Witchcraft Rebellion is easily the most consistent release to date from this raucous, ramshackle trio led by
Arrington DeDionyso and featuring
the Microphones'
Phil Elvrum on drums (who, by the way, is an excellent drummer; he's not on board merely to add name recognition).
DeDionyso's singing falls somewhere between
Captain Beefheart,
Blind Willie Johnson, and Popeye. He screams, hollers, growls, whoops, and hollers throughout these 13 surrealistically bluesy songs. "Mystery Language" is one of the standout
Old Time Relijun songs thus far. All the band's trademarks and idiosyncrasies are there: a herky-jerky guitar riff that finds common ground between post-punk angularities and Delta blues, guttural vocals belting out bizarre couplets ("I can take off my head/And so can my dad"), and simple but powerful drumming. Elsewhere, such as "Vampire Sushi," the band gives an absurdist's take on
the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion formula, while "King of Nothing" is a gritty postmodern rockabilly tune with a machine-gun rhythm.
Witchcraft Rebellion can be a jarring ride at first, but once you are acclimated, it goes down as smooth as any classic R&B.