MARGARITA WITCH CULT Summon Chills with “The Witchfinder Comes”

Bursting on the scene from Birmingham, England, we welcome to the pages of Doomed & Stoned MARGARITA WITCH CULT. Today the doom rock trio are sharing a new single and music video from their upcoming self-titled debut.

“The Witchfinder Comes” is a menacing number that likely alludes to the Puritan zealots Matthew Hopkins and John Stearne, who hung hundreds of suspected witches during the English Civil War. The song’s chorus is as irresistible as its rollicking, Sabbath-style riff-making (and a bit chilling): “Oh son, what you done wrong? All I know is you’d better be gone. Oh son, you’d better run, run. Don’t be around when The Witchfinder comes.”

In the band’s own words, the track is “a macabre tale of an impending witch hunt, climaxing with the subject running in fear over the spiraling coda. The slab of bludgeoning ‘70s style proto-metal is a stadium sized version of the song which first appeared on the band’s demo cassette that brought the Margarita Witch Cult to the public eye in 2022.”

Margarita Witch Cult is a vibrant, rollicking old-school doomer from edge to center. On April 21st, Heavy Psych Sounds will issue the album in a stunning array of media (pre-order here). Stick it on a playlist with Black Sabbath, Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats, Warlung, Orchid, and Bang.

Give ear…

SOME BUZZ

Born from the murky industrial depths of Birmingham, UK, Margarita Witch Cult’s self-titled debut studio album is a tour-de-force in classic metal, hard rock, doom, and mind-melting psych.

A thunderous drum fill propels you into opener “Diabolical Influence” – a lurching behemoth of a tune that makes easy bedfellows of crushing stoner riffs, Latin incantations, and a simply humongous chorus. The pace quickens with the frantic “Death Lurks at Every Turn” – a hair-raising thrasher of breakneck snare rolls and unruly guitar solos. “The Witchfinder Comes” only furthers the sense of foreboding, as tales of torture and pleas for exile fall on the ever-deafening ears of the listener. “Be My Witch” comes in hot and heavy as a grungy ode to the forbidden, and the blistering “Annihilation” concludes side A with speed-freak ferocity.

The more adventurous and immersive side B is kick-started with “Theme From Cyclops” –- the deft chops of all three members being undeniable as we gallop into the ambitious, face-melting journey that is “Lord Of The Flies” – a belting doom groover that culminates in a classic guitar & bass dual to rival even the most virtuosic of axe-wielders. As we near the end of our perilous sonic expedition, “Aradia” serves up an instrumental serving of pure downtuned filth, with sleazy swagger and tasteful shredding that give extra provenance to its author’s deep bag of tricks.

The killer blow comes in the shape of the simply savage “Sacrifice” – an unholy exhibition of undeniable force. The duality of the track makes for an experience that leaves our sweet listener reeling- the bludgeoning weight of its monstrous main-riff giving way to razor-sharp verses and a tripped-out, mind-bending psych jam- only to come crashing back to crushing reality as the final, fatal notes ring out.

With their debut LP, Margarita Witch Cult have crafted a timeless, merciless beast; one that will chew you up and spit you out, yet somehow keep you crawling back for more. The Sabbath City power trio is serving a heavy handed measure of '80s thrash precision mutated with '90s stoner groove. Infatuated with themes of the occult and proto-metal aesthetics, Margarita Witch Cult tell tales of the village witchfinder, omniscient death, archaic blood rituals.