Cybernetic Witch Cult, a doom rock trio from Cornwall, have been flying under the radar for a couple of years, gigging endlessly and treating their fans to lengthy sc-fi stoner rock songs about nuclear doom and pagan lore. Their new album Troglodithic Trip is a throwback to their demo showcase Morlock Rock - they re-recorded four songs - plus two brand new tunes. Play the albums back to back and it is obvious that they have grown a lot. New drummer Lewis May's ambidextrous, metronomic style gives singer/guitarist Alex Wyld and bass player Kale Deane a rock solid foundation to let rip. They play loud, take plenty of risks, and have a dark sense of humor that is pretty rare in their chosen genre, like showing Slim Pickens' portrayal of Major Kong in Dr. Strangelove riding on an atom bomb when they play Nuclear Sunset.
All the arcane imagery can't hide the fact that they are a serious lot who are setting their sights on reaching the bigger stages. Stoner rock will never be as huge as trash metal or hard rock - the progressive element gets in the way, but Cybernetic Witch Cult deserve their band name in big letters on the posters of the metal festival circuit.
Another remake of The Wicker Man, provided it is set in a post-nuclear dystopian society, should definitely include Cult Of The Druid. Recommended if you like the monolithic inklings of Black Sabbath (Human) and the love for challenging time signatures of The Fierce and The Dead (Astrogalactic Sprites).
Cybernetic Witch Cult:
Alex Wyld: guitar, vocals
Kale Deane: bass, vocals
Lewis May: drums
Troglodithic Trip is a self-released album. Buy it from their website. CD and digital (free). Release date: May 4.
Tracks:- Sagittarius A*
- Astrogalactic Sprites
- Cult Of The Druid
- Forbidden Fruit
- Human
- Tyrannosaurus Hex
- 04/01 The Cobblestones, Bridgwater (w/ Sail)
- 04/07 Charlie's Bar, Redru (w/ O'Deus)
- 04/19 Whiskers, Newquay (w/ Kernuyck)
- 04/22 The Bowl, Mansfield (w/ Morag Tong & Fakehead)
- 05/02 Livewire, Saltash - Metal 2 the Masses
- 05/06 The Wheat Sheaf - Banbury (supporting Doctor Cyclops)
- 05/07 The Dev, Camden - London (supporting Doctor Cyclops)
- 05/08 The Gryphon - Bristol (supporting Doctor Cyclops)
- 05/09 The Junction, Plymouth (supporting Doctor Cyclops)
- 05/19 TBC, Reading
- 05/02 TBC, Bristol
- 06/10 Isarnos' Metal Alliance @ Boston Music Room - London
- 06/17 Hollowfest III Weekender @ The Gryphon - Bristol
- 07/01 Cardiff Surplus Festival @ Oaklands Farm, Vale of Glamorgan
- 07/07 TBC, Reading
- 07/08 End of the World Festival @ The Junction, Plymouth (curated by Cybernetic Witch Cult)
- 07/09 TBC, Dorset
- 07/14 TBC, Mansfield
- 07/15 Rigger Rock Venue, Newcastle-under-Lyme (w/ Sound of Origin & Ten Days Later)
- 09/02 Angel Microbrewery, Nottingham
