Introduction
With the Birmingham based bands recent appearance on the Back To The Beginning stream, and a brand new album “Strung Out In Hell”. It is a really exciting time for Margarita Witch Cult! They caught up with us to chat all things new album. As well as Ozzy & Black Sabbath!
Interview
Where did the band name come from? It’s not one that people are going to forget once they have heard it and I’m really intrigued!
One of Scott and George’s favourite activities during lockdown was to chat shit on Zoom whilst sipping margaritas. Scott swears he’s perfected the recipe and I have no reason to doubt him! So combine his love of that particular concoction and the occult, and there you have it!
We noticed you on the stream for Back To The Beginning! What exactly is it about Black Sabbath and Ozzy that inspired your music?
Everything! Without Sabbath there is no doom, no sludge, no down-tuned guitars- they wrote the blueprint and we’re making it our mission to keep flying the flag no that they’ve finally laid their arms down. Long live Black Sabbath!
New album “Strung Out In Hell” released July 18th! Are there any changes in your sound that you can think of between your first album and the new one?
We’ve taken the tried-and-tested method of “like the first album, but MORE”. It’s heavier, it’s catchier, it’s bolder, it’s weirder. It’s not a huge departure, but we’ve cranked the knobs up to 11 and then ripped them off.
You recently released “Witches’ Candle” as a single, would you be able to break down the inspiration behind the song. Also, we would love to know in your mind how does this candle look?
As often is, the inspiration is all things occult and darkness. Musically, it’s a bit groovier than our usual fare- the middle dualling bass-and-guitar section is quite the workout for the fingers. The candle would be gnarly- possibly black, definitely not scented as ‘Fresh Linen’ or ‘Ocean Breeze’.
Let’s break things up with a fun one… Would you rather have chicken legs and an elephants trunk, or an elephants legs and a chickens beak? And why?
I fail to see how having tiny chicken legs would support such a snout. So elephant legs and chickens beak I guess. Otherwise I’d just keep toppling over. But either scenario is most undesirable.
If you had to choose a favourite song on the latest album which song are you picking, and what do you like most about that song?
‘Dig Your Way Out’ is a highlight for me. It’s more on the punk/sludge side, and showcases us at our most raw. Scott nailed the single vocal in one take- it was like an exorcism.
If you could pick any festival in the world to headline, what festival would it be and why?
Download festival- because it’s massive and that implies that we’d be massive also.
Another of your recent releases is “Scream Bloody Murder” which I must say has cracking riffs and one hell of a catchy chorus! I want to know though if you were a character in a detective novel who had been killed. How would you want to be killed off?
Death via catastrophic orgasm.
Right, I’m going back your debut album here… Would you please tell me how you came up with the lyrics for “Death Lurks At Every Turn”? It is a personal favourite of mine!
None of us are getting any younger- other than that I’m afraid it’s sort of what it says on the tin!
Play a show under water or outer space… Which one are you picking and why? Also, you can breathe in both scenarios!
Underwater as there’s fuck-all to see in space. Jim wanted to be a marine biologist before rock and roll ruined his life, so it’d be in his interest to rock out in a coral reef or something. Again though- both scenario are most undesirable.
Do you have a UK tour planned this year?
Any UK fans should keep their November diaries open…
Can you tell me something about the band that nobody else knows?
We are far more well-adjusted than our unkempt hair and ragged denim would suggest, and we’ve got the educational and professional credentials to prove it.
Finally, if you had to pick another band that we might not have heard of from the local area to big up. Who would that band be and why do you like them so much?
Our friends in Meatdripper are wicked- proper catchy doom and not afraid to stretch the riffs out. Fleshcreep are a vital hardcore band and they’re on the up! Outlander are gorgeous slowcore, Black Mekon are the garage rock daddies, The Big Hell are our purile punk brethren.
Also check out our own other bands past and present- Table Scraps, Mutes and Dead Slow. We’re not one-trick ponies… we have at least 2 tricks each.
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