Thursday 1 October 2015

Hammer Of The Witch

Last year Ringworm released the 'Hammer Of The Witch' LP. I've always had an on/off relationship with this band. Some of their records have grabbed me, whilst others have not. I did really sit up and pay attention a couple of years back, however, when they had one of the standout songs on the 'America's Hardcore Vol. 2' comp that Triple B Records put out, which made me much more interested in their new album than I may otherwise have been. It came out on Relapse Records in March last year, and I decided to wait as long as it took for a clear vinyl copy to appear before spending any money.

You may or may not know, but (almost) every record that Relapse make comes on clear vinyl. They press 100 copies on clear for the band, friends and family but these are (in theory at least) not available to the public. The clear vinyl copies of some of their releases go for serious money, as they are always the rarest versions made. And even though they are not for the public, a few clear copies of their new releases usually surface quite quickly. So I figured I would get a chance at one of these at some point. I saw a couple selling for more than I wanted to pay, but as predicted eventually found one for a pretty reasonable price.

I really love the artwork on this record, and the crystal clear vinyl compliments it beautifully. There's also a huge poster included of the front cover art. Looks pretty cool.

What's I find interesting about this record is that it's good, but I struggle to listen to it all the way through. It's almost too heavy. After about five songs I need to take a rest. So I have to wonder - is this the heaviest record there is, or am I just getting old?

5 comments:

geoff said...

some people wont understand this comment, but great photos! no glare, no out of focus crap, just clean photos that makes that record look great. not a fan of the band, but thats one good looking record.

Mike said...

I saw the title of this post, and thought "That is an awesome name for a record! What the hell is Marcus posting about metal records for?!?" Then I saw it was Ringworm and it all made sense.

massivewaste said...

I love such "band only" shit. Gives the whole thing a personal touch, and no matter (or thankfully) if some of them make their way to us collectors

XforthekidsX said...

You are getting old, ahahaha!

Anonymous said...

I can agree with you that the package is quite cool, the embossed cover, poster and the imagery are all cool. Musically not too convincing for me, I think it is overall not that varying. Maybe need to grow accustomed to it, but the click still doesn't come even after a few listens.