The metal runs true through the heart of King Witch‘s 2018 debut album, Under the Mountain (review here), and the rush that the Edinburgh four-piece put into the beginning of “Carnal Sacrifice” and the hook that emerges from there is as much as defining moment for them as one could ask. It’s a track that recalls the best of classic metal and its modern interpretations, touching on doom in the way that Tony Iommi gradually accepted his role as a founding figure of what metal became, while moving swiftly at an intense pace that speaks to the precise execution of thrash that emerged to dirty-up the otherwise shiny impression of the NWOBHM. It’s fucking metal, in other words. I don’t know how else you would want or need to say it. All things metal, and metal in all things.

Of course, Under the Mountain as a whole varies in mood, pace, horn-raising induction, and so on, but “Carnal Sacrifice” leaves no question as to where it’s coming from. Brought to bear by the lineup of vocalist Laura Donnelly, guitarist Jamie Gilchrist, bassist Simon Anger (since replaced by Rory Lee) and drummer Lyle Brown, it is delivered with festival-ready nobility — and take your pick in that regard, whether it’s Wacken in Germany or Download in the UK or perhaps even Hellfest, as King Witch‘s label, Listenable Records, is likewise based in France — and an awareness of the style to which it’s playing. One can hear elements cast from Candlemass and a subtle technicality in Gilchrist‘s guitar that speaks to an underlying progressive influence, but the prevailing for-headbangers-by-headbangers remains, and Donnelly‘s powerhouse vocals and command are right at the center of that.

I had the pleasure of premiering “Carnal Sacrifice,” the audio of the track itself, with the review linked above, but frankly, as we come upon a year since Under the Mountain‘s release, I’m happy to have the video premiering below as an excuse to revisit it. Call me a sucker for a classic metal hook, if you want — I’ll only take it as a compliment — but “Carnal Sacrifice” continues to highlight many of the strengths in King Witch‘s debut and why it seemed upon its arrival to hold so much promise for future righteousness to come.

The clip takes footage from the 1922 silent horror film Haxan, and splices it with footage of the band playing to create a suitable atmosphere, and that’s cool and all, but really, they could’ve made a video of the band playing with a bunch of adorable puppies and the song would still kick ass.

Have at it, and enjoy:

King Witch, “Carnal Sacrifice” video premiere

King Witch on “Carnal Sacrifice”:

“Carnal Sacrifice is inspired lyrically by the classic horror films of the ’60s and early ’70s, but the footage from Haxan suited the song so well that we had to use it — it’s crazy that this film was made in 1922 and still has a very sinister edge.”

“Carnal Sacrifice” – taken from King Witch’s debut album Under The Mountain released in February 2018 via Listenable Records. Available now in CD/LP/Digital. Live footage recorded by Alan Swan. Video created by Laura Donnelly.

ORDER HERE : https://kingwitchmerch.bigcartel.com

King Witch live:
21st February, The Arches – Coventry
22nd February. The Dev – Camden
23rd February, The Underground – Bradford
24th February, West Street Live – Sheffield
8th March, Bannermans – Edinburgh

King Witch is:
Jamie Gilchrist – Guitar
Laura Donnelly – Vocals
Rory Lee – Bass
Lyle Brown – Drums

King Witch on Thee Facebooks

King Witch on Instagram

King Witch on Bandcamp

Listenable Records website

Listenable Records on Thee Facebooks

Listenable Records on Twitter

Dec. 7 marks the release date of Juniper Grave‘s debut album, Of Hellions and Harridans, on Wasted State Records, and that same night the Edinburgh four-piece will play a hometown release show at St. Mark’s Unitarian Church. A church seems a fitting setting for their organ-laced sound, further distinguished as it is by the harmonies brought to bear by multiple vocalists, with Jenni in the lead position backed by guitarist Shonagh and bassist Sarah while Jason drums behind. The release show is the first of a three-night weekender, and they’ve got two weekenders in a row, winding up in Manchester on Dec. 15, which is as far south in the UK as they go. Fair enough for the band to celebrate the arrival of their tales of mischief and devilry in songs like the boogieing “A Trick of the Light,” the seven-minute prog-doom centerpiece “The Bridge Between Worlds” and the well-harmonized and classically metal closer “Rest with Your Dead (Faolitighearna),” which is a cause worthy of celebration both for the realization of these songs themselves and for the potential they represent.

