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listen to Skeletonwitch's new EP 'The Apothic Gloom'

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Ohio death/black/thrash partiers Skeletonwitch have been ramping back up for some time after it was announced that much-loved vocalist Chance Garnett was leaving the band, to be replaced by Adam Clemans of the midwestern black-metal outfit Wolvhammer. After unveiling the Clemans-led group on the Decibel tour, and announcing an upcoming headlining tour with Iron Reagan and Oathbreaker, they’ve shared their first collection of recorded music as a new outfit. The new EP is called The Apothic Gloom, and you can stream it below.

Skeletonwitch still sound like Skeletonwitch, which fans who heard the two already-released songs from this four-song outing know by now. Still, it remains interesting what Clemans brings to the table. As makes sense coming from a band like Wolvhammer, he brings a bit more straight-facedness to a band that has always lived on the line between committed and silly. He doesn’t quite have Chance’s range, but he has more than enough fury to compensate. And the music does strike me as adding a bit more black metal to the pot than before, with closer “Red Death, White Light” especially feeling quite Norwegian by these guys’ standards. All said, this is a fun EP that should appeal to fans of this band (of which there are many) and, most importantly of all, indicates that this band still has creative juice left in the tank. The departure of Chance, while undoubtedly a drag, may keep these guys interesting into the foreseeable future at a point when they ran the risk of slipping into formula.

That tour with Iron Reagan and Oathbreaker comes through to NYC for a show at Saint Vitus on October 28 with support from Homewrecker. Tickets are on sale now.

Listen to The Apothic Gloom below (via Decibel.

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