occult rock
{{Short description|Style of rock music}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name = Occult rock
| other_names = *Doom rock
- witch rock
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| stylistic_origins = {{hlist|Proto-metal|hard rock|blues|psychedelic rock|progressive rock}}
| cultural_origins = Late 1960s to early 1970s, England and United States
| instruments = Vocals, guitar, bass, drums
| derivatives = {{hlist|Heavy metal|stoner metal|doom metal|sludge metal}}
| subgenres =
| fusiongenres =
| regional_scenes =
| local_scenes =
| other_topics = {{hlist|Shock rock|pagan rock|acid rock}}
}}
Occult rock (also known as doom rock{{cite web |last1=Kim |first1=Grim |title=INTO THE COVEN: WOMEN OF OCCULT ROCK |date=21 October 2011 |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2011/10/21/into-the-coven-women-of-occult-rock/ |access-date=16 June 2018}} or witch rock){{cite web |last1=Alisoglu |first1=Scott |title=BLOOD CEREMONY 'Blood Ceremony' |url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/cdreviews/blood-ceremony/ |website=Blabbermouth |date=6 October 2008 |access-date=17 June 2018}} is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the late 1960s to early 1970s,{{cite news |last1=Lawson |first1=Dom |title=Occult rock: do you believe in black magic? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/nov/24/occult-rock-black-widow-ghost |website=The Guardian |date=24 November 2011 |access-date=16 June 2018}} pioneered by bands such as Coven{{cite web |last1=TK |first1=Levan |title=Occult Rock Pioneers Coven Hold Unholy Mass at the Regent |url=http://www.laweekly.com/slideshow/occult-rock-pioneers-coven-hold-unholy-mass-at-the-regent-9183509 |website=LA Weekly |date=19 February 2018 |access-date=16 June 2018}} and Black Widow.
The genre is influenced by hard rock, proto-metal, psychedelic rock, progressive rock and blues, as well as commonly incorporating lyrics referencing the occult with influences from classic horror movies to books by Dennis Wheatley.[https://www.kerrang.com/features/13-essential-occult-rock-albums/ 13 Essential Occult Rock Albums — Kerrang!] Despite the common perception, it has been noted that occult rock is not inherently gloomy nor dark, although many bands have made music with these qualities.
Characteristics
The genre has been described as being influenced by hard rock,{{cite web |last1=Malone |first1=Nick |title=DENIM AND LEATHER – JULY – OCCULT ROCK RESURGENCE |url=http://www.thelowdownmagazine.com/Denim_and_Leather__July__Occult_Rock_Resurgence-8761.html |website=Lodown magazine |access-date=16 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619114719/http://www.thelowdownmagazine.com/Denim_and_Leather__July__Occult_Rock_Resurgence-8761.html |archive-date=19 June 2018 |url-status=dead }} proto-metal,{{cite web |title=LUCIFER: SET TO RELEASE NEW ALBUM 'LUCIFER I' VIA RISE ABOVE RECORDS |url=http://pioneermusicpress.com/news/lucifer-set-to-release-new-album-lucifer-i-via-rise-above-records/ |access-date=17 June 2018}} psychedelic rock, progressive rock,{{cite web |last1=Lloyd-Davis |first1=Isere |title=Paperlate: the modern witch goes prog |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/paperlate-the-modern-witch-goes-prog |website=Prog |date=16 February 2017 |access-date=17 June 2018}} and blues,{{cite web |title=LUCIFER To Release Debut Album in June |url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/lucifer-to-release-debut-album-in-june/ |website=Blabbermouth |date=23 April 2015 |access-date=17 June 2018}} as well as commonly incorporating lyrics referencing the occult, but is not inherently or invariably gloomy or dark. AXS noted that Tony Iommi's doom rock style of riffing defined the genre of heavy metal.{{cite web |last1=Todd |first1=Nathan |title=Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi: 10 guitar riffs that almost never were |url=https://www.axs.com/black-sabbath-s-tony-iommi-10-guitar-riffs-that-almost-never-were-74071 |website=AXS |access-date=19 June 2018}}
History
File:Blue Oyster Cult.jpg performing in 2006.]]
