L.A. Witch is back with their first full-length since the pandemic. For Doggod, released on April 4 via Suicide Squeeze Records, the local three-piece headed to Paris, where they recorded at Motorbass, the studio founded by late producer Philippe Zdar (Cassius) where Phoenix recorded Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.
Even though the album was made in a studio with a French indie pop pedigree, the sound of Doggod is very L.A. Specifically, the album makes me think of the city’s 1980s post-punk scenes. At that time, you had deathrock, which became goth, and included bands like Kommunity FK, Christian Death and 45 Grave. There was a scene known as the Paisley Underground, which was ‘80s psyche and spawned bands like The Bangles and Opal, who evolved into Mazzy Star. Then, you had a band like the Gun Club, that was really its own vibe, playing dark Americana. Doggod sounds like the point where those three tangents intersect. My point being, you can take the band out of L.A., but you can’t take L.A. out of the band, especially when the city is in their name.
Where previous L.A. Witch albums had a raw and punchy sound more akin to garage rock, Doggod digs into psychedelia’s darkest corners. On “Icicles,” the album’s opening track and a previously released single, a cold synth line creeps into the background as the song nears its end, a sort of foreshadowing of what’s to come. “777” pushes deathrock to the front in a fast and furious way. “I Hunt You Prey” is ominously slow with a doomy groove. L.A. Witch plays with those two dynamics throughout the album.
There’s really no in between on Doggod as the songs vacillate between heart-racing energy and heavy brooding. Those extremes are a good fit for L.A. Witch. They work really well with singer Sade Sanchez’s voice, which is low and a little raspy, falling somewhere between Hope Sandoval and Stevie Nicks.
Thematically, the juxtaposition of highs and lows works too. There are no tepid emotions on the album, which is refreshing at a time when so much music is made for passive plays. You actually have to think about these lyrics and, sometimes, like on “I Hunt You Prey,” they will be unsettling.
“I Hunt You Prey” is the song on Doggod that has been haunting me since first hearing it, not just because of its creeping bass line, but because of the imagery of finding someone or something by the side of a road. It’s mysterious and a little menacing, like the opening scene of a horror film.
Doggod is certainly the strongest record I’ve heard yet from L.A. Witch. Here, the band pulls bits and pieces of the sounds that peppered their previous work, refine it and twist it into new forms. If your record collection jumps from Shocking Blue to Jesus and Mary Chain to The KVB, be sure to add Doggod to your stacks.
L.A. Witch launches their North American tour next week, but they won’t be back in Los Angeles until May 23, when they play the Lodge Room in Highland Park.
Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Read her recently published work and check out her upcoming gigs or listen to the latest Beatique Mix. Follow on Instagram or Bluesky for more updates.
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