Umbra Vitae

Umbra Vitae is an American death metal supergroup that came together in 2020. Its lineup includes vocalist Jacob Bannon (Converge), guitarists Mike McKenzie (The Red Chord) and Sean Martin (Twitching Tongues, Hatebreed), bassist Greg Weeks (The Red Chord), and drummer Jon Rice (Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats, Job for a Cowboy). The band’s first album, *Shadow of Life*, arrived in 2020, and a follow-up, *Light of Death*, was announced in 2024.

The group formed during rehearsals for Bannon’s solo project, Wear Your Wounds, when Bannon, McKenzie, and Martin began working together. Weeks and Rice later joined during the album cycle for that project. The name Umbra Vitae comes from a 1912 poem by Georg Heym. In March 2020, the band revealed *Shadow of Life* and released the single “Return to Zero.” Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou produced the record. A music video for “Mantra of Madness” appeared in April 2020, followed by one for “Ethereal Emptiness” in June. On March 25, 2024, the band announced their second album, *Light of Death*, set for release on June 7.

Musically, Umbra Vitae is described as death metal. Bannon has said this is the closest he has come to traditional death metal in terms of speed, ferocity, and heaviness. Jamie Ludwig of *Chicago Reader* noted that the debut “mixes 90s and modern influences with hardcore energy and plenty of grit, anxiety, and rage.” The current members are Bannon, McKenzie, Martin, Weeks, and Rice, all active since 2020. The discography includes the studio albums *Shadow of Life* (2020) and *Light of Death* (2024), the singles “Return to Zero” (2020), “Mantra of Madness” (2020), “Belief is Obsolete” (2024), “Velvet Black” (2024), and “Anti-Spirit Machine” (2024), and the music videos “Mantra of Madness” (2020) and “Ethereal Emptiness” (2020).