Let’s be honest here: I was always going to like Strung Out in Hell by Margarita Witch Cult, even if I had to force myself to, purely because they’ve got one of the best fucking band names I’ve ever come across. If I saw “Margarita Witch Cult” scrawled on the toilet wall of a dive bar, I’d already be curious enough to look them up.
Fortunately, I didn’t have to fake a damn thing — and to compromise whatever last shred of journalistic integrity I’ve got dangling by a thread — because Strung Out in Hell is actually a brilliant slab of ‘70s-influenced heavy rock.
From the get-go, it’s clear where these guys are drawing their influences. There’s more than a little Angel Witch in their DNA — and I’m more than fine with that, seeing as I love Angel Witch — but what really hits me here is the thick layer of Sabbath worship. Specifically, that Vol. IV era Sabbath where the riffs sound like tectonic plates grinding together, and the groove is so lethargically heavy you wonder if it’s going to collapse under its own weight. Margarita Witch Cult tap right into that sweet spot: doom-laden heaviness mixed with fuzz-soaked swagger.
This isn’t polite rock music. This is the kind of rock that poor old Sisyphus would struggle to get up the hill, only to have it tumble back down in a haze of distortion and bong smoke. The riffs drag, claw, and lurch forward, and then suddenly slip into grooves so filthy they’d need industrial-grade sandblasting to scrub them clean. That combination of weight and sleaze is what makes Strung Out in Hell so effective. It’s music you can bang your head to and strip your clothes off to in the same breath. Not many bands manage to pull that off without sounding like total parody.
The fuzz is king here. The guitar tone is gloriously overdriven, buzzing with that classic stoner/doom warmth but never losing clarity. Solos pop up like drunken fireworks, bursting into the mix and then fading back into the haze. The rhythm section deserves plenty of credit too: the bass gives the whole thing an unholy rumble while the drums keep everything stomping forward like Godzilla heading intk Tokyo City. This is primal, groove-driven heavy rock done the right way.
Vocals-wise, you’re not getting operatic heights or demonic roars; what you get instead is character. A half-snarled, half-sung delivery that feels perfectly at home riding these riffs. It’s that kind of “voice in the smoke” tone — not technically perfect, but atmospheric as fuck, and dripping with personality.
I can’t fault Margarita Witch Cult for delivering exactly what their name promises: occult-tinged, riff-heavy, dirty-as-hell rock ‘n’ roll. They didn’t set out to reinvent the wheel, and thank Satan for that, because sometimes all you need is a wheel caked in fuzz, booze, and bad intentions.
I mean, I even like their cover of White Wedding by Billy Idol and, if you read the site regularly, you’ll know how much I despise covers.
Margarita Witch Cult have carved out a filthy little niche for themselves, and with a name like that and riffs like these, they’ll be hard to ignore.
Strung Out in Hell is out now via Heavy Psych Sounds.
CHOICE CUT: Mars Rover
RATING: 3.5 OUT OF 5
RATING SYSTEM:
- 0: Fucking Shit
- 1: Shit
- 2: Not Bad Shit
- 3: Pretty Good Shit
- 4: Amazing Fucking Shit
- 5: The Best Shit You Will Ever Hear
PRESS SOURCE: Purple Sage PR.
