New Cirith Ungoooooool!!!!

When I hear the name “Cirith Ungol” I will always think of this recording of a 1984 discussion between two VERY enthusiastic teenage metalheads, high on weed or perhaps just life and the effervescent power of heavy metal, absolutely losing their minds over the band (warning: n-bombs within):

Truth be told, that’s the extent of my knowledge of Cirith Ungol. They haven’t released music since 1991, and I completely missed the boat.

That changes now: Cirith Ungol are set to return with Witch’s Game, their first new album in 27 (!) years, and the band’s released its title track as the first single.

With hardly any prior knowledge of this band, I can see why the two dudes in the above clip were so unbelievably stoked on them: they deliver a dynamic brand of traditional heavy metal that’s both earnest (Metallica) and light-hearted (Iron Maiden) in equal parts. That said, with nearly 40 years having passed since the band’s heyday it’s unlikely they’ll see many new fans as a result of this, with a WHOLE lot of metal having taking place in between… but I gather that wasn’t their intent at all. The new track should delight old-school fans of the band, so those of you out there to which that applies should feel free to tell us how you feel in the comments.

Witch’s Game comes out on October 5th via Metal Blade; pre-order here.