V: Lamentations [CD]

Lancastrian rock apostles Wytch Hazel have been building their citadel since 2011, when debut single Surrender introduced this boldly wholesome new voice to the British metal underground. Since then the quartet have continually underscored and bolstered a signature sound rooted in heroic days of yore, but finessed to an elegant apex by long-time producer Ed Turner. That sonic alchemy coalesces all over V: Lamentations, bubbling with even more febrile creativity than previous masterworks Prelude, II: Sojourn, III: Pentecost and IV: Sacrament. The latter, bizarrely, reached number seven on the UK 'Christian & Gospel' chart, due to a mis-classification at the UKCC, despite selling enough to clinch the number one rock album spot.