Ruby The Hatchet - Planetary Space Child album review

Occult-infused rockers invoke the feelgood vibe

By Holly Wright
( Metal Hammer )
published
Cover art for Ruby The Hatchet - Planetary Space Child album

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Ruby The Hatchet recently moved from New Jersey to Philadelphia and there they’ve recorded their third album, in 19th-century digs deep in the woods. Both the album title and their choice of recording facilities are suggestive of their sound, an echo-drenched eerie psychedelic throwback to decades past where occultism and heavy rock made an intoxicating blend. Imbued with Jillian Taylor’s sultry echo, this album grooves with bluesy rhythms that shudder to the refrain of ‘ISOFTWAREmark” gingersoftwareuiphraseguid=“8c984128-8b9b-4903-b297-e2424b01caf8” id=“e3ad0d56-58b0-4251-9f30-d82e3702ecbc”>’m a killer’ on, er, Killer. Songs melt into each other while retaining their individual characteristics: the deep sleep of Symphony Of The Night, the power-ballad sprawl of Lighting Comes Again like a Satanist lovechild of Stevie Nicks and Jinx Dawson and the keyboard space odyssey of Pagan Ritual. Yet attention is paid to bringing groove and atmosphere to the fore, paving the way for feelgood occultism.

Holly Wright
Holly Wright

With over 10 years’ experience writing for Metal Hammer and Prog, Holly has reviewed and interviewed a wealth of progressively-inclined noise mongers from around the world. A fearless voyager to the far sides of metal Holly loves nothing more than to check out London’s gig scene, from power to folk and a lot in between. When she’s not rocking out Holly enjoys being a mum to her daughter Violet and working as a high-flying marketer in the Big Smoke.