Review by Sonny for Angel Witch - Angel Witch (1980)
Angel Witch were one of the bands, along with Saxon and Girlschool (among others), who were championed by Lemmy and I first became aware of all of them after seeing them live as support acts for Motörhead on tours during '78 and '79. The trio of Heybourne, Riddles and Hogg were my favourites though and had a fantastic energy in a live setting. Their debut also proves that they had the songs too.
The album dropped at the end of 1980 with the NWOBHM in full gear and was the equal of anything the scene had so far delivered, including Iron Maiden's debut or Saxon's Strong Arm of the Law. Heybourne had a tremendous knack for combining killer riffs with anthemic, sing-along choruses to consistently produce some of the most memorable tunes of the early Eighties' UK metal scene. I truly love every track on this record and don't believe there is a weak one among them, but particular praise must go to the epic storytelling of personal favourite White Witch and the monstrous riff of Angel of Death, a riff so good that Manilla Road "borrowed" it for Dreams of Eschaton on Crystal Logic. The title track is as recognisable to any old English metal head as Paranoid, Ace of Spades or The Number of the Beast are.
If there is any bone of contention around the album, then it is probably down to Heybourne's vocals. Kev certainly isn't going to rival Rob Halford or Bruce Dickinson vocally, but I personally think his singing is fine and help define Angel Witch's identity. Lyrically Angel Witch plunder the fantasy occult treasure chest of wizards, witches and mythical beasts for most of their themes, a source which has served metal well over the years and won't give you any life-changing insight, but is damn entertaining as recompense. The rhythm section of Riddles and Hogg provided a solid foundation over which Kevin Heybourne was able to weave his magic of awesome riffs and red-hot solos that were disciplined and focussed, never becoming self-indulgent.
Unfortunately for the band and for us fans trouble was never too far away and inter-band strife meant that the trio had split barely before the record hit the shelves. They seemed to be unable to maintain a stable lineup so by the time the follow-up Screamin' N' Bleedin' came out in 1985 the metal world was in the grip of thrash fever and Angel Witch had lost momentum, becaming an also-ran in the metal world. The 2010's have been a lot kinder and the band have released a couple of decent albums in '12 and '19 so maybe they are now getting a little of the success that this legendary debut should have assured them.