Bewitched- Diabolical Death Mass

 In 1996/1997, I was a freshman in college and deeply drawn in Black Metal but I have to admit I had become a little tired of it. Especially at that time, Black metal had actually become pretty popular and already started to morph away from what I loved about it. In just a few years, I would rediscover the black flame but, in that moment, I was ready for something else.

Luckily, I was apparently not the only one. As right after Nifelheim's debut a new class of bands began to rise. They were loosely classed as "retro-thrash" but really what they were doing was combining 80's first wave black and thrash with the darker sensibility of modern black metal. I fell hard for these bands and still listen regularly to them to this day. These bands included: Nocturnal Breed. Gehennah, Absu's Third Storm of Cythraul(still my favorite Absu record) and, yes, Bewitched. 

Bewitched started out being pretty unoriginal(the first track on the first record basically uses and inverts the song Evil by Mercyful Fate) and then grew to be kind of campy silly fun. I loved them anyway. They remained one of my favorite of those bands until Spiritual Warfare. So when I heard they were releasing a new record I immediately preordered it. I admit to some trepidation since most of those bands have either disappeared or don't sound nearly as good as they used to but here we are. So does the new record recapture the black flame? Well, let's find out.

I have to say that I think Diabolical Death Mass is their best record. Gone is the campiness of times past and replaced with a razor sharp focus. Vargher is in fine form. The ughs and punctuated high-pitched screams are all still there, as well as the Motorhead/Venom riffing but the difference is any amount of camp or goodnatured goofiness is gone. This record is bathed in black candle light and makes no bones about it. The themes are still satanic in nature but gone is any silliness. The lyrics are more focused and lacking the horror movie schlock of the lyrics in earlier records.

Beginning with an intro that appears to have an infant sacrificed in a ceremony to the title track all the way through Vicious and Wild, this record proves deadly serious and violent in it intent. Oh, it still inspires fist banging and headbanging but its more dark, deadly and razor sharp. Good and heavy with no side smirking in the delivery.

As I said this is the best Bewitched album and its a delight to get such a focused and heavy record 30 years after a band's debut. You should definitely check it out and , like me, plan to check out this reinvigorated Bewitched on tour. Hightlights: Diabolical Death Mass, By Satan Enslaved and Vicious and Wild. Its a great record from beginning to end, though.