=Origins (1960s-1990s)=
File:Blue Cheer 1968.jpg in 1968.]]
Occult rock emerged in the 1960s with groups such as Jacula, Black Widow and, most notably, Coven.{{cite web |last1=Selzer |first1=Jonathan |title=Occult rock pioneers Coven return: "We thought people were going to kill us!" |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/occult-rock-pioneers-coven-to-play-their-first-ever-uk-show |website=Metal Hammer |date=12 July 2017 |access-date=17 June 2018}} Iron Butterfly's 1968 track "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" was very influential to the development of occult rock's sound.{{cite book |last1=Horror Revival |first1=Folk |title=Folk Horror Revival: Harvest Hymns. Volume I- Twisted Roots |page=55}} Coven released their debut album Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls in 1969, which preceded later occult rock groups such as the debut album by Black Widow, titled Sacrifice.{{cite web |last1=Viglione |first1=Joe |title=Coven Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/witchcraft-destroys-minds-reaps-souls-mw0000400297 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=18 June 2018}} Blue Öyster Cult released their debut album Blue Öyster Cult in 1972,{{cite web |last1=Jurek |first1=Thom |title=Blue Öyster Cult Blue Öyster Cult |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/blue-%C3yster-cult-mw0000652605 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=18 June 2018}} which had significant influence on later bands such as Ghost.{{cite web |last1=Bliss |first1=Tony |title=Opinion: Buzz Bands, Satanic Pomposity and Why Ghost are Good for the Metal Scene |date=14 May 2018 |url=https://astralnoizeuk.com/2018/05/14/opinion-buzz-bands-satanic-pomposity-and-why-ghost-are-good-for-the-metal-scene/ |access-date=18 June 2018}} Due to the association with the occult, around the time of the Manson Family murders, many occult rock albums were halted from distribution, which only helped increase the public's fear of the music.{{cite web |last1=Kendrick |first1=Monika |title=Occult-rock legends Coven will destroy minds and reap souls on Halloween |url=https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/occult-rock-legends-coven-will-destroy-minds-and-reap-souls-on-halloween/Content?oid=32702268 |website=Chicago Reader |date=19 October 2017 |access-date=17 June 2018}}{{cite web |last1=Norton |first1=Justin |title=Q&A: Jinx Dawson on the Return of Coven and Spirituality in a Dogmatic Age |url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2017/04/17/q-a-jinx-dawson-on-the-return-of-coven-and-spirituality-in-a-dogmatic-age/ |website=Decibel |date=17 April 2017 |access-date=17 June 2018}}{{cite web |last1=Ludwig |first1=James |title=Shocking Omissions: Coven's 'Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls' |url=https://www.npr.org/2017/10/25/559501959/shocking-omissions-coven-s-witchcraft-destroy-minds-reaps-souls |publisher=NPR |access-date=17 June 2018}} When Black Sabbath first released their eponymous debut album in 1970, Rolling Stone's Lester Bangs described it as "England's answer to Coven".{{cite magazine |last1=Bangs |first1=Lester |title=Black Sabbath: Black Sabbath |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/black-sabbath-19700917 |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=17 September 1970 |access-date=17 June 2018}}
Early occult rock bands such as Coven, Black Sabbath, Blue Cheer, Hawkwind and Blue Öyster Cult are considered by some critics to be extremely influential on the development of heavy metal music,{{cite web |last1=Heigl |first1=Alex |title=The Overwhelming (and Overlooked) Darkness of Jinx Dawson and Coven |url=https://people.com/music/jinx-dawson-coven-overlooked-heavy-metal-influencers/ |website=People |access-date=17 June 2018}}{{cite book|author=Tom Larson|title=History of Rock and Roll|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vGJ7XmA8rjIC&pg=PA183|year=2004|publisher=Kendall/Hunt Pub.