In this world of Lockdown bereft of live music, who’d have thought it, how many of us are searching the internet picking up on new stuff due out, or stuff in different genres we’d never have contemplated before? With that in Mind I got bounced an email from Church of the Cosmic Skull’s main man Bill Fisher with an invite to join the Billuminati and a link to a mysterious new LP (the one in my title Mass Hypnosis and the Dark Triad). With said LP duly ordered, the first press sold out in under24 hours!!! Really makes you wonder whether record companies are interested in old school promotion in music or is just the endless clicking on streams or downloading single songs for playlists that spark their interest.

As is the want after reading the blurb I was expecting a heavier offspring to the Church of the Cosmic Skull and fair play it’s been duly delivered. Opener “All through the night” took me right back to the 70’s and early Sabbath/Black Widow era, but the vocals link it to the Church inexorably, it’ll hold on to and satisfy the fans of “The church of the cosmic skull, the heavy intense riff overlaid with some great guitar work leading us throughout.

Next up “Mirror of tomorrow”, opens with that down tuned riff that we all appreciate, but heavily distorted evoking some of the heavier elements of Alice in Chains, moving the LP in a very different direction, held in sway by those un-mistakable vocals.

Moving on into “Celador” led through the opening by the vocals, the incessant guitar picking at you before it shifts up a gear, the riff rising and falling building throughout to a crescendo.

“The Dark Triad” again harkens back hitting that intense Sabbath style riff, led by the vocals again guiding you through the song, Then we move into a personal fave “Psychopathy” this is all over the place up a gear, with the bass starting to step in and take a lead, I think this is the song that pulls all the influences together, crystalizes the difference between this solo venture and the main band guitar and solo vocal replacing and leading rather than harmonizing through multiple vocal lines.

“Days of old” moves back into the 70’s picked guitar and solitary vocal producing the soundtrack to a new age of Aquarius, this is the song that will ground the LP holding on to the ethos of Church of the Cosmic Skull.  This feeling of the 70’s continues into “Message from the sky” before we move into LP closer “Mass Hypnosis” a much heavier beast but finishing the LP on a real high. If you’re a fan of Church of the Cosmic Skull, get this in your collection, if your not then back track and give them a listen, but make sure you give this LP the time it deserves, Lp’s sell out that quickly for a reason, we’re working through the second pressing now, join the Billuminati!!!!

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Author: Nev Brooks