“The Forest,” the video for which actually takes place indoors as well as outside in the woods, is the leadoff track on Of Hellions and Harridans, offers a rousing hook to capture the listener’s attention early, and as such, it makes a fitting opener, but while it doesn’t have the same kind of charged harmonies as in the finale or even the penultimate “Lunar Calling” before it, it also does some essential work in setting up the linear flow of the album toward those ends. The organ is established for being the crucial element that it is. The rhythm section proves crucial to the weight and groove overall, and the melody brings forward the nascent sense of command in the vocals overall that speaks to one of the band’s great potentials for arrangement and melodic/harmonic interplay going forward. That’s getting well ahead of things, but it’s there in the song all the same and becomes a subsequent theme for Juniper Grave across the album’s 40-minute, LP-ready span.

This is the first audio from the album to be made public so far as I know, so please dig in and click the tour poster to enlarge the dates should you happen to be in the region early next month. Preorders for Of Hellions and Harridans are up now through Wasted State, and you’ll find that link along with more info under the video below.

Please enjoy:

Juniper Grave, “The Forest” official video premiere

From the dreich, winding closes of Edinburgh come Juniper Grave. Riding out under the banner of debut album Of Hellions and Harridans, these four harbingers of doom have distilled the influence of fellow occultists Blood Ceremony and Jex Thoth into the soundtrack to a Faustian bargain.

Video shot & edited by Richie Morgan

Taken from their debut album ‘Of Hellions & Harridans’, released 7th December 2018 through Wasted State Records.

Coming as Vinyl, CD and Digital Download, the album pre-order is now available at:
http://www.wastedstate.com/releases/juniper-grave-of-hellions-harridans/

Juniper Grave are:
Lead Vocals and Organ: Jenni
Guitar and Backing Vocals: Shonagh
Bass and Backing Vocals: Sarah
Drums: Jason

Juniper Grave on Thee Facebooks

Juniper Grave on Twitter

Juniper Grave on Instagram

Juniper Grave on Bandcamp

Juniper Grave website

Wasted State Records website

Wasted State Records webstore

Wasted State Records on Bandcamp

Wasted State Records on Thee Facebooks

Scottish four-piece Juniper Grave formed in 2016 and issued a two-track demo in 2017 that featured the songs ‘Lunar Calling’ and ‘The Bridge Between Worlds.’ The cultish-leaning outfit have signed to Wasted State Records and both of those tracks will feature on their debut album, Of Hellions and Harridans, which is due out Dec. 7. There’s no audio from the record yet and the demo has been taken down from Bandcamp in place of a preorder page for the LP — fair enough — but the live clip below gives some sense of the band’s approach with guitarist Shonagh and bassist Sarah providing backing vocals for organist Jenni, and it seems likely those arrangements will factor heavily in the album (haven’t heard it, so can’t confirm that) along with the weighted grooves and eerie organ melodies. Also dig the purported themes of “warrior women and accursed souls.” Would be a nice change from all that horror-movie silly whatnot that seems to abound everywhere you look.

The PR wire has details:

JUNIPER GRAVE TO RELEASE DEBUT ALBUM THIS DECEMBER!

Edinburgh based witch-rock band JUNIPER GRAVE have announced the release of their hotly anticipated debut album titled ‘Of Hellions & Harridans’!

Formed in 2016 peddling their unique brand of occult rock with strong tinges of the doom, JUNIPER GRAVE have quickly grown their coven of fans at live shows, such as in support of Dystopian Future Movies or Church Of The Cosmic Skull, and progressed towards the album writing at the start of 2018.

This summer, JUNIPER GRAVE entered the Chamber Studio in Edinburgh to record their debut album ‘Of Hellions & Harridans’, which is set for a release with Wasted State Records on December 7th 2018!

“After two years of weaving and crafting we can’t wait to share our stories of warrior women and accursed souls with the world.“ Says the band. “The themes, although fantastical, embody our ethos of empowerment and sisterhood and we are really proud of these seven songs of ruin and revenge.”

