Rating: 8.3
Country: UK
Release Date: 2006
Record Label: Nuclear War Now!
Track list:
1. Free Country
2. Burning A Sinner
3. Witchfinder General
4. Requiem For Youth
5. Shadowed Images
6. Friends Of Hell
7. Death Penalty
8. Last Chance
9. Invisible Hate
10. Quietus
11. No Stayer
12. Love On Smack
Band Website: Witchfinder General |
Witchfinder General - Live '83 
Zeeb Parkes- Vocals
Derm Redmond- Drums
Rod Hawkes- Bass
Phil Cope- Guitars
As we all know, live doom records are always a dicey proposition. One needs no reminding as to how tentative and tepid 'Live At Last' sounds in comparison to a bootleg of the Sabbs' performance at the legendary California Jam, or how inferior ‘A Keg Full Of Dynamite' is to a number of clearer, more forceful Pentagram bootlegs (which is not to take away from Keg Full at ALL, the version of "Much Too Young To Know ” still SMOKES). On the other hand, we have drab affairs such as Candlemass' official live recording, which plays things a little TOO close and straight to the studio versions to arouse any sort of excitement in the average doom maven. What we have here is a Witchfinder General recording that exhibits a singular fundamental fault - the boys have clearly taken considerable liberties with the studio incarnations of the recording, and certainly their whimsies don't always yield favorable results. Some might also take issue with the coarse sound of the recording, but to such rabble-rousers I can only say that this is a fucking live recording, and we should be GLAD that it isn't plagued by all the accoutrements of the modern age, overdubs and all.
When the first strains of “Free Country” crawl indolently out of your speakers, it's clear that this isn't the Witchfinder General we grew to revere on the immortal 'Death Penalty', but an altogether sludgier and more psychedelic proposition. Zeeb's vocals are SOAKED in reverb and echo, it seems, the tempo is slowed down enough to make a profound impact on the song, and Rod Hawkes' bass positively MUSCLES its way into the mix, the strings flapping and flopping all over the sticky, sinewy mess, providing a monstrous blare that catalyzes and enkindles this fireball of volume. Cope accents it all with a solo that is clearly different from the studio version, and it all makes for an interesting (though I hesitate to say "better'') take on one of the most beloved WFG staples. “Burning A Sinner” fares somewhat worse in comparison, Zeeb sounding lackadaisical instead of lascivious on the hook. Cope barely manages to resuscitate the flagging, decrepit proceedings with a fiery lead, but the song settles back into a lazy groove that fails to swing as hard as the studio cut.
It is this hit-and-miss dynamic that really plagues and mars what would otherwise be a great live recording. Perhaps I have grown too attached to the original Witchfinder General cuts- after all, they have been an omnipresent part of my metallic diet for the past 6 years or so, but regardless of how many spins I give this disc, there are certain interpretations that just don't sit entirely well with me. I do very much appreciate what they're endeavoring to do with “Burning A Sinner”, “Shadowed Images”, “No Stayer”, but honestly, the tracks in question just don't sound RIGHT to me. A friend has suggested that perhaps the playback of the tape is slow, and this seems, in hindsight, to be a plausible possibility, considering how detuned Zeeb's voice and Cope's guitar can get in spots. If this be so, I will gladly retract my prior statements on the band asserting creative freedoms on the studio material, as otherwise everything is, solos and certain basslines (Hawkes of course adding much life to the original Cope-penned 'Death Penalty' lines with deft fills) aside, identical to the LP versions.
Ultimately, however, one cannot deny the fact that some of these songs DO sound cooler with Zeeb's amateurishly overused vocal effects and a slower, more deliberate tempo. Surprisingly, I REALLY dig the take on “Invisible Hate ”, perhaps THE premier swinging, grooving, flailing rock n'fuggin'roll number in the WFG canon. The feel here is somehow even looser than on the studio cut, the band radiating a cocky brashness as they stampede their way through one of THE finest boogie riffs of all time, adding more emphasis to each note and hit. “Friends Of Hell”, meanwhile, oozes menace and crackles with evil, the band rolling out an unspeakably nefarious take on one of their more overtly diabolical songs. Again, Hawkes' bass trickles and drips all over the mix, coating everything in an impenetrable black resin, GREAT stuff, and an excellent rendition of a brilliant song, all accented by Zeeb's anguished, singularly brilliant vocalizations. The echo effect WORKS here, Zeeb's voice sounding like a mournful wail erupting from some distant catacomb, invoking ancient spirits to do his infernal bidding. And that torturous, slow-burn Sabbath dirge in the middle of the song…I have often refuted and contested irresponsible parallels between the General and Black Sabbath, but the droning despondency of this grinding, pulsating passage would clearly render my arguments null. Somehow, the song is the same, yet it really isn't, you'll have to hear it to believe it.
Fast forward to “Quietus”, and it's clear that this is the most tampered-with song on this entire set. THIS song has to be slowed-down (what the FUCK is up with Zeeb's gruesomely distorted introductory banter?!), its oppressive Sabbathine creep reduced to a crippling crawl….fucking EXCELLENT funereal, progressive DOOM to be had here, folks, though I do wish Zeeb would turn the echo and reverb down a tad for this particular number, as it does tend to distract slightly from the churning, shifting nuances of Cope's guitar. Thank BEELZEBUB that they threw this track into the cauldron here, being arguably the most DOOMED number to bear the Witchfinder General name. The band breezes effortlessly through the multiple movements here, traversing through monstrous, demonic drone to more uptempo, swinging sections to a closing acid jam, Cope accenting and ornamenting everything with some rather Iommi-esque solos (check the moves he flaunts 06:02 into the track). Yeah, Phil Cope unleashes his inner Tony all over this album, and that alone should prompt anyone to give it a spin.
A bit of a mixed bag, then, as this record features some positively CORKING moments and a handful of interpretations that I frankly remain intrigued, but ultimately ambivalent about. For the most part, the slowed down versions of the speedy, throbbing, more straightforward Witchfinder General cuts don't fare a fraction as well as their more ritualistic, plodding numbers. What can be said about this album, though, is that it always sounds raw and genuine, bristling with all the believable conviction of a real live show. No added crowd noise here, no painfully obvious overdubs, this is very much geared towards the seasoned Witchfinder General collector and makes no pretenses about what it is- a soundboard recording capturing a legendary band at the height of their creative powers. Of course, a word of warning here to those of you who have yet to plunge into the dark abyss of Witchfinder General - do NOT start with this live recording. This is not a ‘Made In Japan' , a ‘Live After Death', a ‘Strangers In The Night', a ‘Unleashed In The East'. Nay, this is not an effective initiation into the macabre, devilish mischief of WFG, and I would recommend that you pick up ‘Death Penalty' at your soonest convenience, then snag ‘Friends Of Hel' if it tickles your fancy. This disc's purpose is to satiate collectors, archivists and general maniacs whose perpetual hunger for more DOOM can never be tamed…….
March 9th, 2006 |
