Witchmaster – Trücizna
The Polish born Witchmaster is a thriving blend of thrashing death with a touch of evil black metal riffage. The spirit and overall feel of the guitar work does put me in mind of minor Destroyer 666 worship, but nowhere near as triumphant both musically and vocally. Even a hint of a rock vibe in the guitar and drum work falls into the formula on “Total Annihilation”, which is more of a mid-paced headbanger that will have the fists flying in the front row. Vocally, screamer Bastis produces a drunken sounding, mid-ranged snarl that has more in common with old styled death metal and it helps give this album an enjoyable filth of old that digs deeper in every time I’ve spun this. “Road to Treblinka” features the bands most solid and interesting song structure and a handful of riffs that sit perfectly together, but leap from rockin’ motion, to blasting intensity. It’s an interesting take on some tired and true formulas that have made their presence known time and time again in the metal world. Featuring members of Profanum, Christ Agony, Hell-Born, Incantation and a few others, there’s a long history of death and black metal veterans on display here that have created a really well written opus that isn’t afraid to reach across several genres within the metal realm to achieve the denim, leather, and hell attack that is the core of their sound. If you go into it not expecting a lot of originality, you’ll like Trucizm even more. –Marty
Ibex Moon Records
Worm Gear 