Richard HolmesDruidess – Trip Meadow (Self-released)
Song about witches? Check. Pagan monicker? Yep. Organ? It’s there. Iommian riffs? By the truckload, mate.
But it would be a mistake to write Newcastle’s Druidess off as yet another occult rock troupe.
A big mistake.
Few such acts have an accomplished saxophonist in their ranks, for starters. Guitarist Danny Downing is as comfortable on brass as he is wrenching the tritones from his frets. On the title track, his notes dance through the air as drummer Sam Armstrong patters out jazz funk grooves. The segue into Trip Meadow’s cosmic psych doom core is masterful. The song has had a few live airings now and believe us, jaws drop every time.
A Witch’s Sabbath has a similar effect. Spooked out? You will be by this spectral tune. But when Downing swaps his pick for a reed, dread turn to bliss.
Then there’s keyboardist James Hill – also known for his work with Tyneside proggers Kylver. He’s at the beating heart of this debut album, rather than an occasional embellisher. Many of these songs were originally unveiled, sans keys, on 2024’s Hermits and Mandrakes EP. On Trip Meadow, Hill’s brushstrokes bring them into vivid new life.
Yes, if you’re simply in for a locks-shaking, hot riffin’ hoedown around a stone circle, Druidess more than deliver. Take opener The Hermit of Druid’s Temple. Inspired by a 200-year-old folly based on Stonehenge, it will sit well with lovers of Green Lung and Margarita Witch Cult. Catchy, hard driving doom rock, it’s built for the stage. Singer/bassist Shonagh Brown powers through it with style and sass. The chorus rises up like a towering monolith.
Alternatively, you can indulge in the electric wizardy of Descended from Giants, with its fuzz, trills and swagger – again courtesy of vocalist Brown – or pump your fist to The Forest Witch’s Daughter, a song with burns bright with defiance.
But where Druidess really hit deep is on Knightingales, a song seemingly born from the ashes of the 60s, a hypnotic hymn that marries menacing doom with the mournful blues of Joplin. The full gamut of this band’s talent is brought to bear, as they craft something truly astonishing across a dreamlike six minutes.
And as strong as this debut album is, you sense that there’s much more to come, as the intriguing Druidess hit their stride.
This trip is just getting started… be on it.
