Witchery - Witchkrieg

The newest offering from this Swedish super-group has come forth to utterly destroy any other thrash album that has come out this year. Bringing together members of The Haunted, Opeth, Merciful Fate, and Marduk gives a new background to this outstanding release. One of the biggest headlines for this album was new vocalist Legion joining the band. Tony Kampner had been with the band since its inception and has long been one of the strongest factions of their sound. A lot of people were very nervous that having a black metal singer might change their thrash sound that we have all come to know and love. I was one of the cautious many about this big change as well. However, when I first heard the song “Witchkrieg” all of my worries were soon forgotten. When Legion belts out “SATAAAAAAAAN!!!!!!!!!!!!” to start the song, my blood gets pumping and adrenaline courses through my body. His vocals lead to the great blending of death metal into their sound now. Sometimes, Witchery sound almost like a pure death metal band on the album, which is fine by me because the band comes from a great lineage of death metal.

One facet that Witchery does on this new album is something that can be seen as a desperate attempt to draw in listeners, which is bringing in multiple guests on half their songs. However, it does not come off as desperate because these guest guitarists bring extra layers of greatness that only add to their newer sound. Being able to bring on guest stars Kerry King, Hank Shermann, Gary Holt, Lee Altus, Andy LaRocque, and Jim Durkan shows the band’s credibility which only adds to this entertaining album. It is hard to tell if these tracks are just the strongest tracks on the album or if they are the strongest tracks as a result of these stars. Either way, these songs completely shred and help carry the album to even greater heights.

Overall, this album is one of the best releases I have heard this year. I have been a Witchery fan for years and was very excited when I heard they were coming out with a new album. And they sure delivered with one hell of an album. With strong tracks like “The God Who Fell From Earth” and “Conqueror’s Return” this album is sure to please any metal fan that gives it a full listen rather than a cursory glance.