Artist: The Witnesses
Title: Doom II
Genre: Ambient / Doom
Release Date: 31st May 2020
Label: Self-released
Review Flash
Now to something completely different: THE WITNESSES is a Doom band that has heavy Ambient elements (or vice versa). WITNESSES is: Matt Kozar (E-bow, Guitars), Greg Schwan (Guitar, Bass, Keys) and vocalist Kody Ternes. It’s the first time I deliberately listen to anything Ambient and all I can say the most obvious thing about it is slowing down, the guitars make the Doom part, the keys and the pace make it ambient and the vocals add a bit of MY DYING BRIDE vibe into the mix.
WITNESSES were formed in 2016 in New York, USA and the guys started as an electronic Ambient project that evolved into a Doom project with ambient influences. Overall, this is very bleak and heavy (not the kind of music for a birthday party except for the last one). The clean vocals of Kody Ternes are a nice antipode to the heavy down tuned riffs and elegantly mirror the keys here and there. The drumming is precise and used in a clever way to make the songs trip over itself at times (it confuses the listener a bit but mostly they use it to change the pace or bridge into another part of the song). Never thought I might say that but this music drags me down, not much but tangibly.
Conclusion: If you dig MY DYING BRIDE, PALLBEARER or KHEMMIS this might be up your alley.
Rating: 8 / 10
