SMOULDER Releasing ‘Witch Wife in an Alien World’ on Cruz Del Sur Music!

Fearless, confrontational, adventurous, Epic Power Doom Metal! 

Canadian/American metallers Smoulder return with their long-awaited third studio album, Witch Wife in an Alien World, a bold, daring collection of eight songs that continue to push boundaries and shatter conventions. 

Decibel has premiered the video for the album’s first single, “Water Wars,” which is available at:

decibelmagazine.com/2026/08/21/track-premiere-smoulder-water-wars

The affixion of epic and Greek black metal to Smoulder’s already-wide set of influences should not surprise anyone. The Canadian/American quintet covered Bathory’s “The Woodwoman” during their 2025 appearance at Burgbrand Open Air in Lauchröden, Germany. For a band that, from the jump, prided itself on expanding epic power doom metal into worlds beyond, the heart of the matter is that Smoulder remains committed to exploration and adventure—for remaining in one spot would be antithetical to the band’s existence. That principle guides Smoulder’s third full-length studio album, Witch Wife in an Alien World. 

Recorded between Soundwell Studio in Espoo, Finland with Valtteri Kallio and Swift Road Studios in Chicago, Illinois with Vincent Ippolito, with mixing and mastering duties courtesy of Roland Rodas, Smoulder—featuring vocalist Sarah Ann, guitarists Collin Wolf and Shon Vincent, bassist Adam Blake and drummer Kevin Hester—have summoned eight songs of depth and intrigue, venturing from the triumphant opener “Water Wars,” rollicking, custom-made-for-headbanging “Shadow of the Vulture” and sweeping “Cathedral of the Trees” and “Smouldering Remains.” 

Of immediate note is the band’s first half-English, half-Finnish-sung number, “Noitien Loitsu,” a cut that found Sarah Ann digging into her Finnish roots (a dual Canadian/Finnish citizen, she has several generations of family calling the Land of Thousand Lakes home). The song, which celebrates the forest Sarah Ann and Vincent live adjacent to in Helsinki, deftly alternates between English and Finnish sung verses and even blends both languages in the chorus. The song also features a guest solo from the band’s live guitarist, Bootleg Henkka (also of Finnish epic black metallers Havukruunu). 

While on the subject, the Witch Wife in an Alien World title was inspired by Sarah Ann’s current Finnish residence. Citing the country’s “monumentally positive impact” on her life, including a high-functioning, affordable healthcare system to go along with a reliable 24/7 transit and robust outdoor space, complete with safe air and clean water, Sarah Ann wants the rest of the world to have what she has. However, cruel, incompetent governments who are dedicated to stripping people of their rights while declaring empathy as a disease have induced a mental and emotional schism. It ties into the album’s broader context of tackling more real-life themes that are purposely adversarial and coupled with a growing sense of disconnection in a world that, conversely, is more connected than ever through technology. 

The album’s cover was created by British fantasy/horror illustrator Ian Miller, whose previous credits include works for Stormkeep and Ulthar, as well as some H.P Lovecraft book covers, the animated film Wizards with Ralph Bakshi (one of Sarah’s all-time favorites) and his work on Warhammer and Magic: The Gathering. While Smoulder’s previous two studio albums, 2018’s Times of Obscene Evil and Wild Daring and 2023’s Violent Creed of Vengeance, featured the artwork of the legendary Michael Whelan (Cirith Ungol, Obituary, Sepultura, the Witch Wife In an Alien World cover reflects the ugliness and hard truths of the album’s themes.

Upon the release of Witch Wife In an Alien World, Smoulder’s focus will shift to the live arena. The band’s lineup now includes multiple death and black metal musicians (including guitarist Nigge of black thrash outfit Terror Cross) who have shaped their sound into something even heavier and more crushing. “Having a crushing live show has become priority number one for us,” closes Sarah Ann. “You have choices as a band: you can go the costumes route, go the lightning and props route, or go the lurid and atmospheric and dark. All choices are valid, but for us, the final option resonated.”

Witch Wife in an Alien World will be available on vinyl LP with foiled cover, 12-page booklet, poster and download code, as well as on CD, and digital formats via Cruz Del Sur Music on October 9 in Europe and November 6 in North America.

Pre-order Witch Wife in an Alien World:

CD: https://tinyurl.com/4f9crkae
Black Vinyl LP: https://tinyurl.com/ys429asw
LMT Vinyl LP: https://tinyurl.com/2ty3v2rv
smoulder.bandcamp.com
linktr.ee/SmoulderDoom
cruzdelsurmusic.com/store

Track Listing:

1. Water Wars
2. Shadow of the Vulture
3. Noitien Loitsu
4. Crush the Neophytes
5. Empathy’s Wrath
6. Their Name Lives On
7. Cathedral of the Trees
8. Smouldering Remains