PRESS RELEASE:
El Muerto, the Netherlands' one-man Black/Death Metal project, has released debut EP, Lost and Amsterdamned!
Stream/Purchase Lost and Amsterdamned:
elmuerto2.bandcamp.com/album/lost-and-amsterdamned
open.spotify.com/album/1ii2JWwZludnI4z7r4ZcWP
music.apple.com/us/album/lost-and-amsterdamned/1839573465
El Muerto was born in the depths of personal crisis, a raw and unflinching document of depression, trauma, and the desire to disappear. Conceived as a final message from an artist who had lost the will to live, each track captures a chapter of that darkness. But this record is no longer a goodbye. It’s proof that even in the shadows, something can still survive.
El Muerto is the alter ego of a multi-instrumentalist whose journey spans continents, from the underground metal scene of Mexico (Sekhmet) to experimental projects in Australia (Conscious Comma), now anchored in the Dutch landscape. With Lost and Amsterdamned, he delivers a fiercely collaborative black/death metal EP shaped by the frostbitten influence of Immortal, the grim atmosphere of Darkthrone and Mgła, and the progressive shadows of Opeth and Emperor.
Driven by guitar-forward compositions and visceral vocals, the record balances old-school extremity with cinematic vision. Each track is both a personal exorcism and a descent into archetypal horror, as described by below by El Muerto.
"Enthroned in the Tower of Shadows (The Witch)" – A theatrical black metal tale of the witch-queen reigning from a tower of obsidian. Ritualistic, grand, and venomously lyrical, it reads like folklore soaked in blood and fire. Betrayal, treason and lies.
"Ghosts of Torment" – An inner war against unseen forces. This track is a descent into madness where haunting spirits represent trauma, anxiety, and mental illness. Dissonant and despairing, it’s a song about being torn from within—and haunted from without.
"Lich King" – A blighted anthem of death’s dominion. With imagery of skeletal monarchs and ruined worlds, it’s a march into the void, full of oppressive riffing and funereal dread.
"A Song for Ran" – A melancholic invocation of the Norse sea goddess, casting despair into the sea’s cold embrace. Melodic and mournful, it drifts between surrender and transcendence beneath crashing waves and whispered death. Where the final rest in the most peaceful as well.
"Blood Crypt" – The EP’s most venomous moment: a burial rite soaked in bile and loathing. A brutal poem of closure through decay, it turns memory into rot, laying ghosts to rest in a cathedral of scorn.
"Wolves of Den Haag" – Inspired by the real-life cannibalistic murder of Dutch statesman Johan de Witt in 1672, this track uses historical horror to reflect modern betrayal and societal rage. Gnarled riffs and spectral tension echo through The Hague’s ghost-soaked streets.
Each song speaks in the language of metal, but beneath the corpse paint and distortion lies something deeply human—anguish, defiance, and ultimately, release.
Each of these songs reflects personal trauma through the lens of myth, horror, and metal’s harshest language turning lived experience into sonic ritual. Lost and Amsterdamned no longer marks an ending. It is a violent testament of survival, memory, and transformation. A cathartic howl from the pit—and the sound of someone crawling out of it.
The album's rhythm section features guest musicians from international metal acts, such as downunder's Norse and Europe's Adarrak.
Mixed by the legendary Tomas Skogsberg of Sunlight Studios in Sweden and mastered by Ricardo Botello. Recorded in studios across the Netherlands.
FFO: Opeth, Immortal, Emperor, Mgla, Death
Track Listing:
1. Enthroned in the Tower of Shadows (The Witch) [Video]
2. Ghosts of Torment
3. Lich King
4. A Song for Ran
5. Blood Crypt
6. Wolves of Den Haag [Video]
Credits:
Produced by Ricardo Botello
Mixed by Tomas Skogsberg in Sunlight Studios, Stockholm, Sweden.
Mastered by Stefan Brown from Abbey Road Studios.
All artwork created by Francisco Torres Beltrán (Tobelart).
Line-up:
Ricardo Botello - Guitars, Vocals, Piano
Zigor Munoz - Bass (except "Ghosts of Torment")
Tommaso Tani - Bass on "Ghosts of Torment"
Robin Stone - Drums
BIO:
El Muerto is the alter ego of a multi-instrumentalist, Ricardo Botello, who has made the Dutch landscape his creative home for the past years. His musical journey spans continents, from his work with the Mexican project Sekhmet to time spent with Australia’s Conscious Comma.
Now unveiling his debut EP, Lost in Amsterdamned, El Muerto presents a collaborative effort that features a dynamic cast of guest musicians.