Seven Witches returns with their eighth album, titled Call Upon the Wicked, reuniting them with former singer James Rivera (who has been keeping himself busy with Helstar). Guitarist Jack Frost has also added Symphony X bassist Mike LePond and drummer Taz Marazz for this outing, which is another solid classic sounding metal release sure to please fans of Judas Priest, Metal Church, or Sanctuary.
Frost is in fine form throughout, delivering a wide variety of molten metal riffs and scorching solos, which you can plainly hear on "Fields of Fire", "Lilith", "Ragnarock", and the wild yet catchy title track. The band go for a more atmospheric and epic feel on the lengthy "End of Days", which features guest female vocals, keyboards, and acoustic guitar to go along with the heavier sections. It's easily one of the most adventurous pieces Seven Witches has ever recorded. On the down side, "Eyes of Flame" and "Mind Games" border on the generic, and their cover of the Cream classic "White Room" suffers from Rivera's overly histrionic high pitched wail on the chorus. The singer though does an admiral job throughout the album, and if you like aggressive, high pitched vocals, you'll certainly dig his performance. The CD comes with three bonus live cuts, energetic versions of "Metal Tyrant", "Metal Asylum", and "Jacob"(including a snippet from Priest's "Victim of Changes"), which are of poor quality, but you get to hear what the band is like on stage.
Call Upon the Wicked is a solid release from Seven Witches, and though nothing that is going to reinvent the wheel, it's a keeper for those who appreciate classic metal.
Track Listing
01. Fields of Fire
02. Lilith
03. Call Upon the Wicked
04. Ragnarock
05. End of Days
06. Mind Games
07. Harlot of Troy
08. Eyes of Flame
09. White Room
10. Metal Tyrant
11. Metal Asylum
12. Jacob
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