Witchfinder General was but just one of many influential bands of the NWOBHM scene and perhaps a pioneer of what would become Doom Metal – arguably a more intensified version of heavy metal, evoking a sense of impending doom and despair. Growling and screaming are typically performed as vocals, given traditional doom metal additionally emphasizes desperation and pain.
Their music back then was both raw and powerful with the band being arguably better known for their album covers give their controversial nature and depictions. Think what Spinal Tap wanted for Smell The Glove then add a bit and you’ll be in the general area. The image of the Friends of Hell cover (to the left) will give you an example……!
The band originated from Stourbridge, England circa 1979. Heavy Metal Records, being only recently established in 1978, initiated their career through recording and releasing the band’s first album “Burning a Sinner”. The original line-up featured Phil Cope on guitar, Zeeb Parkes as vocals, Johnny Fischer as bass guitarist, and Steve Kinsell on the drums. Steve Kinsell, Phil Cope, and Rod Hawkes had experience in the band scene as they performed in a band known as “Electrode” at a young age.
Steve Kinsell and Phil Cope were cousins, and both 16 years old when WitchFinder General started to form. The first gig the band had was located at a pub known as “The Crown”. These were just kids performing on a stage, unknown to the audience in the though the performance would put them on the road to NWOBHM path beaters.
The band’s popularity was fuelled not so much by the actual music they recorded, but the controversial sleeve art on the covers of their albums. On Soviet Invasion EP, the cover featured a photograph of a graveyard mock-sacrifice scene with a somewhat well known model posing covered in blood- practically nude. The band gained much publicity from the cover work, and the UK tabloids had a fit over the controversy.
When the album Friends of Hell was released in 1983, the cover work featured not one but multiple topless models being sacrificed in the front yard of a church. Witchfinder General was not acknowledged for its involvement in the forefront of NWOBHM until long after the group disbanded in 1984.
They did reform in 2006, without the return of Zeeb Parkes, and had some success with their new album “Buried Amongst the Ruins” with Gary Martin as the new vocalist. Although the band would not tour live again, they did release another album titled “Ressurected” in 2008.
WitchFinder General has remained largely inactive since 2008 though their legacy as NWOBHM pioneers lives on and their early stuff – and those risqué covers – are still available if you’re curious. If you like Sabbath with a sense of humour you’ll find this lot right up your street.
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