Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Here’s the Pitchfork review:
Witch
Witch
[Tee Pee; 2006]
Rating: 7.6Forget the dog, kids: 2006 is ostensibly the year of the Mascis. Not only are Dinosaur Jr. back for reunion tours and catalog reissuing, but my favorite wah-loving stoner is revisiting his Deep Wound and Upsidedown Cross days on the side, drumming for doom quartet Witch. Mascis handled Dinosaur’s thunder toms when Murph wasn’t around (see Green Mind), but in Witch, it’s his singular role: no blistering solos or perfect "Freak Scene" poetry, just airtight rolls and bass-drum thuds.
Spanning the psych-metal/folk divide, two of Witch’s members also play in the airy Vermont octet Feathers, perhaps known best as the backup crew on Devendra Banhart’s anti-war song, "Heard Somebody Say" (although their pleasant forthcoming full-length on Gnomonsong should change that). Here, singer/guitarist Kyle Thomas and guitarist Asa Irons follow the footsteps of folk-rock genre-hoppers like Six Organs of Admittance’s Ben Chasny, ably increasing the volume and peeling the tie-dye from the walls.
Fans of the legendary SST doom-metal band Saint Vitus will likely find this stuff to be fun, if hardly original. Just don’t confuse them with Swedish Pentagram lovers Witchcraft. Actually, okay, confuse them if you want: There are plenty of similarities in the rollicking instrumentation and occult lyricism. The 1970s-style metal cross-referencing would make for a smoking double bill, but Witch inhales more Zeppelin with its Sabbath. Also, Witch’s Thomas sounds nothing like Witchcraft vocalist/guitarist Magnus Pelander; instead, he warbles like Jason Simon of Dead Meadow or, oddly enough, the Apples in Stereo’s Robert Schneider.
But whatever the proper analogue or crib sheet– and regardless of the starpower Mascis brings to the proceedings– the Feathers boys are the stars of Witch: The album’s best moments result from the torrid dual guitar solos, the well-textured feedback, and how the heavy atmosphere contrasts with Thomas’ sweetly nasal howl. And that howl is fantastic, especially when Witch aims for epic extrapolations as on the mountainous "Black Saint". He also contributes a supernatural spark to epic opener "Seer" (those riffs!) and the rising/falling "Rip Van Winkle", which should take 10 years off any self-respecting banger’s lifespan. (It is sorta strange, though, that this Dead Meadow-sounding dude is from Feathers and Dead Meadow’s newest album was called Feathers. Are they sharing the incense and blacklights or what?)
Renaissance Faire love song "Isadora" provides a pace change with dramatic cymbal washes/crashes and acoustic starlings, but the more expansive stuff works best: "Soul of Fire"’s boogie, for example, is less appealing than rifftastic "Changing"’s glorious bongwater drone. "Changing" also inserts resounding Druidic bell tolls and harmonies dipped in the magic circle and zodiac cloak. And whenever the shit seems to patter into the shadows, a whirlwind of guitar takes off and the boys bong out a few more rounds. These are such rich landscapes, all mossy and backed with an inked sky, it’s like they live in an Arik Roper sunset.
Fans of doom and 70s psychedelia have hefty decisions to make these days, so if your budget’s limited, here’s how things stand on the Sabbath meter: Witch holds my attention more forcefully than the Sword or Pearls & Brass, but less gloriously than Om or Sleep. There’s an energy and charisma in this dosage that I find lacking in some of the younger contemporaries. Really, it could be totally nerve-wrackingly debilitating to solo and scream in front of an icon of Mascis’ stature, but Thomas imparts himself wonderfully. In fact, by the closing notes of the album’s finale, I always forget it’s J who’s manning the drumkit at all.
-Brandon Stosuy, March 15, 2006
Not sure if this was posted anywhere but Lou got on to his forum and talked a little about the new material last week. Sounds like it’s almost all J as far as writing goes and the bass and drums are recorded. So far they have 10 outlines done! But don’t take it from me, here’s what Lou says:
"loobie" wrote:mike’s right..it’s j’s deal and he’s not exactly inviting me to write (not discouraging me either but..)..i think i may get 1 or 2 in if i really assert myself..we’ve done about 10 basic outlines so far..we spent a month getting the drums together, playing for 2-3 hours a day..i put bass down on 7 or 8 songs before i split..some of which i’ll probably have to do over..i dunno..it’s real different than (most) seb or FI where there was a lot of discussion and collaboration .. j is a strange boss..
but that’s dino..and i kinda like it that way.. it’ll make going back to my own stuff (or maybe sebadoh) seem all-over new again..
it sounds like dino..rest assured..a little mellower than the early stuff..but yea, "rocked out"..http://giotto.netpdf.com/loob/viewtopic.php?p=4595&highlight=#4595
What are the bonus tracks? If it’s just Tunip Farm, Hot Burrito #2 and Keeblin I probably won’t bother but if it’s new stuff I’m all over the reissues.
Nice interview. Thanks for posting it. I can’t believe J was drinking Ginger Ale, is he not a "drinker?"
By the way, great question. I like the answer about Bug. I think YLAOM is the best of the early stuff but Bug has a certain accessibility to it that might make it more appealing. What it comes down to is that you need both albums.
"Toni Vestman " wrote:No, I think you should start with You’re Living All Over Me.Agree here. This album contains the most songs they’ll be playing at the show you attend. Some will come from Dinosaur and Bug but if you’re only buying one album, buy You’re Living All Over Me.
"BetteDavisLies " wrote:"I’m a twisted name on Uma’s Eyes – I’m living proof of Cindy’s lies – It’s history"Just listened to this the other day and picked it out right away. If you don’t know to look for it, "uma" can sound pretty weird in a song I guess.
In what part of the song does he say "uma"? I don’t remember that lyric but I’ve probably been thinking he says something else. J’s a hard man to understand sometimes!
They do imply in the preview that next week will be pretty good. The previews are usually deceiving though so what it looks like is going to happen and what actually happens can be very different. We’ll only know for sure next week!
I thought last night’s episode was very poor. We know Sawyer can’t be trusted but he was trying to redeem himself (going after Mike’s son at the end of last season, for example). This episode seemed like a huge diversion and it cancels out the developments made by Sawyer to this point. Also Charlie dragging Sun off to embarrass Locke seems like a stretch to me. If he was using again, maybe, but to do that as some part of an elaborate plan to humiliate Locke seems like a weak explaination.
I don’t know, I hope they somehow get back to the main point or go somewhere really interesting with all of this but I have to say this episode seemed like it was put together poorly. Maybe they’ll develop things to a point that this makes more sense but right now I have to say it’s one of the weaker episodes they’ve done.
That is just awful! So was the cat really old or did it just look like it based on the fact that your roommate had sex with it so much?
"uma’s cow " wrote:3. Freakscene – No Bones – They Always Come
2. Out There – SC – What Else is New
1. Sludge – The Lung – RaisinsTop Five Songs
5. Thumb (Live)
4. Little Fury Thigs
3. The Lung
2. Raisins
1. What Else is NewAnother "What Else is New" fan. Good to see, I don’t think that song gets enough love on this board. Definitely the most over-looked Dino song IMO.
