ELECTRIC WIZARD: Black Magic Rituals & Perversions Vol. 1 (DOOM): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

The more time passes, the lazier Electric Wizard gets. And doubly so. Firstly, because it hasn't produced anything new since 2017 and “Wizard Bloody Wizard”, whose predecessor, “Time To Die”, came four years after “Black Masses”. Jus Oborn, the band's founder and last historical member, was more fertile, especially during the band's golden age, the blessed and fan-favorite period from 1994 to 2002.

On the other hand, and this is more worrying, because its inspiration is gradually tending to dry up, locked into a purring style that no longer arouses any particular surprise or excitement. Not that “Wizard Bloody Wizard” was a bad record - quite the opposite, in fact - but it brought nothing new to the table compared with its predecessors, as if its authors were now content to recycle an attractive if tried-and-tested formula. Which finally proves right those - including yours truly - who believe that Electric Wizard died out with the departure of the Mark Greening (drums) / Tim Bagshaw (bass) pair in 2003. The fact that the last great record forged by the English band was “Time To Die”, which marked the unfortunately short-lived return of the drummer, confirms this.

Ceremony captured in 2020, “Black Magic Rituals & Perversions Vol. 1” further illustrates this situation. So, unlike many other musicians who took advantage of the pandemic to compose, Electric Wizard didn't do much with their free time other than record themselves in rehearsals. In short, after seven years of abstinence, we had every right to expect a little more from the band than this two-part live album (the second of which is due soon). However, against all expectations, and in addition to the fact that they still have an exquisite taste for covers combining eroticism and horror, the quartet pleasantly surprises us with this best of in disguise.

By choosing to record a live album at home, in rudimentary conditions, without an audience and with a simple tape recorder, they revive the dark, dirty force that once characterized their art (particularly on “Let Us Prey”, a ferruginous sonic golem), which the arrival of American guitarist Liz Buckingham from “We Live” onwards helped to erase. Bathed in the cellar atmosphere inherited from British horror films of the 1960s and '70s, the songs on this album exude a dark spontaneity, stretched to the breaking point ('Scorpio's Curse'), drowned in effects and clogged with wild feedback. All the tracks are classics from the English repertoire and reveal no surprises, but in this context of cryptic mass, they take on a slimy sheen that we no longer (re)know them for ('Incense For The Damned'), when they don't sound downright nastier than in their original version ('Funeralopolis').

And yet, while it reassures us, “Black Rituals & Perversions” ultimately raises more questions than it answers. When will Jus Born decide to release a new album? Is he still capable of stepping out of his comfort zone? We still don't know. But that's no reason to sulk in the face of this fake bootleg, which exposes Electric Wizard as it should always have been: vicious and raw.
- Official website

ELECTRIC WIZARD

BLACK MAGIC RITUALS & PERVERSIONS VOL. 1

SPINEFARM RECORDS

DOOM