Two factors work in the immediate favor of The Blood of Others, the self-released debut full-length from Los Angeles doom rockers Witches of God: Craft and performance. Technically speaking, there really isn’t much more you need once you’ve got knowing what you want to do and doing it. Witches of God come into the eight-track, analog-recorded, 45-minute vinyl outing with a firm grasp on aesthetic, a collection of songs that work in a variety of moods and an underlying structure of tracks that maximizes the overall flow between them. Even before you press play or lower the arm on your turntable, The Blood of Others showcases its accomplishment by beginning with “Devils II” and “Devils III” while saving “Devils” itself for side B, as the opening duo make for catchier, stronger material and it’s glaringly obvious that Witches of God knew that and had the presence of mind and editorial sensibility to separate a trio of cuts that on countless other records probably would’ve been stuck all together at the end. That’s craft. The actual songwriting, which makes “Devils II” and cuts like “The Blood of Others,” “Higher than the Heavens” — which is a tribute to Denis “Piggy” D’Amour of Voivod featuring It’s Casual‘s Eddie Solis on vocals — so memorable, is only bolstered by the performance of the band throughout, which ties into a vaguely cultish aesthetic somewhat similar in its energy and vibe (if not actual sonics) to Venomous Maximus out of Texas and demonstrates a range of moods ably, running from the attitude drenched Motörheadery of “First Love” and ’80s metal swagger of “Devils” itself to the subdued closing comedown of “Chasing Coffins,” also featuring Solis on vocals.

Solis and fellow guest Scott “Wino” Weinrich — who donates vocals to the penultimate “The Horror” — are the only two names given by the group apart from co-producer Samur Khouja and Tom Neely, who handled the artwork for the gatefold LP. The actual players are anonymous for the time being, with the songwriting credited to the band as a whole with Weinrich given cowritten-by status on the track on which he appears. Given the commitment made to such a stylized presentation, I get why the band would want to remain anonymous, but with the drama especially vocally that comes through as the songs play out, I’m not sure they’d lose anything by taking credit for work well done. Still, no names. Witches of God, the singular entity, stand as responsible for one count of viciously hookish songwriting, and while I don’t think they actual go out and drink people’s blood at night (nor does the vast majority of people who sing about it) or whathaveyou, they sure sound like they’re having a good time playing songs about it. And if some of the thematics throughout will ring familiar — witches, blood, the devil, horror, and so on — it’s a boon to Witches of God‘s approach that they come out on the other end of “Chasing Coffins” sounding more more redundant than intended. In the case of “Higher than the Heavens,” for example, that’s basically the idea — it’s a complete sonic tribute to Voivod and works in the progressive elements so often imitated from that band, including (and this I’d argue is the most skillful turn) that particular just-past-the-beat timing that has you immersed in the chorus before you even recognize the change. That song, the album’s shortest at 3:51, is a far cry stylistically from the ultra-catchy scum riffing of opener “Devils II.” There, Witches of God show they are pretty clearly aware of the malevolent shuffle Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats incorporated into “I’ll Cut You Down” at the start of their 2011 outing, Blood Lust, but they pair the darkened boogie and cowbell righteousness with a Cathedral-style sense of playing the host, an open arm leading the way for the listener directly to an unmistakable and well-telegraphed chorus.

Vocals come in layers and with a variety of calls and responses throughout. There’s a clear break between “Devils II” and the bass/spooky lead feedback of “Devils III,” but the more direct shift is in the singing, which starts out like Chris Cornell at his most subdued and winds up topping noisy, riotous stomp with more drama-fueled incantations. A riffy kind of swagger underlies and it comes to the fore as the build of “Devils III” plays out, eventually locking into a distinct nod under an ebbing and flowing solo. The opening duo are clearly that — a duo — and “First Love” brings out a major shift stylistically to a rawer sound. Its progression already motoring by the time it’s finished warming up, “First Love” works effectively off a simple verse and chorus, and while it’s nowhere near as atmospherically complex as “Devils III” or the title-track that follows, it serves its purpose well in keeping momentum going and giving the audience a landmark, even if the second-person hook comes across as more aware of “the show” than Witches of God may have intended. Slower, meaner and propelled by a doomly swing, “The Blood of Others” wants nothing for sleaze. Closing out side A, it underscores the dynamic nature of The Blood of Others, stopping dead to deliver the title line before reviving the onslaught of leads and the subtly melodic course, which launches into a solo-driven instrumental stretch (if this band doesn’t have two guitarists, they need to add somebody if they ever want to pull this off live) until with less than a minute to go, they switch gears and boogie the first half of the album to its finish, nodding at “Higher than the Heavens” as they shuffle out on the album’s most Sabbathian riff. With this prelude working its favor, “Higher than the Heavens” arrives immediately familiar, delivering the same lines that rounded out “The Blood of Others” as its opening verse.

Again, craft. You know in listening that it’s put together, but it’s put together very well. Solis does justice to Voivod‘s Denis “Snake” Bélanger while Witches of God efficiently riff themselves to the outer limits, and though in context, “Devils” itself is something of a letdown after the engaging second and third parts — its “You think you know me but you don’t know shit” chorus feels like it’s coming out of the Ugly Kid Joe playbook — the song remains undeniably catchy and well structured with nothing wanting in terms of guitar wail. The Blood of Others‘ longest track, “The Horror” follows, with Weinrich arriving at the hook something of a surprise but a pleasant one. Presumably he wrote his own lyrics and that’s why he shares credit with the band, but they join him on the rushing chorus, which breaks off and runs from the nodding chug of the verse. Punkish gang vocals, a backing track, the by-now-familiar strut of solos and Wino‘s presence and delivery itself make the cut the apex of the outing, a surprise still to come as the guitars wind their way past the midpoint and a cymbal wash just before 4:30 signals a change to a percussion-led sub-Afrobeat jam soon to succumb to a wash of abrasive noise, but hold steady underneath it all the same. Introduced by acoustics and a military snare march, “Chasing Coffins” is marked out by slower soloing and Solis‘ recounting of the I-did-drugs-and-now-everyone-I-knew-is-dead narrative. This last minute reveling in cliche might seem unnecessary were it not for the fact that it also adds to the sonic breadth of The Blood of Others overall. Leaning heavily on the chorus between, Witches of God finish with a sweet refrain of the intro for symmetry’s sake and fade to a tidy kind of silence. In cases like this, there are some listeners for whom a band’s awareness of their project and their mission can detract from the experience — as though in order to be authentic one must also be clueless. As regards The Blood of Others, I’m all the more willing to go along with the performed tropes precisely because they’re so ably constructed. That depends solely on who’s hearing it, I guess. Either way, the sonic dexterity, penchant for varied structures and vigorous hold on aesthetic speak incredibly well both of Witches of God‘s debut outing and what they might do to follow it in days to come. If they can come even close to this presentation on stage and show they’re willing to on a fairly regular basis, they won’t be unsigned for very long.

Witches of God, The Blood of Others (2013)

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Tags: California, Eddie Solis, Los Angeles, The Blood of Others, Unsigned bands, Wino, Witches of God, Witches of God The Blood of Others

This entry was posted on Friday, September 6th, 2013 at 4:10 pm and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.