Extreme Management Group (EMG), home to bands like Suffocation, Cattle Decapitation, Rings of Saturn, and more, has announced their partnership with doom band Temple WItch.
During the Covid 19 pandemic, Andy Russell, a young songwriter, guitarist and singer approached his uncle, Johno Benedik, to record drums for an old song Russell had penned. Benedik, a longtime veteran of the Cleveland/Akron metal scene and also a former touring drum technician, agreed and rehearsals commenced. Eventually, over the course of fleshing out an updated version of the song, the two bonded musically and decided to grow the project into a completely new band. Temple Witch was born.
Upon writing several songs in quick succession, Russell and Benedik booked studio time and set out to find a bass player to round out the group. Jacob Jones was soon brought into the fold and within a few weeks the trio began recording their debut album, Hand In Hand With Chaos.
The album, a punishing exploration of riff-centric metal, engages the listener with novel song structures, unabashed dissonance and time-signature changes. Lyrically, Russell takes the listener on an emotion-driven journey, diving deep into topics of self empowerment, positivity, duality, abandonment, loneliness and depression. Altogether, Hand In Hand With Chaos is a melodic and moving sonic assault that is uniquely Temple Witch.
The Metal Archives did not wait long to incorporate Temple Witch into its encyclopedia after hearing Hand In Hand With Chaos. Radio stations picked up the album as well, including: Indie Scent Xposure Radio, WJCU Radio, and Sunday Bloody Sunday, to name a few. Sunday Bloody Sunday stated: “If you enjoy anything stoner rock or doom, do yourself a favor and check out Hand In Hand with Chaos”. Legendary metal reviewer and senior editor of Canadian metal magazine, Brave Words and Bloody Knuckles, Martin Popoff, wrote, “Cool-crushing production, great vocals, love the drum sound, too… inventive… Definitely not jogging music!”
After the completion of Hand In Hand With Chaos, and with Covid 19 continuing to shut down live appearances, the band turned their attention to writing new material. At the time of this writing, Temple Witch has reentered the studio and are putting the finishing touches on a second album.
The name “Temple Witch” is not simply a title, but a reference to the body and spirit. As a band, the goal is to write songs which tackle philosophical and existential matters. The word “Temple” is a nod to the body and mind, while the word “Witch” relates to the metal lifestyle and audience.
The band’s mission is the mission of the artist: communicate and connect with as many people as possible. When even one person hears the music and is moved by it, the artist has succeeded. When people in an audience enjoy the band together with the lyrics and music, there is perhaps no more powerful form of communication. To do this in cities and countries worldwide is the Temple Witch goal.
Temple Witch’s message is this: though we may not all understand one another, we all share the experience of being; the beauty, the wonder, the terrible suffering, and the utter confusion of human existence. Without attempting to make any grand, or final statements, those are the subjects we are interested in trying to relate to and communicate through music.
Now the band has signed with Extreme Management Group, and had the following to say about the partnering, “Temple Witch is excited to be joining the EMG roster of bands and looking forward to a successful partnership!”. EMG said, “Temple Witch has done a ton of work launching the band. We intend to make that hard work count.” Anticipate big things to come from Temple Witch and Extreme Management Group.
TEMPLE WITCH is:
Andy Russell – Guitar, Vocals
Jacob Jones – Bass
Johno Benedik – Drums
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