Review by Greg on July 17, 2024.

Let's just take a second to appreciate the artwork. You would expect a scenario like this from an emergent German metal band in '84, or maybe coupled with a darker take on Scandinavian Europower, but I bet you're not thinking about the debut effort of a black/thrash outfit from China, of all places, right? Endless Witchcraft is, indeed, the first full-length of Demonslaught 666, a youngish outfit from the second-most populous country in the world.

Now, I've surely said several times that blackened thrash is a good time more often than not (exception made for Night Slasher's s/t, but hopefully I'll re-evaluate it too with time), and Endless Witchcraft does not confute the argument. Granted, it might not be the most visionary album you'll come across in 2024, it lacks a bit of memorability like Hellripper or UK's Devastator are masters at, the drums of A New Machine – yep, that's the dude's pseudonym – seem to know only one tempo (and you can safely guess which one), but dude, their name is fucking DEMONSLAUGHT 666, what the hell are you even asking for? Now that I think about it, I'm moderately disappointed they didn't manage to find a way to sneak an umlaut somewhere. There's still work to do, guys...

Nonetheless, there are a couple of deviations from the norm, above all 'Evil Hammer Force', which incredibly slows down at some point, delivering the only refrain that sticks out somehow – although it arguably helps that I can't for the life of me fathom what song it was lifted from, so my overall positive impression is safe, for now. I also feared the worst after spotting the mandatory 6-min closer, which however attempts only a lone minute of buildup before going back to the (Dem)onslaught, offering the album's strongest riffs (even if I particularly liked the bass-driven verses for some reason) and wrapping up Endless Witchcraft on its highest note, coming after the almost as good title-track and its loud as all hell gang shouts (sadly underutilized elsewhere) and the blasting 'Unspeakable Evil'.

There's plenty of things to like even on the less distinct numbers, starting from the powerful production, slightly modern drums aside (even if the frequent tom fills à la "Pleasure To Kill" were kinda funny), to Paravoid's vocals, taken straight out of the Athenar school, heavily echoed and mostly unintelligible, but strong nonetheless. He sometimes tries to accent a line with some squeaky yowls (not unlike what Darren Funk attempted on the latest Slave Agent), only that it feels so random that I can't help but picture somebody periodically poking him with a needle on his cheek during the recording sessions. Comical effect guaranteed, but it's no huge deal at the end of the day. I'm rather curious about the lyrics, since I expected top tier Engrish from an album of this ilk, but they don't seem to be available at the moment. Solos are totally optional, and I can't act disappointed with this many surprising riffs (check after the solo in 'Phantom Witch' for my absolute favourite one), but they're also far from offensive whenever they appear, although mostly courtesy of guest musicians.

Honestly, I'm happy to say I liked Endless Witchcraft more than Hellish Expectations, to say – more ferocious, and less conveying the impression of a quick jam session caught on tape. Although I can't rule out the possibility that my judgement might have been influenced by my total and utter lack of expectations, as throughout my whole first listen I was constantly waiting for the inevitable ugly riff to pop up, which, to my delight, never happened (save for the inexplicably cacophonic refrain of 'Banshee' where the members seem to channel their inner Captain Beefhearts and end up sounding like they're going each their own way), at the end, what Demonslaught 666 offers is simply a good, passionate album with a particularly strong ending streak. I don't have much more to ask from it.

Rating: 7.6 out of 10