Witchfinder General (band)

Witchfinder General

Witchfinder General were a doom metal band from Stourbridge, England. They were part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal scene and have been cited as a major influence on the doom metal genre.

Biography

Witchfinder General formed in 1979 in Stourbridge, England, as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement during the early 1980s. They are strongly influenced by Black Sabbath, and are widely recognised today as one of the pioneers of the doom metal style. The band's importance became acknowledged mostly after they disbanded.

The band (minus vocalist Zeeb Parkes) reformed in November 2006, with new vocalist Gary Martin. In 2007 the band released Buried Amongst the Ruins, a compilation CD featuring the "Burning a Sinner" single, the Soviet Invasion EP, and four live tracks including a live version of the unreleased track "Phantasmagorical". Whilst stating they will not perform live again, the band recently finished recording their third full length album, entitled Resurrected.

Members

Current line-up

• Gary Martin - vocals (2007 - present)
• Phil Cope - guitar, writer (1979-1984, 2006-present) (all recordings, bass on Death Penalty (as Wolfy Trope))
• Rod Hawkes - bass (1982-1984, 2006-present) (on Live '83)
• Dermot Redmond - drums (1983-1984, 2006-present) (on Live '83)

Former members

• Zeeb Parkes - vocals, (1979-1984) (Single - Burning a Sinner, Single - Soviet Invasion, Album - Death Penalty, Album - Friends of Hell, Single - Music and all off-shoot compilations and live releases).
• Johnny Fisher - bass (1979-1980)
• Kevin McCready - bass (1981-1982) (on "Burning a Sinner" and "Soviet Invasion" singles,Buried Amongst the Ruins)
• Steve Kinsell - drums (1979-1982) (on "Burning a Sinner" and "Soviet Invasion" singles,Buried Amongst the Ruins)
• Graham Ditchfield - drums (1982-1983) (on Death Penalty, Friends of Hell and "Music" single)

Discography

Studio albums

• Death Penalty CD/LP (Heavy Metal Records 1982)(writers - Parkes & Cope)
• Friends of Hell CD/LP (Heavy Metal Records 1983)(writers - Parkes & Cope)
• Resurrected CD (Buried By Time & Dust Records 2008) (writer - Cope)

Live albums

• Live '83 CD (Nuclear War Now! 2006)
• Live '83 CD (Nuclear War Now! 2007 - Corrected speed on CD) (writers - Parkes & Cope)

Singles/EPs

• "Burning a Sinner" 7" (Heavy Metal Records 1981) (writers - Parkes & Cope)
• Soviet Invasion 12" EP (Heavy Metal Records 1982) (writers - Parkes & Cope)
• "Music" 7" (Heavy Metal Records 1983) (writers - Parkes & Cope)

Other releases

• Buried Amongst the Ruins CD (NWN! Productions / Buried By Time & Dust Records 2007)

(writers - Cope & Parkes)