# Devil Master
**Devil Master** is an American black metal and hardcore punk band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed in 2015, whose sound combines first-wave Satanic black metal, Japanese hardcore, d-beat (fast, raw drum-driven punk style pioneered by [Discharge](https://www.edgepedia.org/discharge-band)), and death rock.[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Devil%2BMaster) • [2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893) The six-piece is signed to [Relapse Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/relapse-records) and has released three full-length albums: *Satan Spits on Children of Light* (2019), *Ecstasies of Never Ending Night* (2022), and *Bloody Dreams* (2026).[4](https://devilmaster.bandcamp.com/) The name also belongs to a 1970s American horror film released on home video as an alternate title of *The Demon Lover*.[5](https://moviesandmania.com/2013/11/03/the-demon-lover-1976-american-supernatural-horror-film-overview-reviews/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Origin | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; active 2015 to present[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) |
| Genre | Black Metal/Punk; tagged blackened crust, blackened punk, deathrock, hardcore punk[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) • [6](https://www.bandslate.com/band/devil-master) |
| Label | Relapse Records[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) |
| Members | Disembody Through Unparalleled Pleasure (bass, vocals), Darkest Prince (guitars), Infernal Moonlight Apparition (rhythm guitars), and others performing under aliases[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893) |
| Albums | *Satan Spits on Children of Light* (2019), *Ecstasies of Never Ending Night* (2022), *Bloody Dreams* (2026)[4](https://devilmaster.bandcamp.com/) |
| Lyrical themes | Occultism, vampyrism, horror tales[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) |
## Formation and membership
The band formed in 2015 in Philadelphia, according to the Encyclopaedia Metallum, BandSlate, and Last.fm; the AllMusic biography by Thom Jurek instead dates the founding to 2016, when five friends came together, later joined by a keyboardist.[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Devil%2BMaster) • [2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893) The members perform under aliases: Disembody Through Unparalleled Pleasure on bass and vocals, Darkest Prince and Infernal Moonlight Apparition on guitars, plus drummer Del and bassist Spirit Mirror in AllMusic's listing.[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893)
Several members were already active in Philadelphia's hardcore and metal scenes. Darkest Prince is Francis Kano, the live bassist for the metal band [Integrity](https://www.edgepedia.org/integrity); Spirit Mirror fronts the deathrock band Blank Spell; Dodder plays in Grave Spell.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893) Last.fm notes that the band shares members with the deathrock groups Blank Spell and Cape of Bats.[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Devil%2BMaster) A survey of metal bands' political associations describes Devil Master as active in Philadelphia punk circles with politics in line with anarchist punk.[7](https://www.hellseatic.de/wp-content/uploads/Sketchy-Metal-Bands.pdf)
Kano has described his Satanism as a lived conviction rather than stagecraft. Raised as a devout Catholic in the countryside of [Northern Ireland](https://www.edgepedia.org/northern-ireland), he told *Revolver* in 2019 that his fascination with darkness and the occult began at age 10, and that the band's theatrical corpse-paint performances do not involve ritual acts: "I'm not up there killing goats... It's a real thing to live by — a mindset as opposed to actions."[8](https://www.revolvermag.com/music/psychedelic-vampires-japanese-hardcore-inside-twisted-world-devil-master)
## Sound and stage presentation
Devil Master's music mixes first-wave Satanic black metal, Japanese hardcore in the tradition of G.I.S.M. and Zouo, Yankee d-beat, and swirling death rock, with influences drawn from [Venom](https://www.edgepedia.org/venom-band), Celtic Frost, and Bathory on the metal side and from [Christian Death](https://www.edgepedia.org/christian-death) and 45 Grave on the deathrock side.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893) A 2018 review on the Metal Archives described the production as deliberately recalling early black metal demos, "a punk band playing metal," with d-beat-style backbeats and a [Motörhead](https://www.edgepedia.org/motorhead)- and Venom-flavored vocal delivery.[9](https://www.metal-archives.com/reviews/Devil_Master/Devil_Master/692717/)
Live shows are staged as spectacles rather than solemn rituals. AllMusic describes props and pranks on stage, from [corpse paint](https://www.edgepedia.org/corpse-paint) to giant spider webs that audience members freely engage with, and the band treats "eternal damnation, horror, misery, unholy union with the undead" as material for celebration and humor.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893)
## Discography
After self-released demos, an EP, and a single, Relapse signed the band and compiled their early output as *Manifestations*, an eight-track, 23-minute album remixed and remastered by Arthur Rizk (Sumerlands, Power Trip), released in November 2018.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893) • [4](https://devilmaster.bandcamp.com/) Dead Rhetoric dates the signing to after the band's 2017 *Inhabit the Corpse* EP, which it calls the primary pace-setter for what followed.[10](https://deadrhetoric.com/reviews/devil-master-satan-spits-on-children-of-light-relapse/) The band also appeared with "Black Flame Candle" on the Relapse Sampler 2019 and the Relapse 30 Year Anniversary Sampler.[2](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/)
