#devil magick

~Doomed & Stoned Debuts~

By Billy Goate

Doom arises from both the most obvious and unlikely of places, including sunny Cali where you wouldn't think the vibe would be that, er, hot. After all, scenes like San Diego are alight with dazzling heavy psych bands, the desert long ago claimed by Kyuss, and the mountains belong to an exciting array of progressive metal bands. Yet, the City of Angeles has remained a holdout for Doom over the decades, despite challenges with COVID, venue closures, and being frustratingly overlooked by promoters.

This bring us to LA's DEVIL MAGICK, who describe their sound as "gloomy doom metal with with a heavy metal spirit and hardcore attitude, from the sun bathed shored of Southern California's harbor area." With twin guitar magic, a bass and drums section to rule them all, and shared vocal duties, Devil Magick is "preparing to bring its own unique brand of doom to the world."

Their first single, "Tears in Rain," is a loving tribute to Ridley Scott's monumental film Blade Runner, based on the speech of the character Roy Batty at the film's end.

As I listen, it's like watching the film again and pausing it on that last scene between a precariously dangling Harrison Ford and a ripped and menacing Rutger Hauer, who plays the rebellious replicant Roy. He returns to Tyrell Corporation to ask his Creator for a life-extension, only to find out that his sole purpose in life was to extend the will of the ape-man over the known universe.

The problem is Roy Batty and his pals saw endless horror in the off-world colonies and have kind of snapped, returning to earth as murderous monsters with a sort of super-strenth. We don't know what's gone wrong with the replicants, only that they need to die and don't want to. This makes them exceptionally difficult to "retire" for a middle-aged Blade Runner like Decker.

It's a veritable Greek tragedy set in the future year of 2019, and "Tears in Rain" recalls a moment in the film when a fragically frail side of Roy is revealed to Decker. That is when rain falls down hard from toxic skies above. In his last moments, we see Roy shed tears for the first time as he shuffles off this mortal coil, wondering what it had all really been about. Having burned twice as bright as his human counterparts, he was destined to live half as long (just four years, if I remember).

Searing guitar tone a la Black Cobra and vocals that make me think of none other than the late, great Peter Steele of Type O Negative, not so much because the range is similar but because of the deadpan, stoic vocal delivery coupled with an atmosphere of wintery sadness. Call it doom 'n' roll or even dark metal, if you like. "Tears in Rain" gets us acquainted with Devil Magick's powers, with strong hints of the potential to come.

Congrats to guitarists Don Casterline and Kevin Aguilar, bassist Pete Bucci, and drummer Jose Garcia on their first foray into the world of doom. I can't wait to hear what follows. The single will be available this weekend on the band's Bandcamp page (get it here).

Give ear...

Doomed & Stoned · LISTEN: Devil Magick - Tears In Rain

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