Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway (Heavy Psych Sounds) is the fourth full-length release from France’s Witchthroat Serpent. Recorded in single live takes to analog tape at Brittany’s Kerwax Studio, the record is described as being “slower…darker and more evil” that its predecessors, and “an invocation to Satan”.

“Slow, dark and evil” aptly describes the forty-two minutes of sludgy doom metal here. The sound is dominated by sluggishly-paced downtuned guitar riffs that owe a heavy debt to Black Sabbath and Electric Wizard. The vocals are also in that vein: clean, melodic, menacing, blues-tinged, and drenched in psychedelic delay effects. The forceful and urgent drum parts have a pleasing groove to them, and the scuzzy bass brings extra grit and weight to the monolithic riffs. Retro bluesy wah-wah guitar solos are distributed throughout, and the tracks have a satisfying dynamic ebb and flow.

Throughout the opener ‘Multi-dimensional Marvelous Throne’ and most of ‘Nosfertu’s Mastery’, Witchthroat Serpent keep to the tried-and-tested template of feedback-drenched retro doom. Then, towards the end of the latter track, dark mellotron textures start to creep in and we are left with a deliciously sinister synth coda. 

‘The Gorgon’ follows, and it is dominated by unearthly and dread-laden synth textures. Samples of old horror film soundtracks also appear at different points as if to underline the spooky yet nostalgic feel of the record. These idiosyncratic elements go some way to lift Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway beyond being yet another derivative doom metal record. Side B’s ‘The House That Dripped Blood’, ‘Yellow Nacre’ and ‘Mountain Temple In Bleakness’ are all chock-full of more classic vintage doom elements, buoyed up by occasional samples and interesting synth textures. 

Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway is an old-school doom metal album for fans of old-school doom metal. Some might wish that Witchthroat Serpent would push a little further outside of the confines of what has perhaps become a somewhat restrictive style. But perhaps that’s missing the point: maybe deviating any further from the established doom metal mores would be seen by Witchthroat Serpent as a dilution of the idiom to which they are devoted. 

Trove Of Oddities At The Devil’s Driveway walks worthily in the footsteps of the classic doom records it draws its inspiration from.

Buy the album here:

https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop-usa.htm

7 / 10

DUNCAN EVANS