Founding Angel Witch bassist Kevin Riddles dead at 68

Kevin Riddles, founding bassist with NWOBHM icons Angel Witch, has died at the age of 68 after a battle with cancer. The news was confirmed by Angel Witch guitarist and vocalist Kevin Heybourne on the band's Facebook page.

"It is with immense sadness that I have to report that Kevin Riddles, our original bass player, passed away on Friday, 4th July 2025," wrote Heybourne. "Kevin was a great guy and we remained mates until the end, he will be greatly missed.

"Our condolences to his wife, Julie. Rest in peace, Kev."

Further tribute was on the Facebook page of Kev Riddles' Baphomet, the band Riddles founded in 2021 to perform songs recorded by Angel Witch during his time with the group.

"It is with great sadness that we have to inform you all of the passing of the one and only Kevin Riddles, original Angel Witch member and bass player," read the statement. "We are all utterly devastated.

"An absolute legend in the truest sense of the word, a larger-than-life character, an incredible and dedicated musician and a very fine and wonderful human being. Rest easy, big fella."

Riddles first joined forces with Heybourne in 1978 after meeting him at the music store Riddles worked at in Lewisham, South London. When Heybourne formed Angel Witch after his previous band Lucifer broke up, Riddles joined and the group swiftly made a name for themselves, building up a following referred to as (perhaps inevitably) ‘Witches’.

Angel Witch drew up their swords-and-sorcery blueprint early on with songs such as Devil’s Tower, The Sorceress and The Gorgon, and recognition arrived in May 1979 when Angel Witch, Iron Maiden and Samson played the show at the Music Machine in North London that subsequently became known as the gig that launched the NWOBHM.

The gig was attended by Sounds (now Classic Rock) writer Geoff Barton, who would later report, "If Angel Witch ever had a finest hour, this was probably it, because they received a more positive response than Iron Maiden, the second act on the bill. Amazing but true."

"Sounds came along, did that review and coined the phrase [NWOBHM]," Riddles told MetalTalk in 2021. "But we didn’t realise we were part of something special and different at the time.”

The following year, Angel Witch contributed fan favourite Baphomet to the first volume of the iconic Metal For Muthas compilation, appearing alongside fellow NWOBHM travellers Iron Maiden, Praying Mantis, Samson and Toad The Wet Sprocket (not the American band of the same name).

The same year Angel Witch supported Black Sabbath on their Heaven And Hell tour and signed to Bronze Records (then home of Motörhead and Girlschool). The debut album, most famous for the self-titled Angel Witch single and its joyously simplistic chorus, "You're an Angel Witch! / You're An Angel Witch!" arrived in December 1980.

“I have to say I was proud of it at the time,” Kevin told MetalTalk. “We were just a working band. We loved doing the gigs we were doing, and the further away from home we could do them, the better. We felt like a proper rock‘n’roll band."

Angel Witch split up in the wake of the album's release, with Riddles quitting to form Tytan alongside another ex-Angel Witch man, drummer Dave Dufort (brother of Girlschool’s Denise), guitarist Steve Mann (ex-Liar, now of Lionheart and MSG) and former AIIZ guitarist Gary Owens. Future AC/DC drummer Simon Wright was also an early member.

In 1986, Riddles hooked up with Paul Samson’s Empire, who supported Iron Maiden on their Somewhere on Tour dates.

In the meantime, the influence of Angel Witch's album grew, making an impact on young NWOBHM fan and future Metallica star Lars Ulrich.

“I remember seeing an interview on a film with Lars Ulrich”, Kevin told MetalTalk. “He cited Angel Witch as one of the influences behind Metallica. We got him into the Marquee for free every time we played there. He slept on my damn couch for weeks on end because he was homeless.

“He never offered us a gig, the little bugger. They had the luck, the management, the talent and everything else. They got the package just right, and they took their careers and ran with it. That was brilliant, to hear that we had influenced them."

Prompted by his wife, Julie, Riddles formed Kev Riddles' Baphomet during lockdown in 2021, with former bandmate Kevin Heybourne, who today fronts a new lineup of Angel Witch, giving his blessing.

“Hopefully, we will get back a bit of that fun that we were having in the ’80s," said Riddles, who had completed bass parts for a third Tytan album before he passed. "That is the idea. If people revisit it in their heads, when they saw us at the Marquee, or when they saw us at Sundown, or when they saw us at Hammersmith, or when they saw us at Newcastle City Hall, if they walk out with a smile on their face, that is all I can ask."