THIEF isn’t interested in staying in one lane. Los Angeles producer Dylan Neal is bringing industrial abrasion, trip-hop shadows, drum’n’bass momentum, choral layers and black-metal atmosphere together on Sermons from the Pit, arriving November 27, 2026, through Prophecy Productions.
It’s the project’s fifth album, following 2024’s Bleed, Memory, and the advance description points to a record built around grief, anger and a hard-won sense of renewal. Neal recorded and mixed it himself, with Grammy-winning engineer John Greenham handling mastering. Two tracks, “Moon and Kill” and “Poison Drum,” are already available to hear. Fans of Nine Inch Nails, Portishead and Ulver have a particularly good reason to pay attention.
Official Press Release
Los Angeles experimental electronic artist THIEF returns with Sermons from the Pit, a dark and immersive fifth album that blurs the boundaries between industrial, trip-hop, drum’n’bass and atmospheric black metal. Driven by distorted electronics, ghostly choral arrangements and intricate rhythms, the record channels personal turmoil into a haunting exploration of grief, disillusionment, and eventual catharsis. For fans of Portishead, Ulver, Nine Inch Nails and Death Grips.
Current Singles: Moon and Kill / Poison Drum
For Fans Of: Nine Inch Nails, Portishead, Ulver
Links: Website | Facebook | Instagram | | Spotify | Apple Music
About:
Los Angeles-based experimental electronic project THIEF, led by multi-instrumentalist and producer Dylan Neal, has developed a distinctive sound that merges trip-hop, industrial, ambient, choral music and black metal. Drawing inspiration from artists such as Portishead and Ulver, Neal has earned a devoted underground following through his unconventional songwriting, intricate production and dark, atmospheric compositions.
On his fifth album, Sermons from the Pit, Neal delivers his most emotionally intense and sonically ambitious work to date. Following 2024’s deeply personal Bleed, Memory, the new record explores grief, anger, disillusionment, identity and spiritual conflict, tracing a psychological descent that ultimately gives way to acceptance and renewal. Musically, the album combines distorted electronics, jungle and drum’n’bass rhythms, haunting choral samples and industrial soundscapes with an underlying black metal influence. Neal’s signature production technique, dubbed “cathedral clipping,” creates a dense, cavernous atmosphere through layers of distortion, feedback and reverberation.
Previously a member of experimental black metal outfit BOTANIST, Neal launched THIEF with 2016’s Thieves Hymn in D Minor, followed by Map of Lost Keys (2019) and The 16 Deaths of My Master (2021). Although primarily a solo recording project, THIEF also performs live as a full band. Sermons from the Pit was recorded and mixed by Neal and mastered by three-time Grammy Award winner John Greenham, whose credits include Death Grips and Billie Eilish.