The tracklist will read as follows:
1. The Forest
2. A Trick Of The Light
3. Daughters of the Waves
4. The Bridge Between Worlds
5. Dance of the Daemon Queen
6. Lunar Calling
7. Rest With Your Dead (Faoiltighearna)

Coming as Vinyl, CD and Digital Download, the album pre-order is now available at:
http://www.wastedstate.com/releases/juniper-grave-of-hellions-harridans/

Juniper Grave are:
Lead Vocals and Organ: Jenni
Guitar and Backing Vocals: Shonagh
Bass and Backing Vocals: Sarah
Drums: Jason

www.facebook.com/junipergrave
https://twitter.com/junipergrave
https://www.instagram.com/junipergraveband/
https://junipergrave.bandcamp.com/
www.junipergrave.com
www.wastedstate.com

Juniper Grave, “Daughters of the Bannermans” live in Edinburgh

I’m not saying you’ll be telling your grandkids about it however many years from now — though one never knows — but DVNE‘s onstage debut in the US seems to me the kind of thing that you want to see if you can help it. They’ve got two — count ’em: one, two — dates booked Stateside. One is Psycho Las Vegas, which comes first, and second is a Psycho-affiliated San Diego gig at Brick by Brick with Elder and Red Fang. Nothing like being made to feel welcome in a new place.

Oh, and speaking of Psycho-affiliated, DVNE are also the first client for the fest-promoter’s new management wing. They’ll have a new album out in 2019 to follow-up last year’s much-lauded Asheran, which was released by Wasted State Records.

The PR wire brings tales of things to come:

DVNE: Progressive Metal/Sludge Collective To Make First-Ever US Appearance At Psycho Las Vegas; New Album In The Works

In just a few short weeks, Edinburgh-based progressive metal/sludge behemoths DVNE will make their way stateside to play Psycho Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada, followed by a special show at Brick By Brick in San Diego, California with Elder and Red Fang. The two shows will mark DVNE’s first-ever US live performances!

Comments guitarist/vocalist Victor Vicart, “We’re gearing up for the US and couldn’t be more excited to play our first shows over there. Psycho is going to be mental; loads of bands we love and it looks like we’re going to have a three-day non-stop party too. We also have a show in San Diego with Elder and Red Fang the following Monday so our post festival blues are sorted!

“Following those shows,” he continues, “we’ll be back home in Edinburgh and the plan is to lock ourselves in the practice room and finish our next album. We’re really excited to enter the studio again and explore with new sounds and instruments; it’s going to be a blast!”

DVNE recently completed a UK tour supporting New Orleans icons Eyehategod. Lauded The Moshville Times of their performance in Glasgow, “I’ve seen [DVNE] a handful of times now, they’ve always impressed me live, and tonight they were at their best, flying through an absolutely blistering set focused on the Mastodonian Asheran. On yet another uncharacteristically hot Glasgow evening, Audio was stiflingly clammy so as the mellow segue music from Asheran filled the short gaps between songs the guys caught their breath and wiped sweat from their gear. On occasion, vocalist/guitarist Victor Vicart used these pauses to switch between his nine-string and six-string guitars. During the likes of ‘Thirst’ Victor’s vocals and guitar parts acted as lighter, emotive counters to Dudley Tait’s growled hollers and chunkier riffs. All the while Dan Barter’s swift fills and Allan Paterson’s rolling basslines kept the songs driving forward. The local(ish) boys done great!”

DVNE:
8/17/2018 Psycho Las Vegas @ The Hard Rock Hotel And Casino – Las Vegas, NV
8/20/2018 Brick By Brick – San Diego, CA w/ Elder, Red Fang

DVNE (pronounced dune) released the critically-lauded debut full-length, Asheran, last year via Wasted State Records. A sixty-minute epic narrative following the tale of the rise and fall of civilizations, the return of an empire thought millennia lost, and the world-spanning events that consequently unfold, Asheran is steeped in themes of science fiction, environmental issues, and both dystopic and utopic visions for the future of mankind. Asheran was captured at Chambers Studio in Edinburgh, and mixed and mastered by Tom Dring of Vagrant Studios (Dragged Into Sunlight, Venom Prison).

A special orange clear 2xLP edition of Asheran is currently available at THIS LOCATION where the record can be streamed in its stunning entirety.