|isbn=978-0-7872-9969-9|pages=183–187}}{{cite magazine |last1=Fricke |first1=David |title=Where Are They Now: Blue Cheer |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/blue-cheer-19850912 |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=12 September 1985 |access-date=17 June 2018}}{{cite web |last1=Wolfe |first1=Paul |title=Blue Öyster Cult: Heavy metal legends |url=https://www.axs.com/blue-yster-cult-heavy-metal-legends-14706 |website=AXS |access-date=17 June 2018}} or more specifically, styles such as stoner metal, doom metal and sludge metal.{{cite web |title=Black Sabbath: Iron Men |url=https://applause.uterwincenter.com/black-sabbath-iron-men/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170613155455/https://applause.uterwincenter.com/black-sabbath-iron-men/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 June 2017 |access-date=17 June 2018}}{{cite web |title=Stoner Metal |url=https://www.allmusic.com/style/stoner-metal-ma0000011961 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=17 June 2018}}{{cite web |title=Doom Metal |url=https://www.allmusic.com/style/doom-metal-ma0000004496 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=17 June 2018}} In 1976, Blue Öyster Cult released their fourth studio album Agents of Fortune; the album's first released single, "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.{{cite web |last1=Jurek |first1=Thom |title=Blue Öyster Cult Agents of Fortune |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/agents-of-fortune-mw0000599232 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=18 June 2018}}{{cite magazine |title=Blue Öyster Cult |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/blue-oyster-cult |magazine=Billboard |access-date=18 June 2018}} The imagery of occult rock bands was eventually revived, with the rise of New wave of British heavy metal bands such as Venom, Satan and Hell.{{cite book |last1=Horror Revival |first1=Folk |title=Folk Horror Revival: Harvest Hymns. Volume I- Twisted Roots |page=59}}
=Revival (2000s-present)=
Beginning in the 2000s, occult rock experienced a revival, with a sound reminiscent of the style of the 1970s, including bands such as Ghost, Luciferian Light Orchestra, The Devil's Blood, Witch Mountain, Orchid and Blood Ceremony.{{cite book |last1=Patridge |first1=Christopher |title=The Bloomsbury Handbook of Religion and Popular Music |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing}}{{cite web |title=JESS AND THE ANCIENT ONES – THE HORSE AND OTHER WEIRD TALES |date=2 February 2018 |url=https://www.echoesanddust.com/2018/02/jess-and-the-ancient-ones-the-horse-and-other-weird-tales/ |access-date=17 June 2018}} Ghost's third and fourth albums reached numbers 8 and 3, respectively, on the Billboard 200. In 2007, occult rock bands Coven and Black Widow reformed and toured with many bands that they helped influence. Prog Magazine described the revival as encompassing a myriad of styles, including post-rock, psych-prog and progressive rock, as well as a distinct number of bands possessing female vocalists. Kadavar are considered by some critics to be one of the bands spearheading the German occult rock scene, despite them rejecting the label themselves.{{cite web |last1=Moore |first1=Anthony |title=Kadavar Reveal New Album Artwork & Track Listing |url=https://heavymag.com.au/kadavar-reveal-new-album-artwork-track-listing/ |access-date=20 June 2018}} Kadavar's third studio album "Berlin" reached number 21 on the Billboard Heatseekers albums charts in 2015,{{cite magazine |title=Berlin Kadavar |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/kadavar/chart-history/heatseekers-albums/song/935852 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619113313/https://www.billboard.com/music/kadavar/chart-history/heatseekers-albums/song/935852 |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 June 2018 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=19 June 2018}} which was five places higher than their previous effort.{{cite magazine |title=Abra Kadavar Kadavar |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/kadavar/chart-history/heatseekers-albums/song/782656 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619114659/https://www.billboard.com/music/kadavar/chart-history/heatseekers-albums/song/782656 |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 June 2018 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=19 June 2018}}