24 Nov 2017

Acid Witch: "Evil Sound Screamers"


Long awaited return of the Detroit death rockers
Finally, a new album from psychedelic horror metal masters Acid Witch - and just in time for Halloween too! It's been a full seven years since the last full length album from the deadly quartet, though the mean time has seen a few minor releases like the ever awesome split with Nunslaughter and the 80s heavy metal cover EP Midnight Movies from 2015.

News has been sparse from the witch cave, but now we're treated to a serving of tampered-with Halloween candy. Evil Sound Screamers adds a thrashier edge to parts of the classic filthy doom-infused death metal of Acid Witch, and is a furthy study into the campy nature of carnival haunted houses, B-movie aesthetics and Halloween moods.

"If you didn't like Acid Witch before, this album likely won't turn you to the cult of acid."

Evil Sound Screamers is no missionary album for Acid Witch. If you liked their previous material, you'll probably like this too as it combines the heaviness of Witchtanic Hellucinations with the deranged melodies of Stoned. If you didn't like Acid Witch before, this album likely won't turn you to the cult of acid.

The group's third album shows us that the Detroit rockers aren't content with just staying put. What the second album conveyed as a shift in style towards a more accessible sound now proves to be an example of Acid Witch's ever-evolving style. The aesthetic of lo-fi horror remains the same with the core members Shagrat and Slasher Dave, but with the addition of new members post-Stoned in 2010, their sound shifts.

This album doesn't try to be either Stoned or Witchtanic. It is its own thing. But I find myself missing the thick, eerie atmosphere of the debut and the 80s heaviness and listenability of the follow-up from 2010. Evil Sound Screamers doesn't feel like a true head-turner, but it will definitely quench your bloodthirst for witchy horror.

7/10


Released in 2017 by Hells Headbangers Records

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