Swedish act Witchcraft comes back full force from the depth of the underground rock/metal realm with the newest effort entitled “Nucleus”. As on the previous albums, the band remains faithful to a gloomy concoction of old school doom roots and raw psychedelic elements.

“Malstroem” begins with soft arpeggios and magical flutes that lure the occasional listener into a magical nostalgic trip. It’s like being high in the middle of nowhere but the retro doom heavy guitar riffs carry a beacon of light that keeps the grove alive while spellbound vocals deliver a somber feeling.

“The Outcast” relies on a catchy ensemble of guitar riffs that celebrate a psych rock revival. The warm energetic guitar solos and the alluring fairytale style mood make this track a widely accessible tune.

The atmospheric sonic landscape of the title track is rather enjoyable with smooth vocals and simple riffs. Overall, while the slow dreamy moments complimented by a folk attitude sound quite interesting, the rhythm section doesn’t successfully deliver a catchy vibe that could keep the listeners’ attention throughout this lengthy track.

“The Obsessed” is another uptempo groovy guitar driven track with raw no-frills production and the expected retro musical theme. The classic rock bluesy guitar sound with some doomish rough edges and the melancholic mood are quite pleasant but too fragile to become a powerful hit.

“Helpless” has a dramatic down on earth music core filled with melancholic smooth arpeggios complimented by distinctively inspired vocals but the super fuzzy guitar solo is definitely the highlight of the song.

As the retro sounding trend aims to conquer the world one band at a time, “Nucleus” is another good collection of doom/rock songs because, even in modern times, we are all hopeless nostalgic.