While it's become increasingly common for bands like Witchcraft and Graveyard to distance themselves from overt Sabbath worship by retreating into the broader confines of 70's-inflected rock in general, San Francisco stalwarts Orchid continue fighting the good fight: their latest EP, Sign of the Witch, is a lean four songs in 18 minutes, any given one of which unapologetically narrows the band's influences down to two: Osborne and Iommi.
To some extent that's unfairly reductionist, as there are more general acid rock flourishes inherent in the production, but in terms of songwriting it's Sabbath all the way. There's a certain endearing scrappiness in a band attempting to recreate the sound of the most influential metal band of all time, something which rubs off well when they actually do a credible job, as on the title track… arguably the catchiest tune Orchid have penned to date.
"Strange Winds" gives the uptempo jams a rest and closes things out on a darkly mystical, "Planet Caravan"-type vibe, ethereal moans opining bleakly beneath a raga-like drone. You keep expecting the simmering tension to boil over into a full blown jam, but the band continue to draw it out indefinitely, leaving the tension unresolved and the listener wanting more… which is most likely the entire point of this stopgap EP to begin with. It's been two years since the last new material was released under the Orchid banner; let's not make it another two more.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lreXQQEPbdY[/youtube]
