Witch (American band)

Witch is an American stoner metal band formed in 2005 whose members are from Vermont and Massachusetts.

History
Witch was formed on 19 March 2005 by Dinosaur Jr. guitarist J Mascis and long time friend Dave Sweetapple. However, Mascis does not play guitar for the band; he plays his first instrument, the drums. To complete the band's line-up, Mascis and Sweetapple recruited the guitarist and vocalist Kyle Thomas (also known as King Tuff) from avant-folk group Feathers. Their eponymous debut album was released on March 7, 2006 by Tee Pee Records. They also contributed an alternate version of the song "Rip Van Winkle" to the Invaders compilation, which was released by Kemado Records later that year. Witch would play sporadic shows around the United States while working on their next album.

Their second album, Paralyzed was released on March 18, 2008, also under Tee Pee Records. The band would continue to tour throughout the US and Europe with the band Graveyard (band), making marquee appearances at SXSW and Roadburn Festival. A new guitarist in Graham Clise would soon join the band, and Witch would go on to tour with Earthless throughout 2009.

For the next several years Witch would perform sporadic shows, while making notable appearances at Roadburn Festival 2012, Burgerama 2015, and Levitation Vancouver 2015. Witch would return to Europe in 2019, making appearances at DesertFest London, DesertFest Berlin, and a one-off show in Sweden, following with a fall tour of the US West Coast with bands Mondo Drag and Pushy. Witch has continued to tour throughout the world, playing shows in Australia and the US.

Style
Witch's trademark sound (particularly in their early work) shows obvious Black Sabbath influence. Black Flag influence was also noted for their sophomore effort, Paralyzed.

Band members

 * Kyle Thomas – vocals, guitar
 * Graham Clise – guitar
 * Dave Sweetapple – bass
 * J Mascis – drums

Albums

 * 2006 – Witch – Tee Pee Records
 * 2008 – Paralyzed – Tee Pee Records

Singles

 * 2006 – "Soul of Fire"/"Rip Van Winkle (Demo)" 7-inch – Tee Pee Records
 * 2008 – Witch/Earthless split 7-inch – Volcom Entertainment Vinyl Club

DVD

 * 2007 – Local Band Nitemare – Blueberry Honey/Tee Pee Records (reissue)