Beebee and the Bluebirds - The World of the Witch (self-released)

Images of witchery and paganism are a common theme in rock music— Donovan’s “Season of the Witch” dates back to the earliest days of pop, and Fleetwood Mac’s “Black Magic Woman” comes only a few years later. But for the most part, such songs in the rock canon err on the side of cliche, with imagery more akin to an episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer than anything in keeping with historical accuracy. But Beebee and the Bluebirds are putting things right with their latest single, “The World of the Witch.”

Built around a classic rock sound, this Icelandic four-piece offers a more serious and perhaps severe take on the subject, the story a narrative account of the treatment of the wise women and village healers at the hands of the rising power of the medieval West…Christianity.

Brynhildur Oddsdóttir channels all of their disparate and desperate voices via her masterful vocals, a powerhouse yet controlled performance. The rest of the band holds down a solid rock groove, all snarling riffs, depth-charge bass lines, and precision drumming that is both unfussy and perfectly poised. This leaves Brynhildur herself to deal out salvos of scintillating guitars across the top of this sonic platform.

But the most exciting thing about the band is that this is just one of their sonic directions. Over the nearly fifteen years that they have been together, they have explored and infused their music with everything from funk to pop to jazz to blues and everything in between. Is there a musical style that they need help to make their own? It would seem not.

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