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STORMWITCH
Season Of The Witch

Massacre (2015)
Rating: 7/10

A creaking door and atmospheric piece of narration signals the beginning of the new full-length opus from German metal legends Stormwitch.

This is the same bunch of oaken headbangers who terrified me with their fiery 1984 Walpurgis Night debut. In fact, Stormwitch were such a volatile force in the 80s, churning out a total of five albums in the latter half of the decade, which is pretty staggering statistics when one considers just how good these records were. After that, the band ploughed on, releasing two more albums before dissolving in 1994, only to re-emerge from the shadows in 2002.

In their second period of existence Stormwitch has thrown out a brace of records – 2002’s Dance With The Wolves and 2004’s Witchcraft – but again there has been a space of inactivity for the quintet. However, Season Of The Witch is very much proof that the stalwarts are still going strong.

With original members Andy Mück (vocals) and Jürgen “Wanschi” Wannenwetsch (bass) still steering the ship, the band now comes armed with three new members. The newest additions are guitarist Volker Schmietow and drummer Micha Kasper, who joined in 2013 and 2014 respectively, while axeman Ralf Stoney was recruited in 2010.

So, Season Of The Witch – although not as potent or atmospheric as its predecessors – is still very much a classy traditional heavy metal album that is steeped in Gothic melodies made all the more epic by Andy Mück’s distinctive vocal croon.

Stormwitch supplies the sort of mystical metal that was able to survive the 90s because it’s the sort of well-orchestrated, precise and magical fluency extremely popular across Europe, and in a sense it has that timeless quality. I guess one could best describe Stormwitch as “dark metal” because there’s always that feeling that each story is told like the unfolding yellowing pages of an old book.

Rich in atmosphere and driving dynamics, the quintet powers its way through a progressive style of metal based around Mück’s commanding presence. His tones are at one dark and brooding, and yet the next poetically subtle working in tandem with that fluent guitar sound – my only issues being that neither guitarist is authoritative enough in spite of some impressive solos.

The riffs are very much a grey backdrop to the storytelling prowess of Mück with the opening ‘Evil Spirit’ acting as a rather tepid yet charming structure built upon that nice, sturdy drum sound. It’s certainly worth noting that Stormwitch is rarely a heavyweight beast, mind. At its meatiest we get the chugging ‘Taliesin’ which is very much a gorgeous Gothic behemoth where Mück comes to the fore once again, but the track is soon stripped back to a stark plod of drum and guitar trickle.

The band is at its most progressive with its forever meandering strains of ‘Last Warrior’ which features various shifts in pattern, while the truly melodious qualities of the act are showcased with the excellent title track which features a hasty drum, but again there’s that breezy injection of enchanting harmony.

Another track of note is the sublime sways of ‘Runescape’, which is a nice metallic ballad featuring soaring vocals and nice, nifty guitar sprawls. For those who seek staler heights, then I suggest you latch onto the driving ‘At The End Of The World’ and ‘The Singer’s Curse’; the latter, one of two bonus tracks to be found on the album’s digipak version.

For the most part, Season Of The Witch is a Goth-tinged platter of pleasantries and brooding swirls which never reveal themselves as anything more wicked than a Disney animated villain. At times I expected more from this composition, but that’s probably due to the lack of overall weight. However, having said that, there’s still enough charm and fantastical charisma here to lead us to safety from the dark woods.

Neil Arnold

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