Mountain Wizard Death Cult

A Chaotic "Initiation" to Mountain Wizard Death Cult's Sorcery Awaits (Video Premiere)


A band name like Mountain Wizard Death Cult conveys certain expectations, and the Australian group definitely meets them: they offer threatening and intense sludge cloaked in an air of hazy intrigue; just the type of music that ought to emanate from a secretive magical happening. On “Initiation,” the single we’re premiering the video for now, the band immerses listeners into this heady brew and reveals just a hint of the fabled rewards waiting for adherents. With a debut album on the way later this year, let this track serve as prophecy in the meantime:

Mostly obscured and cast in concealing gray tones, the members of Mountain Wizard Death Cult conduct “Initiation” with visible dedication. The track sketches out a clandestine ritual through crunchy riffs interspersed with beguiling clean portions, but even at its gentlest, that unsettling undercurrent remains: faint screams echo just below the quiet grace notes the drummer adds to a hypnotic beat midway through the song. With a fluid, quickly-changing structure and contorting riffs to match, “Initiation” shows off the rewarding insanity that only devout belief—and/or killer sludge chops—can offer.

The band comments:

“Initiation” feels like a culmination of the journey we’ve been through together as a band… channeling our frustrations, influences and aggression to bring the listener into our World. The record is going to be one hell of a journey and this track is a great example of what’s to come.

Follow Mountain Wizard Death Cult on Bandcamp. This single and the band’s upcoming full-length will be released via Blighttown Records.