Review: Witchthroat Serpent ‘Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway’
I’ve always been a sucker for heavy fuzz and freaky, wah-soaked feedback, especially when it’s married to doomy nasty riffs. France’s Witchthroat Serpent caught my eye with their awesome album Sang-Dragon way back before the world moved on. The 2016 album was a bit more of a straight-shooter than this latest release, which see the band ratchet up the ethereal mystique and move to a slightly more space-doom soundscape.
Opening dirge, Multi-dimensional Marvelous Throne kicks off with some ugly droning feedback before the glacial-like riff gets, ah, sludging on down the road. Some slo-burn wah is put to cool effect, punctuating the darkness of this 10+ doomfest. Lumbering like a road train on a steep hill, Nosferatu’s Mastery drags the listener across some bleak terrain, chopping up the sound through the guts of the tune with some slightly more hostile vibes. It builds to a really cool lysergic climax, with the guitars burning up the sky.
With a title like The House That Dripped Blood, I was wondering if Witchthroat Serpent were gonna delve into some good ol’-timey psychobilly. You know, just to keep me guessing. The dinosaur footsteps and tripped-out guitar put paid to that idea. What we did get was another strung-out doom anthem. Yellow Nacre is the most rock ‘n’ roll and upbeat track on Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway. Some punchiness to it and an aggressive drive!
a mighty fine slab of doom…
The hefty chunk of new bassist Ügo Greifengeier’s unearthly rumble (as a bassist myself, I always dig it when that instrument leads the charge!) leads into the final track. With a title sounding more like a surrealistic painting, Mountain Temple In Bleakness is yet another epic. It’s at times quite a dreamy song, and other times hits with a cruelty and ugliness not seen elsewhere on this record.
Guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Bolzann hits this long-player with a slightly more whimsical bent than on their previous release. The (newish) four-piece line-up, which is completed with Djé Cndrs on guitar and Niko Lass on drums, seem to have gelled as the six-track, forty-two-minute Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway is a mighty fine slab of doom!
Label: Heavy Psych Sounds
Band Links: Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram
Scribed by: El Jefe
