Review: “The Holy Water” by Witnesses

The next chapter of the career of multi instrumentalist mastermind Greg Schwan is one that finds him joined once again by long time collaborator Gabbi Coenen as the pair explore the characters Lucy Westenra and Mina Harker from Bram Stoker’s Dracula from different perspectives. Known for his compositional style and flare for the cinematic, Schwan frequently paints the white to grey while creating immersive and captivating soundscapes…

The Gothic narrative is soaked in Doom Metal as it plays out in “The Holy Water“, a monolithic pace allowing the opportunity to enhance the atmospherics, something which Schwan embraces with both hands. “Borgo Pass” delivers an intense and dramatic feel as warm synths rise from beneath the grave of crushing guitars in the first wave, the emotive and evocative vocals soaring above them like a phoenix. A beautiful acoustic moment offers some respite with a little more energy, breaking the blood chilling atmosphere with warmth. Companion piece “Cloistered in Purfleet” continues the darkness but with a softer underbelly exposed with icy synths replacing some of the guitar work, thus removing some of the jagged edges and giving more of a majestic feel to the haunting soundscape. Sat beside a millpond in the dead of night, skimming flat stones across clear calm waters and wondering how to mend a broken heart, these are the perfect pieces for that moment. Then we have the oddity that is “The Ballad of Lucy and Mina” a beautiful instrumental acoustic piece that is at odds with the earlier tracks and yet strangely fits perfectly with them while sounding like something Jerry Cantrell would write [7/10]

Track Listing

1. Borgo Pass
2. Cloistered in Purfleet
3. The Ballad of Lucy and Mina

“The Holy Water” by Witnesses is out 15th July 2022 with pre-orders available over at bandcamp.