SALEM MASS

SALEM MASS
WITCH BURNING (1971)
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Salem Mass really sounds like no other band to which I've listened. Witch Burning starts off with a 10+ minute track of the same name that is simply a masterpiece. The drumming and guitar work are impressive but it's the vocals and synthesizer that put it in a class unto itself. The synthesizer work is very intricate, elaborate and spacey. There is a long instrumental middle to the song that smacks of Iron Butterfly's In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. The vocals resume towards the end and the screeching is like off Judas Priest's 1976 "Sad Wings of Destiny." The mood is dark but not Sabbath dark. Just listen to how the word "soul" gets howled at stretched out at the end. I think this definitely influenced Judas Priest. The song "You Can't Run My Life," is incredibly catchy with synchronized synthesizer abd organ. There's spacey moog synthezizer, guitar jamming, and screeching, high-pitched lyrics. The vocals are, i must restate, fanstasic. "Your're Just a Dream" and "The Drifter" are lighter fare but still very enjoyable. I highly recommend this album to fans of late 60s/early 70s hard rock who are looking for something unique.

1. Witch Burning
2. My Sweet Jane
3. Why
4. You Can't Run My Life
5. You're Just a Dream
6. Bare Tree
7. Drifter