Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 09/06/2017
Label: Hevisike Records
The band still sound like a collaboration between Bongripper,
Hawkwind and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop to create the ultimate sci-fi B-movie
soundtrack, but this latest release sees
them develop their cosmic barrage further out into the void., they showcase a
leaner, meaner Space Witch that still push the boundaries of heaviness but with
a more streamlined attack.
“Arcanum” CD//CS//DD//LP track
listing:
1. Cosmonoid
2. Astro Genocide
3. Hex Solaris
4. Battle
The Review:
Stoke on Trent
“Cosmonoid” and “Battle Hag” are colossal slabs of super-dense riffage that follow
the mind-expanding template of the band’s stellar 2014 debut LP. Even though
both tracks clock in somewhere around the fifteen minute mark, they showcase a
leaner, meaner Space
Witch that still push the boundaries of heaviness but with a more
streamlined attack.
The two
shorter tracks here, “Astro Genocide”
and “Hex Solaris”, are the most surprising
and give hints of where the band may head in future. The former begins in
familiar spaced-out doom territory but takes a left turn into the unknown with
an unexpected shift into a pummelling up-tempo groove. The shocks come thick
and fast from here as the band introduce vocals for the first time. The musical
backing begins to negotiate off-kilter riffs before launching into a furious
blastbeat fuelled finale. All this makes for an exhilarating ride that shows
that Space
Witch are just as effective, if not more so, when condensing their
massive ambitions into structures approaching normal song length.
“Hex Solaris” initially wrong-foots the listener
with snatches of jazz before a huge lumbering riff destroys the quiet. The
booming vocals are present right from the start here and feel better integrated
then their surprise appearance late into “Astro
Genocide”. This track best demonstrates the progress the band has made in
expanding its sonic spectrum without diluting its immense power.
“Arcanum” will be available to
preorder/buy here
