Angel witch

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Angel witch
Angel Witch 2010
Angel Witch 2010
General information
origin London
Genre (s) New Wave of British Heavy Metal
founding 1977 as Lucifer, 1982, 1983
resolution 1981, 1982
Founding members
Kevin Heybourne
guitar
 Rob Downing
Kevin Riddles
Dave Dufort
Current occupation
Vocals, lead guitar
Kevin Heybourne
bass
 Will Palmer
Drums
 Andrew Prestidge
guitar
 Bill Steer
former members
Drums
 Dave Hogg
singing
 Roger Marsden
Drums
 Ricky Bruce
bass
 Gerry Cunningham
bass
 Pete Gordelier
singing
 Lou Taylor
Drums
 Steve Coleman
singing
 Dave Tattum
bass
 Peter Gordelier
Drums
 Spencer Hollman
guitar
 Grant Dennison
bass
 John Torres
Drums
 Tom Hunting
guitar
 Doug Piercy
bass
 Richie Wicks
Drums
 Scott Higham
guitar
 Keith Herzberg
Live and session members
Former guest musicians
Chris Stonier

Angel Witch are one of the most important and popular bands of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal .

Band history

Angel Witch was founded in 1977 under the name Lucifer by Kevin Heybourne ( vocals and guitar ), Rob Downing (guitar), Kevin Riddles ( electric bass ) and Dave Dufort ( drums , brother of Denise von Girlschool ). In the beginning they mainly played covers like Black Sabbaths Paranoid and UFOs Lights Out , which were increasingly replaced by their own pieces. Angel Witch gained a large following through their concerts. She was supported as a manager by Heybourne's father, who touted Angel Witch as "the next big thing". In late 1978 the band played the first versions of compositions such as Sorceress and White Witch . In 1979 the band's demo recording of Neal Kay caught EMI's attention . In 1980 the song Baphomet was released on Metal for Muthas . Before their release, the band split from Downing. For the promotion of Metal for Muthas the band played at the Friday Rock Show the pieces Sweet Danger , Angel of Death and Extermination Day ; the program aired on March 14, 1980. The recording of Extermination Day was released on the BBC sampler Metal Explosion . The public noticed the band, the record company decided to release the first Angel Witch single Sweet Danger . Sweet Danger was a huge hit with the band's supporters; Since the single could only stay at number 25 on the British charts for a week "and thus became the most unsuccessful single at least this year, the EMI dropped the group like a hot potato" and also ignored bands like Samson and Ethel the Frog while they focused solely on Iron Maiden . The fact that Angel Witch was the first band to only be in the British charts for a week also earned them an entry in the Guinness Book of Records as the most unsuccessful position in the charts. This was repeatedly misinterpreted as an entry as "the most unsuccessful band" and used in particular by some journalists against Angel Witch; the fact that the single Keep on Believing by Grand Prix three years later had exactly the same success had no such consequences and was not mentioned, which Malc Macmillan described as particularly annoying.

After the experience with EMI, Angel Witch continued to play concerts and appeared in the opening act for April Wine , Krokus and Black Sabbath. In the summer of 1980, the band negotiated with several record companies and aroused additional interest through their successful appearance at the Reading Festival in the opening act for Def Leppard and Whitesnake . Shortly afterwards, a contract was signed with Bronze Records . The record company sent the band to the studio shortly afterwards. In the run-up to the release of the debut album, she released the single Angel Witch , of which two differently printed and mastered (but not noticeably different in terms of sound) versions appeared; one of them claimed that the tracks were from the upcoming album Surprise, Surprise . Her debut album, however, was released under the title Angel Witch , and the theme song appeared on this in a different version than on the single. The album was panned by the British press and failed to record a position in the LP charts, but it sold well and made the band one of the protagonists of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal . Steve Harris of Iron Maiden , according to the band would have to achieve a better manager the breakthrough. Dave Hogg left the band after a few more concerts; Angel Witch recruited Dufort from the EF Band , with whom they first appeared in 1981. After a few concerts in the opening act of Max Webster with a new line-up, the band began planning a second album. However, the band's name was rarely mentioned in concert announcements, which, according to Macmillan, could indicate problems with the band. After the single, the record company feared the band's loss of popularity and withdrew from the agreement for the second album. Shortly thereafter, the band only existed by name, with one of their last joint appearances on GDR television . Dufort and Riddles formed Tytan , while Heybourne replaced Bob Hooker at Deep Machine . However, he only stayed with the band briefly before reforming Angel Witch in early 1982. He took over singer Roger Marsden and drummer Ricky Bruce when he left Deep Machine, and had also wanted to take over bassist Andy Wrighton; since that was at Deep Machine, Heybourne recruited Gerry Cunningham of Remus Down Boulevard. Marsden was released after a short time and played with Bordello, Kamikaze and Nevada Foxx before joining the EF Band; Heybourne took over the vocals again. The band played with Samson and SOS as well as at the Mildenhall Festival with Magnum and Samson, among others ; the performance was recorded for a live album in which the Polydor record company had expressed interest. This did not happen due to technical problems. A planned EP did not materialize either, and in late 1982 the band split up again.

