All Them Witches | Nothing as the Ideal |(New West)
3 1/2 out of 5 stars
Videos by American Songwriter
Space rock/heavy metal from Nashville recorded at the legendary Abbey Road studio in London? “Bring it on” says All Them Witches.
Now slimmed down to a three piece for the first time since the band’s 2012 debut, the lack of keyboards doesn’t substantially alter ATW’s overall psychedelic, dark rock approach on its sixth studio effort. The New West label’s hardest and arguably least Americana offering ladles out 44 minutes of tough, unapologetic and surprisingly nimble stoner rocking. The trio could easily have gone totally Black Sabbath but instead tempers the heavyosity at its core with dreamy elements that keep things from getting too oppressively in your face. That’s especially the case on “See You Next Fall,” the disc’s woozy centerpiece and at nearly 10 minutes its longest track. Bassist/lead singer Charles Michael Parks Jr.’s voice is far more subtle and melodic than other bands of their ilk as he navigates the group’s softer side on the folksy ballad “The Children of Coyote Woman.”
The lyrics get a little lost in the mix (they are also MIA in the package, along with the band’s name on the cover) as you might expect with music this visceral. Regardless, it’s the combination of the trio’s black light impulses, attention to arrangements and often restrained harder edges that makes All Them Witches distinctive in a genre geared to cult listeners.
Opening near seven minute track “Saturnine & Iron Jaw” efficiently captures the band’s essence of meaty riffage lightened with spacey elements that form the blueprint for what is to come. The nimble, sweet solo guitar of “Everest” follows the hard tumbling throbbing rawk of “Enemy of My Enemy” which can be likened to ATW going “Helter Skelter” (highlighting the Abbey Road connection) with an added pinch of Metallica’s pummeling punch. At three and half minutes and one of the few selections with a recognizable chorus, it makes a (somewhat) logical single.
The sound gets particularly trippy on the closing “Rats in Ruin” where Parks mumbles words over a delicate, softly strummed guitar. The song feels like a ticking time bomb waiting to explode before its nine minutes is out. About three quarters of that time into the track, it morphs into a pulsating Pink Floyd styled blues based attack in a final three minute crescendo.
There are few, if any, outfits as adept at balancing this hard/soft-long/short psychedelic mix and less still who accomplish it so effectively. That makes All Them Witches unique in a field they pretty much own.
Dig the band? Pre-order the new album at this smartlink.
