On a holy roll after the success of their stunning 2023 LP IV: Sacrament, Lancastrian heavy metal apostles Wytch Hazel here ally themselves with the underground pomp wizardry of Phantom Spell for an addictively flippable split seven-inch. From the diamond grooves and emotive hooks to the antiquarian sleeve art, apparently depicting a woodland encounter between Robin Hood and Gandalf, this is an artefact dripping in the ethos and atmosphere of long ago. This perfectly matched union of talents take us from the pre-history of Middle-Earth, via the sylvan mystique of the Dark Ages, to the magical scene of the mid-late 1970s, when Judas Priest, Rainbow, Magnum and Kansas were enjoying their first flush of success, Tom Baker commanded the TARDIS, and all was right with the world (apart from the power cuts, civil unrest and disco, obviously).
With their open-hearted chivalric anthem Ride On, Wytch Hazel effortlessly extend their yawning purple patch, Colin Hendra’s devout troubadours currently among the hottest names in British heavy metal, even while rocking white spandex and singing songs to the glory of God. As with so many great Wytch Hazel tunes across four superb albums since 2016, this almighty galloping earworm will swiftly munch its way through the corpuscles in your head, its gorgeous guitar solo slithering gracefully along your cortex, warping time to convince you this has surely been a family favourite drivetime rock classic for decades.
On the flipside, Phantom Spell explore more cryptic vistas with Palantíri, a song about Tolkien’s crystal balls, nailing the arcane, otherworldly vibe of those early NWOBHM pioneers who used keyboards to project a heightened level of mystical drama - cult raves like Shiva, Limelight or Marquis De Sade - as well as household names like Rush and Styx. Entirely the work of Kyle McNeill, founding frontman of London-based trad metal whizz-kids Seven Sisters, Phantom Spell’s beguiling debut LP Immortal’s Requiem emerged in 2022, but Palantíri is their strongest tune yet, building and bursting with shimmery cascades of warm guitar surrounding an imploringly epic chorus.
Colin and Kyle have been friends and fans of each other’s work since Wytch Hazel and Seven Sisters emerged on the English metal circuit in the early-mid 2010s, sharing bills and wavelengths, so this enchanting mutual endeavour has been a long time coming. Between them, Wytch Hazel and Phantom Spell shoot a beam of brilliant light into our modern darkness, affording us a chance to glimpse other times and other worlds. Seize it.
