What a mighty fine debut
To the rest of the country, the slow rolling feel of the Midwest isn’t necessarily the first locale to come to mind as a breeding ground for grimy grindcore. Numerous corn and wheat fields, yes, spastic and blunt grind, not so much. But those middle states do find themselves home to a burgeoning grind scene, Iowa’s Closet Witch being one of the bands standing out through all those waves of grain. Their demo and first two EPs, Ergot and Black Salt, were explosive in their mastery of ephemeral zeal, as well as their two splits with Euth and National Hero showing their ability to show distinction amongst counterparts. But Closet Witch’s self-titled debut full length goes further in showcasing the band’s prowess for power-violence from start to finish.
Short bursts of intensity in song structure are typical for grindcore, and the tracks on this record stay true to form for the most part (other than the near five and a half minute closing track). “Blood Orange” kicks things off quickly paced, stuttered by a mid-song break and a striking punk rhythm towards the end. “Moonstomp” and “Eyelids of Horus” recall a similar toughness like that of Converge, with snares and siren-like sounds that alarm the senses.
Under this grindcore veil, Closet Witch touches on quite a few different notes. “Daylillies” is like a nod to straight up DC hardcore, while tracks like “Rule by Bacon” and “Personal Machu Picchu” have an unexpected melodic atmosphere to them. The album is at its best when it stumbles upon math-y signatures, with “It Doesn’t Feel Free” and “Spell of Giddiness” being prime examples of jaunty math-metal mixed with powerviolent grinding hardcore.
And even without being able to fully understand the lyrics, grindcore and powerviolence just wouldn’t seem right without some sort weight behind the lyrical themes. Vocalist Mollie Piatetsky is biting in her word delivery on subjects like classism, feminism and issues with identity, though that might hard to realize through the shrillness of it all. Closet Witch’s official debut is like a breath of refreshing grindcore air, its grating qualities transferring in pleasantries the way the foursome presents them.
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