MONASTERY release their new single I Woke Dead today, celebrating the approaching arrival of Revenge Is Mine, due out on November 6th, 2026 via Art Gates Records. A nightmare awakens; revenge is next.
In I Woke Dead, the horror wears a familiar face: your own. A whispered invitation becomes possession, surrendering flesh and will to a murderous force. Awakening offers no salvation. The blood and bodies may have vanished, but the memories remain, leaving the narrator trapped between the nightmare and the evil within.
With music by Monastery and lyrics by Roland Kovács, the single opens a disturbing window into the forthcoming album. Its terror lies in that fractured moment between sleep and consciousness, when opening your eyes brings no certainty that the nightmare has ended.
Cryptopsy guitarist and producer Christian Donaldson handles mixing and mastering on both the single and Revenge Is Mine, bringing his experience in extreme metal to the eight-track release.
TRACKLIST
1 Chase the Heretic
2 Kingdom of Rot
3 My Own Monastery
4 I Woke Dead
5 Strangled in Torture
6 The Last Bell
7 Fall Apart
8 Divine Damnation (2026 version)
The album features music written by Krisztián Tóth and Róbert Kovács, with lyrics by Roland Kovács, except for Divine Damnation, penned by Krisztián Mórocz. A 2026 version of that song closes the record.
ONLINE
LINEUP
Szabolcs Szanati - Bass
Róbert Kovács - Drums
Ferenc Tóth - Guitars
Krisztián Tóth - Guitars
Roland Kovács - Vocals
BIOGRAPHY/LOGO
Monastery is a Hungarian death metal band formed in 1989 in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary. Considered one of the pioneering acts of the Hungarian death metal underground, the band played an important role in establishing the genre in their home country.
The band's early material was rooted in aggressive, old-school death metal, combining crushing guitar riffs, harsh vocals, and dark lyrical themes. Following their early demo recordings, Monastery released their debut full-length album, *Far from Christ*, in 1992 through Trottel Records. The album is widely recognized as the first officially released Hungarian death metal full-length, marking an important milestone in the country's extreme metal history.
Their second album, *Postmortem Aggressive End*, followed in 1994, further establishing their reputation within the underground scene. However, the band ceased activities later that year.
Monastery returned in 2001 with a somewhat different musical direction, incorporating more modern metal influences into their sound. This period produced the *Fuck This World* EP in 2003 and their third full-length album, *Misanthrope*, in 2004. Following additional recordings, the band once again became inactive in 2007.
After more than a decade of silence, Monastery reunited in 2020, returning to their death metal roots with renewed determination. Their comeback was marked by the release of the *Chimera* EP in 2021, followed by the full-length album *Divine Damnation* in 2022.
In 2023, Monastery signed with Art Gates Records and released their fifth studio album, *From Blood*, on September 22. Recorded at Denevér Studio in Hungary, the album combined the band's old-school death metal foundations with a powerful modern production, featuring aggressive riffing, relentless drumming, and intense guttural vocals.
With a history spanning several decades, multiple reunions, and a significant contribution to Hungary's extreme metal heritage, Monastery remains an active force in the death metal underground, preserving the brutality of their early years while continuing to develop their sound.
DISCOGRAPHY
Demos:
Way to Life - 1990
Az erőszak bűvöletében - 1991
2002 Promo - 2002
Promo 2005 - 2005
Full-length albums:
Far from Christ - 1992
Postmortem Aggressive End - 1994
Misanthrope - 2004
Divine Damnation - 2022
From Blood - 2023
Revenge Is Mine - 2026
EPs:
Fuck This World - 2003
Chimera - 2021
GENRE/COUNTRY
Death Metal/Nu-Metal
Hungary
