You’ve got to hand it to Wytch Hazel, they’re pretty bloody prolific. This is this their third full length album since 2016, and therefore you might be wondering if the retro-rock/metal UK outfit might be exhausting their well of ideas. Their initial foray, “Prelude” was a fantastic piece of work, and the follow up, “II: Sojourn” was such a great piece of Wishbone Ash / Thin Lizzy hybridisation that I played it pretty consistently throughout 2018.
Luckily, there is no sign of Wytch Hazel having run out of song ideas. Opener “He is the Fight” is a really strong, upbeat rock song that has more than a dash of early eighties hard rock cheese to it, but none the worse for it. Almost impossibly, second track “Spirit and Fire” is even more uplifting. This has a chorus so huge that it should be immortalised in a granite statue. It also features an absolute face ripping solo towards the end of the song that had it been released twenty years ago, would have featured on at least half of those compilation CD’s that you buy your dad on father’s day. You know the ones – “GREATEST DRIVING ROCK EVER!” and “NOW, THAT’S WHAT I CALL ROCKING OUT VOL. 9”.
“I am redeemed” starts with a bass and guitar riff combo so Thin Lizzy that if you put it through a Spectrogram, it actually forms a picture of Phil Lynott high-fiving Scott Gorham. “Archangel” is perhaps a little bit more restrained, but “Dry Bones” is a slow, forceful stomper with more than a hint of prime Saxon about it, complete with soaring vocals and tasty, tasty axe licks. “Sonata” breaks proceedings up with a tasteful if – to my ears at least – fairly forgettable instrumental. (If you have vocalist with such a distinctive voice as Colin Hendra, why wouldn’t you want to use it as much as you can?”.
“I Will Not” has that galloping NwoBHM feel to it, (and is none the worse for doing so), while “Reap the Harvest” is probably the most reflective track on the album, with some excellent atmospherics from Alex Haslam and Mr Hendra (guitars). Andy Shackleton and Jack Spencer (bass and drums respectively) are no slouches either. They form the centre piece of penultimate track “The Crown”, which is an almost folk rock song, while Ancient of Days closes things off nicely with the kind of rollocking riff that Slough Feg master.
Lyrically, Wytch Hazel are a Christian band, so you’ll find lots of references to glory, mighty kings and matters of that nature, but you don’t have to be religious (luckily!) to enjoy the music here. Frankly, I don’t care what religion people have, nor am I particularly offended by people singing about their beliefs, but it would be shame if some faith bigotry stops music fans listening to what’s on offer here, because I really think that Wytch Hazel are in the top tier of classic rock inspired metal bands on offer these days. I also think that III:Pentecost is a cracking record that will only get better with repeated listens.
Give them a whirl – they deserve to be making a far greater splash than many of the heritage bands still treading the boards.
(8.5/10 Chris Davison)
12/11/2020 at 11:04 am
I’m s dyed in the wool atheist but still enjoy their music. To me it’s thematically in the same category as bands who sing about Cthulhu, Conan The Barbarian, or The Eternal Champion.
18/08/2023 at 8:47 pm
I don’t mind the Christian lyrics as long as the band itself doesn’t try to force it’s views on others. That’s a big reason I just can’t get behind most Black Metal bands as they seriously force their Satanic/White Supremacy views which os gross. Wytch Hazel is good at not crossing that line and the lyrics can kind of be thought of as what would have been sung by bards in medieval England. A theme Wytch Hazel follows with their imagery.