Little independent bands are the lifeblood of this wonderful scene we’re all a part of, and they don’t get littler than the one-man acts. Wytchfilth consists of “K” from Norwich and is an industrial black metal project. Malcontent is a 5-track cassette release (with the option of a CD-R version chucked in) limited to 66 copies and it’s definitely something a little different.
Malcontent is dark. I mean DARK. It sounds like it was recorded at the bottom of a witch’s cauldron that has been freshly smeared with the blood of a dozen innocents. Frankly, it just exudes evil. Opener “I” is eight minutes of low tones, pulsing beats, harsh vocals and nightmares. It lives up to the “experimental” tag given to it by K as it’s got a bit of everything in it. Sort of like that mad stuff that people on acid came out with in the sixties. But more likely to tear your limbs off while you sleep.
“Unknown” is just a 1:31 noise-scape. The kind of track which makes you think that this could be some kind of concept full-length, making these little sidesteps an atmospheric little taster between songs.
“No Bliss” is more earthy than “I”, more guttural with a different take on the vocals which are at times altered to come across a touch more demonic. There’s heavier use of background noise as well as instruments and – again – it makes for an very atmospheric piece. An acid-laced atmosphere that will strip your flesh slowly from your bones, ittedly.
“Unknown II” is the sort of thing you don’t want to accidentally tune your radio to at 3am. There’s an additional bonus track, but the bandcamp stream I was listening to didn’t include this.
Black metal isn’t my kind of thing, but – as with much of the material I’ve been sent over the last few years running the site – I’ll always give it a shot. Malcontent is something original, something different and definitely made the hair stand up on the back of this reviewer’s neck… and that’s from a non-fan of the genre. Those more evil amongst us should definitely be giving it a listen on bandcamp, and throwing a few Euros at “K” for a copy if it has a similar spine-tingling effect on them.
Wytchfilth: facebook | bandcamp | soundcloud
