By Jim Rowland
London’s WitchDoktors have been tearing up the ÜK live-scene across three decades, earning their reputation as one of the most enduring and electrifying garage-punk rock’n’roll bands. ‘Izzatso?’ is album number six for the band, and sees WitchDoktors continue to make great strides from their humble beginnings.
Fusing together rockabilly, blues, ‘70s prime-time punk, ‘60s garage, mid-70’s pub rock and even a touch of reggae and ska, ‘Izzatso?’ is an impressively eclectic 11-track offering that clearly shows a progression and maturity to the band’s style and song writing.
Leigh Heggarty from Ruts DC adds some quality slide guitar to the ultra-catchy up-tempo r’n’b opener ‘Lightning Strike’, with the Dr. Feelgood-esque ‘High, Dry & Burned’ adding to the r’n’b quota.
‘Before The War’, ‘Jezebel’ and ‘Candy Star’ are quality slices of bouncy, catchy pop-punk tunes, with ‘One Shot’ and ‘Planet of Pain’ heading in a groovy garage rock direction.
Elsewhere, ‘Freedom Fighter’ is an excellent reggae-punk tune very much in the Clash vein, the equally great ‘Spanner In the Works’ heads in a similar direction with an up-tempo ska infusion, whilst album closer ‘Kicking The Can’ adds another dimension to the album with a slinky, doomy Mexican flavour.
‘Izzatso?’ is the sound of a band at the peak of their powers, enjoying what they are doing, and brimming with class and confidence.
- ‘Izzatso?’ is released today (Friday 31 October).
