WITCHING HOUR - Where Pale Winds Take Them High...

November 3, 2014, 9 years ago

(Undercover Records)

Greg Pratt

Rating: 7.0

review black death witching hour

WITCHING HOUR - Where Pale Winds Take Them High...

I know nothing about Witching Hour, and the band bio ain't helping, although it is making me chuckle: "Few month later the original drummer disappeared in the fog of a dark unholy night," it explains, and from what I understand, that's a hell of a way to lose a drummer. I lost one of my son's toy cars that way once! So I've got two things in common with this German raw thrash band, other one being we both totally love raw thrash. Think sloppy Sodom demos, think modern-day blackthrash, think "Few month later the original drummer disappeared in the fog of a dark unholy night," and you're getting there. With a production sound from the sewers, this 25-minute EP tries, hysterically, to reign in some NWOBHM sounds (the outrageously sloppy "So I've Chosen Death" and the panicked "Long Way Off... In Silent Nights," which is the overenthusiastic younger brother to Venom's chin-stroking maturity) but mainly is just a perfect specimen of horribly great metal, the band's ambition and passion clearly outweighing their technical abilities, the whole thing just exploding, imploding, whatever, man... just falling apart. And somehow it makes the most beautiful sound I've heard all day. I will listen to this again, and I'll enjoy it just as much next time out. (Note to self: this band has two full-lengths that must be extremely wild rides. Obtain at all costs.)



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