Lychgate was formed in 2011 by Vortigern (guitars) with the collaboration of Greg Chandler (vocals and guitars), Aran (Bass) and T. J. F. Vallely (drums). In 2012, the self-titled debut was recorded and then released in the first quarter of 2013 through Mordgrimm and Gilead Media. The material on this album was partly inspired by demo material from a pre-Lychgate project known as Archaicus; demos that would later be released through Cult Never Dies and entitled, The Early Years - 'Beneath the Horizon' and Other Demos, 2002-06.
Between January 2012 and December 2013, Vortigern wrote material for the second album entitled An Antidote for the Glass Pill, which was thematically inspired by Bentham's concept of the Panopticon. It was recorded almost entirely at Priory Studios intermittently in the second half of 2014. It was released through the Finnish label Blood Music (Emperor, Perturbator, Maudlin of the Well, Sigh etc.) in August 2015. This was a springboard in the development of Lychgate's sound, with the utilisation of organ as a compositional backbone to all tracks, along with influences from late 19th century/early 20th century art music, Rock in Opposition, musique concréte and 1940s-70s cinema. Besides the core line-up and addition of Alan Webb on bass, the band invited Kevin Bowyer to perform all organ parts.
The press received An Antidote highly, with praise given to its uniqueness and forward-thinking approach. It has been featured in lists for the top metal albums of the 2010s, from Angry Metal Guy and Invisable Oranges. Shortly after the release date, a European tour was conducted with Nightbringer in November 2015 . The following year, the band performed the entire album with real organ at Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, the Netherlands.
In August 2017, Lychgate entered Orgone Studios with producer Jaime Gomez (Ulver, Sólstafir, Paradise Lost) to record the third album for Blood Music, entitled The Contagion In Nine Steps, in which the band adopted generally slower tempos, and psychedelic atmospheres. It was inspired by the Stanisław Lem novel The Invincible (Niezwyciężony) and variations on the theme of group-think and crowd psychology.
During August/September 2019, an EP entitled 'Also sprach Futura' was recorded at Priory Studios, inspired by the film Metropolis (1925/1927), and Lem's Golem XIV (1981). The work was quicker paced, and more similar to An Antidote than its predecessor. It was released on Debemur Morti Productions (Blut Aus Nord, Ulcerate etc.) in March 2020. A subsequent European tour with White Ward was regrettably cancelled due to the global pandemic at the time.
In 2025, Lychgate entered Priory Studios to record a new full-length album. It is due to be released in the winter of 2025 through Debemur Morti Productions.
Lychgate features members who have been part of other projects such as Esoteric, The One, Macabre Omen, Enthroned, Haken, and Omega Centauri. The current line-up features the following members:
Greg Chandler — Vocals
Vortigern — Guitar, Vocals and Keys
S. D. Lindsley — Guitar
Tom MacLean — Bass
T. J. F. Vallely — Drums