Wytch Hazel // V: Lamentations // Album Review

Wytch Hazel’s fifth offering, V: Lamentations, is out on the 4th of July, and much like its predecessors, it is quite amazing. The band’s brilliant blend of rock and folky rock is stunning, and it draws you in in a very hypnotic way. You will find yourself getting lost in the cracking harmonies and amazing musicianship. The whole album is spellbinding.

The album opens with “I Lament”, a galloping riff monster that will have you hooked from the start. The groove is relentless while Hendra’s silky vocals are outstanding, and the fret work from Haslam is brilliant, and just like that, you are hooked. The opening riff on “Run The Race” sets the track up nicely. The drum and bass combination of Hay and Shackleton creates a great bouncing rhythm that pushes the tempo. Throw in Hendra’s soaring vocals and a great solo from Haslam, and you have one of the best tracks on the album. “The Citadel” with its slower more deliberate rhythm and Shackleton’s heavy bass is something to behold, Hendra’s vocals are immense and the crunching riffs add a nice bit of heft, this is an amazing track and made even more so by Haslam’s cracking solos, both midway through and as the outro. “Elements” has a cool late 70s, early 80s vibe with softly strummed guitars and a big keyboard element. Hay and Shackleton lay down a great rhythm, and Haslam once again outdoes himself with another monster solo, one of, if not the best, tracks on the album. “The Demon Within” is a stripped-back affair that trundles along in a good way, silky vocals and smooth guitars accompanied by subdued drums and a bassline that underpins it all, another brilliant track. The slow pulsing rhythm on “Racing Forwards” enthrals you, ably aided by Hendra’s harmonious vocals, the interplay between Haslam and Hendra is great, culminating in another fantastic solo from Haslam. “Elixir” is a short, medieval, folksy instrumental interlude. For me the twin guitar assault on “Woven” is very Lizzy like and it rocks big time, the upped tempo is down to the killer riffage and buzzing bass line from Shackleton that is mesmerising, not to mention the seriously understated drum beat laid down by Hay, Hendra’s strained vocal stylings on this one are killer and the jaw dropping solo from Haslam is awesome, this is one to get you moving. The ballad style “Heavy Load” has a groove that is driven by the formidable duo of Hay and Shackleton, allowing Hendra to croon along at a meandering pace with the softly strummed guitars fading off in the background intermittently to allow the heavy electric riffs to cut through, a tight number. The album closes with the epic “Healing Power”, a track that has a mixture of all their influences, you can hear Maiden, Lizzy, Zeppelin, even some Kiss here, as the band goes out with an almighty flourish.

This has to be one of the most enthralling albums of the year. From start to finish, there is not a bad track on it, and that is not something you can say about many albums around at the moment, I loved every minute of it!

Review: Conor