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Formed in Nottinghamshire, England, Witchfynde were just one of many early-'80s groups to be conveniently lumped into theNew Wave of British Heavy Metal, but they were nowhere near as sonically extreme as their exaggeratedly satanic image andreferences would suggest. In fact, despite displaying a wealth of heavy metal influences, their music was characterized by astrange duality, as prone to embracing downright dumb pub rock workouts as it was to indulging in high-concept songwritingreminiscent of '70s progressive rock.
Witchfynde's roots can be traced back as far as 1975, but it wasn't unt ...read more
Formed in Nottinghamshire, England, Witchfynde were just one of many early-'80s groups to be conveniently lumped into theNew Wave of British Heavy Metal, but they were nowhere near as sonically extreme as their exaggeratedly satanic image andreferences would suggest. In fact, despite displaying a wealth of heavy metal influences, their music was characterized by astrange duality, as prone to embracing downright dumb pub rock workouts as it was to indulging in high-concept songwritingreminiscent of '70s progressive rock.
Witchfynde's roots can be traced back as far as 1975, but it wasn't until late 1979 that vocalist Steve Bridges, guitaristMontalo, bassist Andro Coulton, and drummer Gra Scoresby achieved any manner of recognition with the release of their firstsingle, "Give ‘Em Hell." Signing with Rondolet Records in early 1980, they quickly followed this with a proper album bearing thesame name and none-too-subtle cover artwork (boasting a goat-headed devil-monster-thing), which no doubt gave futureblack metal pioneers Venom an idea or two. But the album's contents could hardly be called extreme, only bordering on heavymetal most of the time as the group flirted with prog rock excess and punk rock simplicity in equal measure. It did, however,land them a coveted support slot on a tour across the U.K. that summer with fast-rising NWOBHM stars Def Leppard, afterwhich Witchfynde quickly set about recording their second album of 1980 with new bassist Pete Surgey. Released just beforethe new year, the notably mainstream Stagefright toned down both the occult imagery and the more aggressive elements ofthe band's sound, confirming to most observers that Witchfynde's affiliation with heavy metal was tenuous at best. Indeed,hard-edged material was now clearly the exception to the rule, as the band delved liberally into very accessible radio rockand even (terribly ill-fated) attempts at the odd ballad or two. Needless to say, original fans were not impressed and stayedaway in droves, prompting the bandmembers to once again turn up their faux-satanic showboating, even as their musicaldirection remained questionable and confusing.
New vocalist Luther Beltz (initially choosing the ill-advised nom de guerre Chalky White) joined their ranks in early 1981, justin time to perform on the BBC's Friday Rock Show and watch the band's record company, Rondolet, go bankrupt. Various sillyexcuses were conjured up to explain Witchfynde's long absence in the next few years before they finally re-emerged in 1983,signed to new label Expulsion, and released their third album, Cloak and Dagger. Vocalist Beltz distinguished himself with hisoften grating King Diamond-esque falsetto, and the band certainly sounded tighter and more confident than ever -- buteverything else about their music and cabalistic image felt hopelessly dated by now. The album went nowhere and themusicians soon found themselves at yet another label (Mausoleum) with yet another new bassist (one Edd Wolfe) and yetanother unsuccessful record, 1984's Lords of Sin. Once again, Witchfynde vanished from sight (thankfully, with nocockamamie excuses this time), but their inclusion in 1990's excellent N.W.O.B.H.M. ‘79 Revisited collection and a decentenough greatest-hits set in 1996's The Best of Witchfynde ensured that their name was never entirely forgotten.
Still, hardly anyone could have foreseen a reunion until it actually took place in 2001, leading to a slew of concert dates(including their first North American jaunt) and a new album called The Witching Hour featuring Montalo, Surgey, andScoresby alongside new vocalist Harry Harrison. Confusingly, former singer Luther Beltz, who had originally been involved withthese re-formation plans only to bow out at the last second, decided to put together his own competing version ofWitchfynde, and also threatened to tour and record -- strange but true. Meanwhile, the quartet of Montalo, Surgey,Scoresby, and Harrison persevered, releasing the Play It to Death full-length (including covers of the Rolling Stones’ “Paint ItBlack” and Robin Trower’s “Shame the Devil” along with eight originals) in 2008. That same year, however, Beltz returned tothe Witchfynde fold and Harrison was shown the door -- and as of January 2010 the band proclaimed that that Beltz wasback “for good.” « hide |
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