talented multi-instrumentalist, to craft that acoustic folk feeling.
With the next album now in progress, what did this first EP make clear about what Noctivagum should sound like going forward?
Expect a different song structure and a more mature approach to composition. There will not be much change in terms of musical style. It will always be melodic black metal in its fullest form. No compromise ever. The new tracks will be much more structured and better crafted, also thanks to the precious help of Einherjar Ingvar, our new guitarist. It will be another concept album, dwelling once again on esoteric and spiritual themes.
De Arcanis et Ritibus Sulphuris is out now and can be streamed or bought on Bandcamp.
