My Favourite: WITCHCRAFT

The Swedish retro-doom-psych-folk band known as Witchcraft was started in 2000 by vocalist/guitarist Magnus Pelander, whose original intent was to record a single in tribute to Pentagram's Bobby Liebling and Roky Erickson -- how often does that happen? Calling on his friend John Hoyles (guitar) and brothers Ola (bass) and Jens Henriksson (drums) to lend a hand, Pelander did indeed record that single (entitled "No Angel or Demon") and released it through small independent Primitive Arts Records in 2002. Then, encouraged by the results, he continued to compose material for Witchcraft while his bandmates pursued other interests.

A year would pass before they reconvened as Witchcraft, and with new drummer Jonas Arnesen in tow, the quartet began preparing their eponymous debut album for release through Rise Above the following year. Recorded in a basement studio outfitted exclusively with vintage equipment, the album captured a hauntingly authentic 1970s sound -- steeped not only in the heavy-handed work of Black Sabbath and Pentagram, but also in the psych and folk-rock elements of obscure acts like Leaf Hound, Captain Beyond, and Comus. And yet, ironically, none of the members of Witchcraft were even born before 1977, making their loving reconstruction of that decade's music -- underground music at that -- all the more remarkable.

What started out as some friends getting together to play Pentagram covers blossomed into one of the greatest bit of retro-action of all time. Witchcraft was so thorough in their pursuit of 1970's authenticity as to not use any gear or recording equipment from after 1975. The result is a hypnotic record with more than a few nods to obscure hard rockers of the past such asWicked Lady,Jerusalem,andNecromandus as well as some of the darker folky stuff of that era like Comus,Family, and Mellow Candle, not to mention the obvious similarities to Black Sabbath and Pentagram. This record is absolutely perfect. If you didn't know better you might think this was some lost gem from the 70's that you missed the first time around, and that's precisely what Witchcraft intended, thus making this album a success.

ONE OF THE BEST NEW SPACE-STONER ROCK BAND!!!!