If someone mistakenly thinks that in Seattle they play only and always grunge, or at least alternative rock, try to listen to this terrifying monolith of sound erected by the duo called Bell Witch. Dylan Desmond and Adrian Guerra (the latter already live drummer of the formidable Shadow Of The Torturer) take over an hour to roll out four tracks from the almost exasperating slowness, presenting itself as a sort of overseas version of the Germans Worship. This at least happens in the pivotal track of the work, the initial Suffocation, A Burial: I – Awoken, which unravels in a suffocating way for over twenty minutes marked by a melodic outlet really lacerating in its final part. Apart from the more rarefied semblance of Judgement, In Fire: I – Garden, the rest of the album lives on the previous coordinates, even if in Suffocation, A Drowning: II – Somniloquy some minimal variation, in the form of clean vocals with evocative tones, is found, beautifully swept away, however, by the belligerent growl that dominates again the bradycardic gait of the final Judgement, In Air: II – Felled. In summary, the two American musicians with Four Phantoms have produced an excellent work that inevitably needs, however, a lot of familiarity with the more oppressive and less atmospheric side of funeral. Bell Witch are another name to pin on the notebook of the fans: if in the future they will be able to recreate with more continuity that sense of blunt pain that they sometimes show to have in their ropes, the next work could be something memorable.

2015 – Profound Lore Records / Vulture Print 208 – Tartarus Records