Penumbra

The Last Bewitchment (Season of Mist)
by Scott Hefflon

Always hard for me to determine just how good a band like this is cuz I’m such a sucker for the blackened male vocals and operetic female vocals, especially if the riffs are thrashy sometimes amidst all the the plodding gloom, and man, if the drummer slips in all kinds of goodies, too, well, then I’m in heaven/hell. If the two vocal styles battle like the angels and demons of your conscience, how can you ascertain if one battle is necessarily “better” than another? So I guess you go for memorability, and as pleasant/tormented as The Last Bewitchment is, not much sticks with me when it’s done. Lots of diddling about as well, all swishy spooky, but when everything’s raging full steam, that’s when the band shines. Racing at breakneck speeds in a rickety horse-drawn carriage, steep cliffs threatening, the chill night air filled with the howling of wolfs, the clatter of the carriage, the pounding of your heart, the moon shining brightly on all by the darkest of shadows you know not to look too deeply into, ah, good stuff…
(www.season-of-mist.com)