Shortly after the breakup, Heybourne put together a new line-up and returned under the name Blind Fury. The cast included Pete Gordelier of Marquis de Sade, former Saracen singer Lou Taylor and drummer Steve Coleman. In early 1983 this lineup first appeared live, playing mostly new material and only a few Angel Witch pieces. The band rarely performed and recorded new versions of Evil Games and Nowhere to Run ; she was planning an EP called Fire and Fury , but it did not materialize. Taylor also joined the band Satan , later renamed Blind Fury; Heybourne took over the vocals again and reactivated Angel Witch. After Coleman got out, the former drummer helped Hogg out. Dave Tattum was later recruited as a singer. The band got a contract with Killerwatt and shortly thereafter recorded their second album. The album was hardly advertised and therefore came as a surprise to the fans of the band. The 1985 album Screamin 'n' Bleedin ' was ignored by the majority of its followers. Despite the low success, Angel Witch were not fired from the record company. Hogg left the band or was fired and was replaced by Spencer Holman (ex-Dexy's Midnight Runners). In 1986 the album Frontal Assault , which was produced by Demons Les Hunt and where keyboardist Chris Stonier of United Nations helped out on some tracks, followed. According to Matthias Mader, this was largely ignored, according to Malc Macmillan it was received much better than its predecessor and received a bit more benevolently in the reviews, but it could not generate renewed interest in Angel Witch. Nevertheless, their appearance at the Dynamo Open Air showed that they still had many fans. At the end of 1986 the band went on a European tour with Satan. In the meantime, the rights to her early works had passed from Bronze to Castle, where a poorly crafted re-release of the debut album appeared. After separating from Killerwatt in 1987, Angel Witch played with Elixir, Chrome Molly and Satan, among others. Tattum switched to Nightwing during this time.

In 1988 the band was hardly active. In early 1989 the band flew to the USA and went on tour with Lääz Rockit . At the time, the band consisted of four members again after taking on guitarist Grant Dennison from T. Bone. On this tour the band played only old songs and no pieces from the period after 1980. One of the gigs later appeared on Metal Blade Records and Music for Nations . Due to the success of this tour, the band moved there to Heybourne put together a completely new line-up in 1990 with Tom Hunting from Exodus and John Torres from Lääz Rockit, who made a demo recording shortly afterwards. Shortly thereafter, Doug Piercy from Heathen joined the band as the second guitarist, but the US authorities deported him back to Great Britain for lack of a work permit. Heybourne and Torres continued to exchange ideas and work on new material. By Brian Slagel of Metal Blade Records, the band finally got the chance to release a live album. In addition, CD releases appeared, including another re-release of the debut. Heybourne and Torres also began to distribute some of their material on cassettes and later on CD-R . Some demo recordings were released collectively on CD under the title Resurrection via Crook'd Records in the USA and later via Zoom Club in Great Britain, via Zoom Club also unreleased, early studio and live material under the title Sinister History , with some errors in the accompanying texts contain.

In 2000 the band was reorganized; the line-up with guitarist Keith Herzberg, bassist / singer Richie Wicks and drummer Scott Higham played at Wacken Open Air , as well as the anthology Sinister History , a British press of Resurrection and the live album Live at the LA2 . When Higham left the band, ex-Tigertailz member Ace Finchum applied as a drummer; when Wicks moved to the band Tygers of Pan Tang , it seemed like the end of Angel Witch. In the summer of 2002, however, the band resumed their activities. This time, however, Heybourne enlivened the American occupation. This occurred among other things in 2003 on the Bang Your Head .

The band was active again in the early 2000s, with Bill Steer of Carcass is their second guitarist. In 2012 her penultimate album As Above, So Below was released . On November 1st, 2019, Angel Witch released their fifth studio album Angel of Light via Metal Blade Records.

Music style and lyrics

Éliphas Lévis' hermaphroditic portrayal of Baphomet from his work Dogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie (1854) can be found on the cover of the first single, the back of the debut album, as well as t-shirts and patches by the band.

The appearance of the band was in the tradition of Black Sabbath , the musicians "gave [...] the Doom-Rock sound of Iommi and Co. with their frenzied guitar runs and accentuated tempo changes a proper rejuvenation". In addition to Black Sabbath, the Judas Priest dynamic is also considered an influence. The frequent use of the baphomet , the design of some phonograms and songs about magic and the underworld brought Angel Witch to occultism and black metal ; Heybourne emphasized, however, that he is interested "in it too, but I do not dance naked around the fire". According to Malc Macmillan, Angel Witch paved the way for bands like Witchfinder General , Satan and Desolation Angels with their early work ; the debut album was groundbreaking, and the Confused it contained was covered by Onslaught and Trouble .

