Burning Witches’ “The Spell of the Skull”

Heavy Song of the Week is a feature on Heavy Consequence breaking down the top metal, punk, and hard rock tracks you need to hear every Friday. This week, No. 1 goes to Burning Witches’ one-off single “The Spell of the Skull.”

A week like this makes us grateful for heavy metal. The catharsis of brutal, tactile sounds; the escape of fantastical, otherworldly lyrics and theatrical vocals. This functionality is one of the defining characteristics of metal. And boy, was it a necessary distraction from the turmoil of the outside world.

Swiss act Burning Witches are one of those larger-than-life power metal bands whose music is of pure, transportive joy. Anthemic vocals, fist-raising riffs, and a classic ’80s-style solo that sends a chill up the spine — the band’s latest single, “The Spell of the Skull,” has it all. And for five minutes, the external noise and negativity subsides. Long live the timeless heavy metal of this strain, and up the horns!

“The Spell of the Skull” will be available in physical format on December 10th as part of a 12-inch vinyl maxi-single with the B-side “Mirror, Mirror.”

Honorable Mentions:

Delain – “The Reaping”

Many US bands were expectedly quiet this week, though the European heavy metal contingent pressed on with its album announcements and planned releases. Dutch symphonic metallers Delain were among the latter, offering up the melodic banger “The Reaping.” Diana Leah’s pristine vocals shimmer against a backdrop of slam riffs and thick synth stabs, recalling the alt-metal of Evanescence and industrialists HEALTH when they’re at their most metal.

Dieth – Animal Me

The latest single from veteran bassist David Ellefson’s band Dieth, “Animal Me,” falls somewhere between Chaos A.D.-era Sepultura and Ellefson’s previous thrash-metal endeavors: a three-minute barrage of groove metal riffs, unfiltered through clean, unadorned production. Of Ellefon’s post-Megadeth projects, Dieth are easily the most extreme and vitriolic — they sound angry — which can be seen as both a reaction to his falling out with Dave Mustaine and a challenge to his former band to match the aggression on display here.

Malevolence – “Trenches”

Absolutely brutal stuff from UK act Malevolence. Like the beatdown hardcore of Kublai Khan TX and the breakdowns in a Knocked Loose set, the aptly named “Trenches” is sure to result in some bruises and broken bones when the moshes start churning. Malevolence’s metal underpinnings go a long way in differentiating their sound from the aforementioned bands, though they are all cut from the same HXC cloth. Someone get them on a tour together — and make sure there’s an EMT on site.