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SPELLBOOK
Deadly Charms

Cruz Del Sur Music (2022)
Rating: 8/10

Channelling Black Sabbath and Deep Purple in equal measure, American clan SpellBook eases its second misty heap of nostalgic heavy rock into our eye-line and ear-shot and I’m not quite sure how I feel about it. Yes, there’s something fluid, vintage and cosy about this opus as the cockles are warmed like a jig around a flickering campfire on All Hallows Eve, but at times the homage feels just a tad forced.

SpellBook unashamedly plucks numerous shades from a myriad of bands of yesteryear. There’s flecks of 70s glam in there alongside the more obvious Sabbath strikes, there’s Atomic Rooster and Lucifer’s Friend, and that occult rock vibe remains strong as the likes of ‘Goddess’ and ‘Pandemonium’ waft by like November bonfire smoke. It’s all very catchy, all nifty and quite bewitching, of that I’ll admit and I do like Nate Tyson’s squawks as the merry bunch gallop their way in tidy fashion through a medieval jaunt of tracks steeped in folklore.

‘The Witch Of Riley Creek’ has a Sabbathian-lumber, while ‘Night Of The Doppelganger’ is slightly more dread-filled with its doomier ooze before a nifty New Wave Of British Heavy Metal stroke is applied. ‘Her Spectral Armies’ is femininely haunting as its wisps cavort through a sturdy bass from Seibert Lowe Jr. which runs in tandem with Nick Zinn’s solid drum taps.

It’s all good, fluffy in its folklore flapping and enchanting too. ‘Out For Blood’ closes the record; it heaves with a 70s nostalgia, sweeping with its subtle nuances and flirting with Black Widow and other shimmering occupants of the nostalgia coven. Strangely, I’d like to hear a lot more material in the vein of ‘Out For Blood’ because it really charms with its glammy swirls, even touching upon Mother Love Bone’s Andrew Wood vocally.

This album is a real grower, so give it time and let all your scepticism wash away. Deadly Charms is a steady rock ‘n’ roll record that at first didn’t sit right with me, but after the ninth listen I’d be more than happy to accept their offer in joining their inner circle.

Neil Arnold

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