[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7w_pqYUW68[/youtube]
Metal Insider contributor Anthony Maisano is listening to a different metal album that was released on that day every day this year. Today, it’s Angel Witch’s self-titled debut, which was released on this date in 1980.
This album is packed with some quick, and very catchy riffs. It never really lets up with the intensity that one would expect from a NWOBHM album. The choruses have that 80’s kind of catchiness to them as well. This album is a prime example of what was great about metal in the early 80’s.
I’m not really a big fan of the vocalist. He just sounds a bit bored, and unenthused to me. A vocalist with more energy and broader range could have really knocked this album out of the park. The structure of the songs is all pretty simplistic too, but that may not be a bad thing if you don’t mind that.
Favorite Tracks: “Sweet Danger,” “White Witch,” “Angel Witch.”
At the end of the day this is a good, but maybe not great 80’s metal album. It has all of the catchy hooks, and solid guitar riffs that anyone who likes 80’s metal will love. However the structure and form of all the songs is very simplistic. While this album might have been a bigger deal when it came out, taking it into a modern perspective, it doesn’t bring anything fresh anymore, in my opinion. It’s still solid, for sure, but not quite unique. If 80’s metal is your thing, you’ll love this album, but if you like the later subgenres of metal, this one might not hold up so well.