DVNE features Victor Vicart (guitar, vocals, keys), Daniel Barter (guitar, vocals), Dudley Tait (drums), and Allan Paterson (bass). Forged in 2013, DVNE’s Scottish roots lie with Tait and Paterson, with Vicart hailing from France and Barter from England. DVNE’s debut EP Progenitor was released in December 2013 and was followed the next year by a second EP entitled Aurora Majesty. Both offerings were released via Wasted State Records. Thanks to the excellent critical reception, DVNE quickly began to tour the UK and around Europe sharing stages with the likes of such scene household names as Crowbar, Eyehategod, Inter Arma, Dragged Into Sunlight, and Black Tusk. DVNE unleashed their most ambitious album to date in August 2017. Titled Asheran, the offering was released on 2xLP vinyl, CD, and digitally again via Wasted State Records. Since Asheran’s release, DVNE took on a month-long European headlining tour and recently partnered with Psycho Entertainment, curators of the esteemed Psycho Las Vegas festivals, for management. The union marks Psycho Entertainment’s first ever management venture. DVNE will release their follow-up to Asheran next year with details to be announced in the coming weeks.

https://www.facebook.com/DvneUK
https://www.instagram.com/dvne_uk/
https://twitter.com/SongsOfArrakis
https://songs-of-arrakis.bandcamp.com/album/asheran
http://www.wastedstate.com/

DVNE, Asheran (2017)

Scottish heavy progressives DVNE are on the third vinyl pressing of their 2017 album Asheran. That they’d have sold through two is little surprise, considering the breadth and weight the band puts into their material. That should make an interesting pairing when they play with sludge magnates Eyehategod in July in the UK in preparation for their US debut this August at Psycho Las Vegas, where there’s little doubt they’ll turn even more heads in their direction. Every fest has that one band that surprises people, and it’s easy to think DVNE will be that band for many. I hope very much to find out for myself by, you know, being there to see them.

The PR wire brings all the latest on all the latest, and it goes like this:

DVNE: Progressive Metal/Doom Collective Issues Third Pressing Of Asheran On Limited Orange Clear 2xLP; UK Dates With Eyehategod Confirmed + Band To Make US Live Debut At Psycho Las Vegas

Edinburgh-based progressive metal/doom collective DVNE are pleased to unveil the third vinyl pressing of the critically-lauded Asheran full-length debut.

Released last year via Wasted State Records, Asheran is a sixty-minute tapestry of sound; an epic narrative following the tale of the rise and fall of civilizations, the return of an empire thought millennia lost, and the world-spanning events that consequently unfold. Steeped in themes of science fiction, environmental issues, and both dystopic and utopic visions for the future of mankind, Asheran was captured at Chambers Studio in Edinburgh, and mixed and mastered by Tom Dring of Vagrant Studios (Dragged Into Sunlight, Venom Prison).

The orange clear 2xLP edition of Asheran will be released on June 4th via Wasted State Records and is currently available for preorder at THIS LOCATION where the record can be streamed in its stunning entirety.

Since Asheran’s release, DVNE took on a month-long European headlining tour and recently
partnered with Psycho Entertainment, curators of the esteemed Psycho Las Vegas festivals, for management. The union marks Psycho Entertainment’s first ever management venture.

DVNE will bring their psalms to UK stages this July supporting Eyehategod. From there, the band will make their way stateside for their first ever US performance at Psycho Las Vegas followed by a special show at San Diego’s Brick By Brick with Elder and Red Fang with additional live dates to be announced soon.

Comments guitarist/vocalist Victor Vicart of the Psycho appearance, “We’re so stoked to play Psycho this year. It’s the kind of festival we’ve always wanted to be part of because it pushes bands to do something special and different from their regular live performance. We’ve played a lot of small venues and squats in Europe and love the DIY part of the scene, but with Psycho, we have the opportunity to do something with our show we’ve had in mind for a long time. We can’t wait for people to see what we’re working on for the occasion.”

