There was more to the dark side to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal than Venom, and Witchfynde were certainly a popular cult band. Never quite premier division, not as slick as Maiden or Leppard, the raw energy not as finely tuned as Saxon, but they had their moments.

With Witchfynde's sixth album underway, the tracks here are drawn from their early 80s period three album Give ‘Em Hell, Stagefright and Cloak & Dagger, which are already available on CD and download through Lemon; this collection will have limited appeal among fans who already have them but it's a good, strong collection and if you are a passing fan of the era, or vaguely interested, this 17 track CD does a very fine job. A well annotated introduction

The opening track, 'Give ‘Em Hell' sets the scene well with a menace, and 'The Divine Victim', 'Wake Up Screaming', 'Unto The Ages Of The Ages', 'Moon Magic' and 'Leaving Nadir' follow.

***½

Review by Joe Geesin