Witch - Witch

Heavy metal has been in a dark place for the past twenty years with space goths, slam dancers and drop-d tuned guitarists stealing the thunder of the once powerful beast.

But Witch have arrived to take the genre back to it's seedy marijuana and lysergic acid stained occult worshipping past.

Taking their cues from 70s era Black Sabbath, this band make you want to grow your hair and sing about the infernal majesty himself.

Surprisingly featuring J Mascis, of Dinosuar Jr fame, on drums this debut release is full of crunching riffs and epic guitar solos that have been sorely missing from 'alternative' music.

The guitars on this self-titled record sound suitably malevolent while the singer recounts stories of black magic and soothsayers.

Originality is not high on the agenda here with the band's influences a little too obvious which occasionly makes you feel like you've heard it all before.

But if you like your rock'n'roll with it's tongue firmly in it's cheek and a hazy guitar sound, Witch might be the band for you.

Although in places Witch sound like a jam band let loose in a studio, the resulting record made me remember why I started listening to heavy metal all those years ago.

While other contemporary metal bands may sound like they're pouring their hearts out to their high school counselor, Witch are doing their best to keep rock'n'roll evil.

Although this band are hardly reinventing the wheel, Witch are putting the fun back in a genre that has long since disappeared up its self-pitying arse.