DVNE w/ Eyehategod:
7/01/2018 The Exchange – Bristol, UK
7/02/2018 Brudenell Social Club – Leeds, UK
7/03/2018 Audio – Glasgow, UK
7/04/2018 Rebellion Rock Club – Manchester, UK
7/05/2018 The Underworld – London, UK
8/17/2018 Psycho Las Vegas @ The Hard Rock Hotel And Casino – Las Vegas, NV
8/20/2018 Brick By Brick – San Diego, CA w/ Elder, Red Fang

DVNE (pronounced dune) consists of Victor Vicart (guitar, vocals, keys), Daniel Barter (guitar, vocals), Dudley Tait (drums), and Allan Paterson (bass).

https://songs-of-arrakis.bandcamp.com/album/asheran
https://www.instagram.com/dvne_uk/
https://twitter.com/SongsOfArrakis
https://www.facebook.com/DvneUK
wastedstaterecords.bandcamp.com

DVNE, “Thirst” official video

[Click play above to stream ‘Carnal Sacrifice’ from King Witch’s Under the Mountain. Album is out March 16 via Listenable Records.]

Some heavy metal makes its impact with raw, blistering fury. It speaks to something primitive and disaffected in its audience, manifesting a sense of violent otherness that, at times, pushes the limits of sonic endurance to its very extremes. King Witch don’t play this kind of metal. They play the other kind. As the Edinburgh-based four-piece make their noteworthy debut with the nine-song Under the Mountain via Listenable Records, they do so with an overriding sense of poise and clarity of purpose. Their sound is crisply-presented, their songwriting efficient, their performances energetic and powerful.

Individual tracks present different vibes, whether that’s the rolling undulations and progressive forward drive of third cut “Solitary” or the thrashier thrust of the later “Possession,” but especially with a foundation of hooks like those of “Carnal Sacrifice” and the near-seven-minute centerpiece “Approaching the End,” which recalls finer moments of post-Ozzy-era Black Sabbath in its sense of class and stage-presence-in-the-studio spirit, Under the Mountain is unafraid either to blaze ahead at top speed directly in the face of the listener or to stand back and manifest its ideas with a precision bordering on the graceful. As Under the Mountainwas preceded only by a 2015 EP titled Shoulders of Giants, it is all the more impressive to consider for being the band’s debut, and with the lineup of vocalist Laura Donnelly, guitarist Jamie Gilchrist, bassist Simon Anger and drummer Lyle Brown, King Witch emerge from their first album having showcased present realization and future potential in kind. That’s the kind of metal they play.

They execute it by engaging with a number of subgenres, and opener “Beneath the Waves” brims with rolling intention and sets a tone somewhere between Candlemass and less specifically doomed, updated NWOBHM methods. A current of keys adds flourish to the arrangement, but the most striking immediate effect comes from Donnelly‘s vocals, which from “Beneath the Waves” and into the commanding chorus of “Carnal Sacrifice” and even in the more laid back chug of “Solitary;” one can her a trained-seeming vibrato that only works to bolster the coherence of the material overall. She stands up to the Judas Priest-ery of the subsequent title-track, on which Gilchrist offers a particularly choice guitar lead, a bit of shred setting up the dynamic tempo change into the chunkier “Approaching the End,” which is perhaps the most singularly doomed moment on Under the Mountain, though neither the guitar nor the vocals are wanting for showcase moments throughout the proceedings.

The initial shove Under the Mountain elicits in “Beneath the Waves” and the shouting hook of “Carnal Sacrifice,” while still controlled in style and delivery, is an energetic blast to start the record, and though “Solitary” seems to move immediately outward from there with a spacious guitar intro and longer runtime, it remains informs by the vitality of the tracks prior, and the same could certainly be said of the careening title-track that follows, its jabbing riff opening up to a thrash-style chorus that would seem to reveal Anger‘s bass as the secret weapon of the band, subtly thickening and complementing the rhythm while adding flourish to stand up to Brown‘s drums. A slowdown about halfway through gives “Under the Mountain” a break into nod that once more Donnelly guides the audience through masterfully, and when the gallop begins anew to toward a final chorus, it’s a further highlight of the songwriting acumen at work on Under the Mountain as a whole and the sheer efficiency with which King Witch bring their material to bear.

That notion extends to the interactions between the tracks across the record’s span as well as to the songs themselves, as already heard in the tempo shift between “Carnal Sacrifice”‘s riotous finish and the start of “Solitary.” Likewise, “Approaching the End” — which might be the highlight achievement here in blending classic metal, doom and an innate sense of personality in one summary progression — picks up with a slower pulse than the title-track before it, and as by its end it hits a raging payoff, the subdued and bluesy strum that follows in “Ancients” feels like all the more of an aesthetic outward reach on the part of King Witch — a departure from the strictly metallic vibe that they’re no less able to pull off cleanly and with intent. Brown‘s toms signal a kind of middle ground resolution in the subsequent “Hunger,” and sure enough, what emerges there is one of Under the Mountain‘s most resonant chugs, a spacious verse and a sweeping chorus, all of this speaking to perhaps the stylistic melding process that the band might undertake as they move forward from this debut.

