WORMWITCH — Heaven That Dwells Within (review)

WORMWITCH — Heaven That Dwells Within album cover Album · 2019 · Melodic Black Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4.5/5 ·
voila_la_scorie
When it comes to black metal, I find there's the type that makes me think, "Sweet! I can totally immerse myself in this," and then there's the type that makes me think, "A bit too much slicing on the ol' tympanic membrane. Ease up a bit on the over-driven lo-fi treble tone."

Wormwitch's second album, "Heaven That Dwells Within" is of the first type. Right from the bursting intro of the drums, the Celtic Frostian "ough!", and the wash of guitar distortion, the music is like a swiftly hurtling cozy blanket that whisks me away. The production is warm and comfortable, not squeaky clean or living room lo-fi. The drums blast away. The vocals do what black metal vocals do. The guitar sounds and the riffs sweep you away across the frosts and snows of... Vancouver? Alright. It's a bit unusual to hear black metal performed so well from a city that's known more for rust than frost. But Wormwitch sure have a handle on what they're doing.

In general, the album is a sweet listening experience, but there are enough moments that pop out that have me checking the track list and what song is playing at the moment. That folky bit in "Vernal Womb". The pause and sudden drop downs in "Two Wolves". The changing riffs of "Midnight Sun" and the acoustic and clean vocal intro to "Dancing in the Ashes". It doesn't take long to pick out what makes each song different from most of the others. That's a good point for me. I appreciate an album that sounds great from start to finish, but it's the little highlights here and there that make individual tracks memorable.

I'm a bit surprised to see "crust" mentioned in Wormwitch's description. I don't hear any on this album. But I like it enough that I am interested in hearing their first album. Black metal experts might have more critical words to say about this record but I think it's really a well-done piece of work that I'll come back to.
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