With the loser single, the band seemed to "drift into dangerously melodic waters"; Suffer was compared to The Sweet by Macmillan . The material on the second album Screamin 'n' Bleedin ' was "[i] ntogether [...] much softer [...] than in the past"; the fans of the band were for the most part “put off by the single release 'Goodbye' with its keyboards”. Most of the pieces were reminiscent of Persian Sky and, ironically, Tytan, Waltz the Night and Child of the Night vaguely of Candlemass . The reviews disagreed, but agreed that there was a lack of energy and enthusiasm and that it was too clumsy and uninspiring. Heybourne himself stated in 1987 in the Metal Forces that he had not observed developments in the scene, which was a mistake; At first he was satisfied with the album, but has now found it a bit too commercial and relaxed. On Frontal Assault , the band oriented themselves more strongly to the debut album, but tended to copy it.

Around 1987 the style became thrash-metal for a short time with pieces like Time to Die and Psychopathic ; Heybourne stated in retrospect that he did not have the voice for the appropriate screaming song.

On As Above, So Below , the band kept their style, with the music in places reminiscent of Dave Meniketti and Y&T , Saxon , Accept , Iron Maiden and Mercyful Fate . The band names Black Sabbath, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band , Deep Purple , Pink Fairies , Rush and Wishbone Ash as influences.

Discography

Chart positions
Explanation of the data
Singles
Sweet Danger
  UK 75 06/07/1980 (1 week)
Angel of Light
  DE 47 11/08/2019 (1 week)

Studio albums

  • 1980: Angel Witch
  • 1985: Screamin 'n' Bleedin '
  • 1986: Frontal Assault
  • 2012: As Above, So Below
  • 2019: Angel of Light

Live albums

  • 1981: Give It Some Tickle
  • 1990: Live
  • 1996: '82 Revisited (additionally contains the demo from 1983, which was also released as an EP in 2004; was re-released in 2006 under the name Angel of Death: Live at the East Anglia Rock Festival )
  • 2000: 2000: Live at the LA2
  • 2006: Angel of Death: Live at the East Anglia Rock Festival ( Mausoleum Records )
  • 2009: Burn the White Witch - Live in London

Compilations

  • 1986: Dr. Phibes
  • 1988: Screamin 'Assault
  • 1998: Resurrection (contains the demos from 1987, 1990 and 1998)
  • 1999: Sinister History (contains the 1978 demo and some live recordings made between 1978 and 1981)
  • 2017: Seventies Tapes (released as download only)

EPs

  • 2004: Angel Witch (often referred to as They Wouldn't Dare )

Singles

  • 1980: Sweet Danger
  • 1980: Angel Witch
  • 1981: Loser
  • 1985: Goodbye

Non album tracks released on various artist compilations

  • 1980: "Baphomet" ( Metal for Muthas )
  • 1980: "Extermination Day" ( Metal Explosion from the Friday Rock Show )

Videography

VCD

  • 2000: 2000: Live at the LA2 (included in the 2000 live album : Live at the LA2 )

Music videos

  • 1980: "Angel Witch"

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Thomas Kupfer: Angel Witch . Doesn't do anything. In: Rock Hard . No. 309 , February 2013, p. 21 .
  2. ↑ a b c Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 34 .
  3. ↑ a b c d e f Matthias Mader: Angel Witch . In: Matthias Mader, Otger Jeske, Manfred Kerschke (Eds.): NWOBHM: New Wave of British Heavy Metal . The Glory Days. Iron Pages, Berlin 1995, p. 16 .
  4. ↑ a b c d e Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 35 .
  5. ↑ Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 35 f .
  6. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Matthias Mader: Angel Witch . In: Matthias Mader, Otger Jeske, Manfred Kerschke (Eds.): NWOBHM: New Wave of British Heavy Metal . The Glory Days. Iron Pages, Berlin 1995, p. 17 .
  7. ↑ a b c d e Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 36 .
  8. ↑ Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 36 f .
  9. ↑ a b c Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 37 .
  10. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 38 .
  11. ↑ a b c d e f g Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 39 .
  12. ^ A b Matthias Mader: Angel Witch . In: Matthias Mader, Otger Jeske, Manfred Kerschke (Eds.): NWOBHM: New Wave of British Heavy Metal . The Glory Days. Iron Pages, Berlin 1995, p. 18 .
  13. ↑ a b Unbroken Metal , No. 7, June 2000, p. 27.
  14. ↑ Dave Ling: An Angel Witch history by Dave Ling , London, April 25, 2005, accessed March 17, 2013.
  15. ^ Ciccio Russo: Wake up and smell the CARCASS - Intervista a Bill Steer , January 2, 2011, accessed March 17, 2013.
  16. ↑ Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 34 f .
  17. ↑ Angel Witch . In: Malc Macmillan (Ed.): The NWOBHM Encyclopedia . IP Verlag Jeske / Mader GbR, Berlin 2012, p. 38 f .
  18. ↑ a b c Yiannis Stefanis: ANGEL WITCH - “AS ABOVE, SO BELOW” , February 12, 2012, accessed on March 17, 2013.
  19. ↑ a b c d e Rustyn Rose: ANGEL WITCH ~ As Above, So Below , March 3, 2012, accessed March 17, 2013.
  20. ↑ ANGEL WITCH (Official Band Page) , accessed March 17, 2013.
  21. ↑ Chart sources: DE UK