Always difficult to speculate on that kind of thing, but if there’s a point being made as King Witch round out Under the Mountain, it’s on the more furious side of their sound, which frankly it sounds like they’re having too much fun executing to expect it to completely disappear anytime soon, whatever their sound ultimately becomes. Both under four minutes long, “Possession” and “Black Dog Blues” make a sharp finishing duo, the former with a vicious forward thrust and the latter with head-spinning percussive turns as if to make the point that the band has only begun to explore the various methods of what will eventually become their style.

The real question coming out of Under the Mountain is whether that style will remain as multi-faceted as it is in these songs or cohere over time into some combination of elements through which King Witch find further individualized expression, but this concern is for the next record, and if anything, Under the Mountain demonstrates with its urgency and ambition that this is a group not just working haphazardly toward whatever ends they may discover along the way. Instead, these tracks clearly indicate a group working as one unit with common goals, and listening to the finished product of Under the Mountain, it’s hard to imagine the first of those common goals hasn’t been realized.

King Witch on Thee Facebooks

King Witch on Instagram

King Witch on Bandcamp

Listenable Records website

Listenable Records on Thee Facebooks

Listenable Records on Twitter

There is a strong current of metallic righteousness in Under the Mountain, the debut full-length from Edinburgh four-piece King Witch. Marked out by the powerhouse vocals of Laura Donnelly, songs like the rampaging title-track, “Possession” and “Carnal Sacrifice” are propulsive atop Lyle Brown‘s crisply popping snare, the thrashing-at-a-moment’s-notice riffs of Jamie Gilchrist and the low-end punch of Simon Anger. As “Black Dog Blues” sprints the record to its conclusion, it seems only fitting that a siren should go off in the last couple measures. A sense of emergency well earned. Go, go, go.

Still, that rush doesn’t quite take into account moves that King Witch make elsewhere on Under the Mountain — which is due out Feb. 9 via Listenable Records — such as the fluid rollout of the north-of-six-minutes progressive nodder “Solitary,” its post-title-track doomly counterpart “Approaching the End,” which stomps out its rhythm calling to mind the best of early Candlemass, or the purposefully bluesy “Ancients,” which follows. Even the more uptempo “Hunger” seems more geared toward rock than metal, so already on their first album, we hear a strong refusal from King Witch to remain one-sided. As the album plays out its 43-minute run, that ends up being one of its great strengths.

“Beneath the Waves,” the leadoff cut for which the band has a newly-unveiled Moby Dick-style video, would seem to be a hook-laden middle ground between several of these impulses, and for that it makes both a fitting opener and a solid candidate as a single. I’ll hope to have more on the album before it’s out, but you’ll find the clip for “Beneath the Waves” on the player below, followed by more info from the PR wire.

As always, I hope you enjoy:

King Witch, “Beneath the Waves” official video

This February, Listenable Records will unleash Under The Mountain, the debut full-length from Scotland-based metal/doom rockers KING WITCH. In advance of its release [comes] the band’s official video for “Beneath The Waves.”

Elaborates vocalist Laura Donnelly, “‘Beneath The Waves’ was inspired by stories such as Moby Dick and explores man’s need to destroy anything and everything beautiful, dangerous, and unfamiliar… and the retribution dealt in return. This track felt like a natural choice for the video – soaring vocals, massive drums and some huge riffs!”

KING WITCH:
Laura Donnelly – vocals
Jamie Gilchrist – guitars
Lyle Brown – drums
Simon Anger – bass

King Witch on Thee Facebooks

King Witch on Instagram

King Witch on Bandcamp

Listenable Records website

Listenable Records on Thee Facebooks

Listenable Records on Twitter

Fucking. Doom. Metal. You know you did something right when a label like Listenable comes knocking to put out your debut album after only releasing one EP, and quite frankly, it doesn’t take more than about two minutes into the opening track from King Witch‘s 2015 Shoulders of Giants three-songer — streaming below courtesy of the Edinburgh-based four-piece’s Bandcamp — to get a sense of what the appeal was. Classic-style doom metal fronted by the powerful and creatively arranged vocals of Laura Donnelly ensues, grandiose and righteously irony-free. My only hope is the album follows suit, because if it does, look out for this one. It could be an absolute beast.