**Satan Spits on Children of Light** (March 2019) was the band's first proper full-length. Reviewer David E. Gehlke at Dead Rhetoric rated it 8.5/10, describing "a kamikaze of d-beat, punk, black metal and necro death metal" and comparing the black metal side to Deathcrush-era [Mayhem](https://www.edgepedia.org/mayhem-band); he highlighted "Nightmares in the Human Collapse," "Devil is Your Master," the psychobilly-leaning "Christ's Last Hiss," and the [Killing Joke](https://www.edgepedia.org/killing-joke)-inspired "Nuit."[10](https://deadrhetoric.com/reviews/devil-master-satan-spits-on-children-of-light-relapse/) On Album of The Year the album holds a critic score of 83 from 2 reviews and a user score of 76.[11](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/artist/36970-devil-master/)
**Ecstasies of Never Ending Night** followed in April 2022, earning a critic score of 85 on Album of The Year (from a single review) and a user score of 68 from 58 ratings.[11](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/artist/36970-devil-master/) • [4](https://devilmaster.bandcamp.com/) A live album, *Vile Twisted Magick Process*, appeared in 2024.[11](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/artist/36970-devil-master/)
**Bloody Dreams**, the band's third full-length, was released on September 4, 2026 on Relapse Records. Its Bandcamp page describes it as "punkier, with a psychedelic lean, yet festooned with a feral black metal aura," engineered by Davis M. Shubs and the Grammy-nominated Eric Bogacz and mastered by Arthur Rizk. Guest appearances include keyboardist Mirai Kawashima of Sigh, former drummer Chris Ulsh of Power Trip, and Ur Èmdr Œrvn of Arkha Sva; the album closes with the 10-minute-54-second "Farewell Waltz to Unfortune's Palace," which opens with flute and marching-band drums before settling into black metal-punk territory.[4](https://devilmaster.bandcamp.com/) Apple Music's editorial notes that the album's opener, "You Worms' Vain Delusions," places vocalist and bassist Max "Disembody Through Unparalleled Pleasure" Hamell over "hyper-speed Christian Death guitars."[12](https://music.apple.com/us/album/bloody-dreams/6781302078)
## Reception and reach
The band's audience has grown steadily. Last.fm records about 34,000 listeners and 716,500 scrobbles, with "You Worms' Vain Delusions" the most-played track in a recent week.[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Devil%2BMaster) BandSlate's compiled public record counts more than 60 recorded shows between 2024 and 2026 across 58 venues in 45 cities, and lists 18 releases.[6](https://www.bandslate.com/band/devil-master) Commentators have repeatedly framed the band as filling a gap between scenes: Dead Rhetoric called them an act "filling the vacuum" between punk and black metal, one of the scene's "most heaped-upon newbies" at the time of the 2019 debut.[10](https://deadrhetoric.com/reviews/devil-master-satan-spits-on-children-of-light-relapse/) The Metal Archives review of their early material likewise suggested the sound would pair naturally with bands such as [Midnight](https://www.edgepedia.org/midnight-band) and Satan's Satyrs.[9](https://www.metal-archives.com/reviews/Devil_Master/Devil_Master/692717/)
## Other uses of the name
The title Devil Master also appears in film: *The Demon Lover*, a low-budget 1976 American supernatural horror film shot in central Michigan, was released under the alternate titles *The Devil Master*, *Master of Evil*, and *Coven*. Its plot concerns a cult leader with psychic powers who attacks and murders members of his own cult; the making-of documentary *Demon Lover Diary*, filmed on set by the girlfriend of the film's sound man, is regarded more highly than the feature itself.[5](https://moviesandmania.com/2013/11/03/the-demon-lover-1976-american-supernatural-horror-film-overview-reviews/) • [13](https://zerostarcinema.blogspot.com/2014/04/devil-master-1977.html?m=1)
## References
1. [Devil Master on Last.fm](https://www.last.fm/music/Devil%2BMaster)
2. [Devil Master, Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives](https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Devil_Master/)
3. [Devil Master Biography by Thom Jurek, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/devil-master-mn0003776893)
4. [Bloody Dreams, DEVIL MASTER on Bandcamp (Relapse Records)](https://devilmaster.bandcamp.com/)
5. [The Demon Lover (1976) Reviews and Overview, Movies & Mania](https://moviesandmania.com/2013/11/03/the-demon-lover-1976-american-supernatural-horror-film-overview-reviews/)
6. [Devil Master, BandSlate](https://www.bandslate.com/band/devil-master)
7. [Sketchy Metal Bands survey, Hellseatic](https://www.hellseatic.de/wp-content/uploads/Sketchy-Metal-Bands.pdf)
8. [Psychedelic Vampires, Japanese Hardcore: Inside the Twisted World of Devil Master, Revolver (March 1, 2019)](https://www.revolvermag.com/music/psychedelic-vampires-japanese-hardcore-inside-twisted-world-devil-master)
9. [Devil Master review by Betrayed_By_Light, Metal Archives (March 29, 2018)](https://www.metal-archives.com/reviews/Devil_Master/Devil_Master/692717/)
10. [Devil Master – Satan Spits on Children of Light review, Dead Rhetoric (April 3, 2019)](https://deadrhetoric.com/reviews/devil-master-satan-spits-on-children-of-light-relapse/)
11. [Devil Master discography, Album of The Year](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/artist/36970-devil-master/)
12. [Bloody Dreams album notes, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/bloody-dreams/6781302078)
13. [Down Among the "Z" Movies: Devil Master (1977)](https://zerostarcinema.blogspot.com/2014/04/devil-master-1977.html?m=1)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Music scenes › Transnational genre scenes › Heavy metal scenes › Artists, groups, and people: Heavy metal scenes › Black Metal*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license