ACRE Announces Reliquary: Preserving the Raw Origins of Defend Thy Faith

Dec 15, 2025

2 min read

Every band has an origin story. Few are as raw, literally, as ACRE’s.

Before FLOCO Media existed, before proper studios, and before modern infrastructure was available to the band, ACRE was known as Warrior Worship and operated under an exclusive new-artist contract with Monkey Paw Music. What followed was not a romantic “garage band” setup, but something far more improvised and difficult.

The Reality of the Original Recordings

The original 2020 release of Defend Thy Faith was recorded under extremely poor conditions. Monkey Paw’s California “studio” consisted of a makeshift plywood room inside an abandoned and fire-damaged storage unit facility. Old, discarded mattresses were used as sound treatment. The building itself had been impacted by recent wildfires. Power was inconsistent. Equipment was outdated.

The result? Tracks that were distorted, garbled, and sonically compromised, not by artistic choice, but by circumstance.

At the time, Warrior Worship did the best they could with what they had. Later attempts were made to artificially enhance the recordings through editing and digital correction, but those methods could only go so far. Eventually, we were informed that continued artificial enhancement, including AI augmentation, was no longer an option.

A Clean Slate: Re-Recording the Discography

Rather than compromise or dilute the music, ACRE made a decisive choice: re-record the original catalog properly.

Over the course of this year, ACRE fully re-recorded:

Defend Thy Faith
Christ Is King
Holy Night

These new versions reflect the songs as they were always meant to be heard—clear, powerful, and uncompromised.

An Unexpected Request from the Fans

What surprised us most came afterward.

As the re-recordings rolled out, a significant number of longtime fans reached out with a request we didn’t anticipate: they wanted the original distorted recordings preserved and released.

For many listeners, those flawed tracks weren’t defects, they were artifacts. They represented a moment in time, a raw intensity, and the sound of a band fighting through impossible conditions.

We listened.

Introducing Reliquary

To honor that history and the fans who’ve supported ACRE from the beginning, the band will release a special compilation EP titled Reliquary.

Release Date: December 22

Availability: Streaming everywhere

Reliquary will feature seven of the most requested original recordings, preserved as they originally existed, distortion, grit, and all.

This release is not a replacement for the re-recorded catalog. It is a companion piece. A preservation of where ACRE came from.

The Reliquary – Master Edition

In addition to the streaming EP, FLOCO Media is preparing something more extensive for collectors and longtime supporters.

The Reliquary – Master Edition will be an expanded digital release featuring all original distorted tracks recorded between 2019 and 2023 under Monkey Paw Music, prior to FLOCO’s involvement.

Format: Direct digital download
Availability: Exclusively via the FLOCO Media website
Release Window: Early Spring 2026

A firm release date has not yet been set, as we are currently restructuring our website to support direct-to-fan music sales, allowing us to bypass the traditional music industry entirely.

This is intentional. FLOCO Media is committed to artist ownership, transparency, and restoring the direct relationship between creators and listeners.