Album Review: Witch Piss - The Devil Doesn't Burn
Reviewed by Matthew Williams
I’ll start off with the admission that I picked this, like I have many others, based on the name of the band. After several listens to the album though, I’m so bloody glad that I did, as this is one hell of a record.
Belgium’s Witch Piss offer a different kind of stoner metal, one with a much darker, almost demonic edge, which flows fiercely across the 8 songs on their debut album. It’s a blend that they refer to as “Mississippi Goat Worship” which has “witchcraft and venom lurking in the sediment” and one to which we are all now exposed to.
Led by vocalist Peter Egberghs, there’s a sinister electronic opening to “Black Tongue Driven” before you are pummelled by a thunderous barrage of noise with bassist Wouter Veeckmnas and drummer Dennis Lefebvre leading the charge. The twin guitars from Andoni Lombide Carreton and Stijn Georges Moens are monstrous, and you feel dirty and unwashed when they burst through.
There’s more melody to the slower paced “Bad Juju” before they drag you to the depths of hell with a more dominant guitar sound powering the song. You can sense more evil intent on this one as they pull you deeper into their sphere before it takes a bit of twist. They get more ferocious on “Wolf Cries Boy” and I can sense my neck muscles are instructing me they need to be used. It’s a full-on track that offers a bit of respite with a slower mid-section, which still sounds menacing.
However, they ooze quality on “Beggars and Horses”, the opening riff is just so downright dirty, that a beaming smile appeared on my face. The gravelled vocal works so well with their unique blend of thick, rich, textured music, and the compositions are both domineering and innovative. This is followed by the album title track, which has a slight bluesy edge to proceedings and flows along rather nicely, with commanding drums and extra vocal power provided by Ben Beart.
The Mechelen based group pound away at your soul with the majestic “Catelyn’s Broken Hope” as it’s heavy and bruising, and although melodic in sections, it has noticeable double bass and doom-laden guitar riffs. The solos throughout the album have been stirring and formidable, and there’s no let up during “Venus Rising” which is a song made for drinking whisky before you slam into a pit. You are then led down their filthy path towards the “Rubicon River” which gently eases you in before they turn up the heat and the volume one final time.
