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ARKHAM WITCH
Legions Of The Deep

Metal On Metal (2012)
Rating: 7/10

Arkham Witch are an intriguing British four-piece and Legions Of The Deep is their second opus that comes wrapped in killer artwork, clearly influenced by the eerie scribblings of HP Lovecraft.

Although the record doesn’t live up to the weird work of the genial author, it’s still a cool retro metal blast that combines the oaken rumbling of Black Sabbath and Witchfinder General, and that distinctive odour of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal.

There’s nothing fancy on show here, just weighty, and at times bluesy doom-tinged metal that combines rainy atmosphere and monolithic meandering, particularly with a track like ‘Iron Shadows In The Moon’, which showcases the aptly named Aldo “Dodo” Doom’s guitar quake and Simon Iff?’s warlock growl.

But for me, the album’s pivotal moments are the cranked up chant of ‘Infernal Machine’ with its dense riff and coach and four charges of the drums and bass, and the gargantuan trudge of ‘On A Horse Called Vengeance’.’

Arkham Witch are very much steeped in the old school values of metal, and the epic sound of ‘The Cloven Sea’ reminds me of Judas Priest if they were fronted by Gandalf The Grey! The band can certainly write a juggernaut riff or two too; check out the skull-clattering title track where the band switch moods to create a Venom-meets-Pentagram style of traditional gloom.

This is incredibly accessible metal that despite its subject matter has a tongue-in-cheek approach. I’d become sick of so many stoner bands dragging me down with their pot-smoked vibes, but Arkham Witch have all the characteristics of a creaky pulp novel, adorning their Tony Iommi-styled solo’s in tales of monsters and mayhem from distant yet eerie shores.

The fact that I can’t put my finger on exactly why I enjoy Arkham Witch proves their charm, but upon spinning Legions Of The Deep several times I’m reminded of Lovecraft’s twisted hints at horror, and feel that these guys have got things just about right when it comes to creating a British version of Cthulhu. Arkham Witch are something akin to visiting a fog-drenched Cornish moor and yet sensing that something isn’t quite right with that frothing sea in the distance. Do you catch my drift?

Neil Arnold

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