They’ve got copious album info here from the PR wire, but make sure you dig into that EP audio too if you haven’t heard them before. I’ve hand Candlemass on the brain lately, granted, but King Witch are scratching that itch for epic doom quite nicely as well.

Right on:

KING WITCH: Edinburgh-Based Metal/Doom Rockers To Release Under The Mountain Via Listenable Records This February; Artwork And Track-By-Track Breakdown Revealed

Scotland-based metal/doom rockers KING WITCH will release their debut full-length, Under The Mountain, via Listenable Records early this February.

Under The Mountain was recorded and produced by guitarist Jamie Gilchrist at their underground studio in their home city of Edinburgh, mixed and mastered by Tom Dring at Vagrant Recordings (Dragged Into Sunlight, Acolyte) in Southport and comes swathed in artwork created by vocalist Laura Donnelly. The record serves as KING WITCH’s follow-up to their debut EP, Shoulders Of Giants, and boasts nine riff-laden tracks offset by the powerful yet bewitching vocals of Donnelly. Influenced by everything from Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin to Mastodon and High On Fire, Under The Mountain is as melodic as it is monolithic, taking its listener on a journey from soulful doom to full-tilt metal mayhem.

Formed in early 2015 in a dark cavern beneath the streets of old Edinburgh, KING WITCH manifests a potent and heavy brew of old school metal and the meatiest of ’70s classic rock. In a time where many seek to stick rigidly within the confines of their chosen genre, KING WITCH simply writes the songs they want to play.

Under The Mountain is scheduled for a February 9th, 2018 release via Listenable Records. For preorders visit listenable.net. A track-by-track guide to Under The Mountain as described by the band can be found below.

Under The Mountain Track Listing:
1. Beneath The Waves
2. Carnal Sacrifice
3. Solitary
4. Under The Mountain
5. Approaching The End
6. Ancients
7. Hunger
8. Possession
9. Black Dog Blues

“Beneath The Waves” – This is inspired by stories such as Moby Dick and explores man’s need to destroy anything and everything beautiful, dangerous, and unfamiliar… and the retribution dealt in return.

“Carnal Sacrifice” – A homage to all the old Hammer horror films, particularly To The Devil A Daughter, an innocent born for the sole purpose of being a sacrificial vehicle of hell – topped off with some fake tomato sauce blood!

“Solitary” – This song is about Mother Earth birthing the human race only to be sucked dry and left barren. It’s about a vast loneliness that can be felt even when surrounded by life.

“Under The Mountain” – An upbeat classic metal song! It reeks of adventure. The lyrics have been inspired by stories such as Conan The Barbarian and Lord Of The Rings.

“Approaching The End” – A song about the moments before death and the feeling you’ve not achieved everything you wanted/needed to. It’s about the creeping fear that it’s not all white lights and glowing tunnels and about the not knowing where we go and what happens to us after death.

“Ancients” – This track focuses on the majesty of the Mountain. Breathtakingly beautiful yet treacherous to all. Inspiration comes from our home of Scotland which is filled with ancient mystery and awe inspiring mountainous landscapes.

“Hunger” – “Hunger” is about man’s greed and the feeling of never being satisfied with life, which further drives humankind to destroy and consume relentlessly.

“Possession” – This can either be about demonic possession or insanity. In both you are not yourself – like someone or something else trying to get out.

“Black Dog Blues” – Something most of us can relate to: This is about depression and how it feels like something that is always with you like an old acquaintance. It lurks and waits, then, when you least expect it, it slides on in and makes itself at home.

KING WITCH:
Laura Donnelly – vocals
Jamie Gilchrist – guitars
Lyle Brown – drums
Simon Anger – bass

http://www.facebook.com/kingwitch
http://www.instagram.com/kingwitchband
https://kingwitchband.bandcamp.com/
http://www.listenable.net
http://www.facebook.com/listenablerecs

King Witch, Shoulders of Giants EP (2015)