Thief sets fifth album ‘Sermons from the Pit’ for 27 November
Thief’s fifth album, “Sermons from the Pit,” arrives 27 November 2026 on Prophecy Productions, following the singles “Moon and Kill” and “Poison Drum.”

Thief will release its fifth album, “Sermons from the Pit”, on 27 November 2026 through Prophecy Productions. It follows the single “Poison Drum,” covered by Side-Line in October, and an earlier single, “Moon and Kill.”
Thief is the Los Angeles-based project of multi-instrumentalist Dylan Neal, formerly of San Francisco experimental black metal act Botanist. Neal calls the project’s sound “Dungeon Pop,” blending trip hop, industrial, jungle, metal and experimental electronics with manipulated sacred chants and choral samples. “Sermons from the Pit” pairs manipulated liturgical choirs with a production technique Neal calls “Cathedral Clipping,” producing dense harmonic distortion, cavernous textures and layered rhythms.
The 11-track album runs: “Violent Bloom,” “Moon and Kill,” “Axe Swung Ritual,” “Mirror Mirror,” “Sun Slasher,” “Year of the Leech,” “Sermons from the Pit,” “Comet Sorcery,” “Poison Drum,” “Anaphora” and “Closing Scene.”
About Thief
Dylan Neal founded Thief after establishing himself as the hammered dulcimer player for Botanist, where he also contributed dulcimer and bass arrangements to the album “The Shape of He to Come.” His work with Botanist continued with the 2021 split release “Cicatrix/Diamond Brush.” As Thief, Neal released four full-length albums before “Sermons from the Pit”: “Thieves Hymn in D Minor” (2016), “Map of Lost Keys” (2019), “The 16 Deaths of My Master” (2021) and “Bleed, Memory” (2024).
“Sermons from the Pit,” Thief’s fifth album, arrives 27 November 2026 on Prophecy Productions, following the singles “Moon and Kill” and “Poison Drum.”
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Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

