Witchcraft Recording Their First Album in Five Years

After putting out three albums in four years and kicking off a very enjoyable trend of Swedish bands specializing in vintage hard rock and proto-doom metal, it felt like Witchcraft had dropped off the face of the earth. Since the release of their brilliant 2007 album The Alchemist we’ve heard hide nor hair from the band, aside from a 2010 solo EP by mastermind Magnus Pelander (third from the left in the old band photo above), but now, nearly five years later, the band has resurfaced with a new lineup, a new record label in Nuclear Blast, and the announcement that, yes, a fourth album is indeed being recorded right now, tentatively titled Legend.

Joining Pelander, who has stepped down as guitarist to focus solely on his role as lead singer, are guitarists Simon Solomon and Tom Jondellus, as well as drummer Oscar Johansson, and the foursome are currently holed up in Fascination Street Studios with producer Jens Bogren. Legend will be Witchcraft’s debut for Nuclear Blast, who made waves a while back when they signed popular Swedish retro-metal upstarts Graveyard, which of course will have fans of both bands salivating at the thought of both bands touring together. The press release quote from Pelander doesn’t say much, but at least his enthusiasm is palpable:

“There's magic going on in the studio and we can hardly wait to eventually give something back to our loyal fans! We know you guys have been waiting for this!”

No release date has been announced as of yet, but right now that hardly matters, as we’re just glad to have Witchcraft back making new music. In the meantime, why not listen to all 14 and a half minutes of “The Alchemist”?