Witchcraft Scattered Areas of Invisibility

Dramatic, dark, pulsating sequencers begin 'The Certainty Principle' with a sampled space mission counting down to zero and take off which kick starts the track into a denser, more powerful assault. Ominous, whispered incantations, dense layers of percussion, treated sequences, more voice samples and strange effects take the piece through to its conclusion.

'Angel Dust' begins in almost complete contrast with minimalist effects before a gentle, almost subliminal dream-like melody begins accompanied with treated, ethereal female vocals. The overall effect is vaguely pleasant, but a sense of unease is created and I could imagine this piece, and others, being highly effective soundtrack material for a Stephen King film. 'First Point of Aries' is in similar mood, but with more rhythms and this time with a heavily treated male vocal intoning enigmatic lyrics. Female voices weave hypnotically in and out of the mix and melodic colour is subtley added. 'Capture the Flag' begins with a cacophony of effects set against a rhythm and a less effective melodramatic vocal. At around the two and a half minute mark the mix becomes a little less dense but the occasional vocals continue to jar, as do the harsh treatments which prevail over the melodic additions. This, for me, is a low point.

'Perihelion' is a minimalist track of cosmic effects, deeply buried, heavily echoed, or reversed voice samples, coded signals which, like most pieces on this album imbue some sense of impending menace. 'Flightwatch' begins with low drones and unsettling effects before a strong shuffling, ambient rhythms dominate the mix as sound effects dart from speaker to speaker. At around the four minute mark some melodicism is introduced before the effects return with a vengeance . 'Ultraviolet' is probably the most commercial cut, where Andrew Arbetter's hypnotic guitars are especially effective backing an excellent understated vocal performance. The effects are there, only used more sparingly, and add to the atmosphere of what is a good song, lyrically and melodically. The title track at over eleven and a half minutes is the longest piece and returns to the more impressionistic use of sound effects and samples to invoke an atmosphere that would be ideally suited to a Science Fiction film. Witchcraft's strength is that they sound like nobody else and often manage to evoke a sense of menace and unease. On one or two tracks they can be accused of self-indulgence, or appear to lose the plot a little, but overall, this is generally impressive and should appeal to those attracted to darker, more arcane and challenging music. (SR)

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