Rough Trade On The Rise: Witch Fever

Concocting a potent sonic assault that recalls the foreboding darkness of Black Sabbath, Savages’ monochrome post-punk and the dirty breathlessness of Bleach-era Nirvana, the Manchester quartet create a confrontational racket that takes no prisoners. The band’s name is inspired by the hysteria which accompanied the witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts, and Europe, which the band have long considered were a means to belittle, suppress and diminish women.

Reincarnate, which was recorded at Orgone Studios in Woburn, with producer Jaime Gomez Arellano, explores those incendiary topics. Lead single Reincarnate is an anthem of post-breakup independence, set to Sabbath-esque graveyard doom. In The Resurrect is a visceral squall about celebrating identity and being a “bad ass bitch”. Abject tackles sexism the band have encountered during live shows, while Bully Boy is a steel toe-capped boot to abuse of male power, which considers the concept of God within a patriarchal system.