Song Review: "La Cantiga de las Brujas" by Mägo de Oz

Weren't you sick and tired of 2018? I sure was, and I am so glad to finally be done with it. I know I should do an obligatory "Year End Retrospective" but I honestly don't think it's worth it since I can sum it up right here: BORING at best and Disastrous at worst. Juice WRLD is one of the worst things to happen to the radio this year, Maroon 5 is still a thing (and a terrible one at that), Bastille returned to the spotlight with a nothing song. Even Miyavi, who I cannot stop praising as a musician and ADORED his previous album "Samurai Sessions Vol. 2", released an ok and pretty forgettable follow-up with "Worlds Collide: Samurai Sessions Vol. 3". I don't know why 2018 was so bad in music, but it could be related to how everyone seems so depressed. Maybe the reason we can't make anything good is because we lack the energy/motivation to do so. In any case, if you wanted to know what 2018 was like, Post Malone is your man. His bad stuff is bad and his "good" stuff is just there. Doesn't do much, doesn't bother anyone, it just takes up space. But it is now officially 2019. Honestly I don't know how much worse music can get from here so I am kind of hopeful of what the new year can bring. Even my favorite band of all time, Mägo de Oz, is releasing a new album! They even released their first single today (January 3rd)! What a great way to start the new year, right?

So, for some context, ever since Jose Andrea left the group, Mägo de Oz has been in a little bit of a slouch. Losing their frontman would be devastating for any band, but I think they did a good job finding a replacement in Zeta (even if some fans might disagree with me). However, let me point out that Jose left in 2011, one year after releasing "Gaia III: Atlantia" and "Gaia: Epílogo". Since then, Mägo de Oz has released "Hechizos, Pócimas, y Brujería" (2012) and "Illusia" (2014). Other than that, it has been nothing but Greatest Hits/Compilation albums (some times with a gimmick like with "Celtic Land" which CD1 is a compilation of their old hits sung in English with guest singers and CD 2 is a compilation of their old hits sung in Spanish with guest singers), a live album ("Diabulus in Opera" in 2017), and "Finisterra: Opera Rock" (2015) which was a re-recording of their 2000's album "Finisterra". I'm not saying they're not staying active, I'm just saying that their well of creativity might be running dry. So you can't imagine how simultaneously excited and skeptical I was when they announced their new album "Ira Dei". Now that the first single has been released, does it live up to the expectations? Let's talk about "La Cantiga de las Brujas".

Once the song starts, it is very promising. It opens with a lute, a flue, and a violin. That folk-y/medieval sound is one of the things that made me fall in love with Mägo de Oz when I was a kid. Zeta's soft voice perfectly fits the Troubadour vibe of the instruments. The melody invites intrigue, it's not one to entertain but to tell a tale. The chord progression follows a simple Am-G-Em-Am for the first part of the phrase, and for the second half, the bass plays a walk up from an A, B to a C chord and then it follows to a G, Em, and back to Am. This is a fairly simple and common chord progression (I figured it out in 2 minutes) but it's very effective in setting tone and atmosphere. Plus the melody that the flute and violin play is simply beautiful. Once the Heavy Metal part of the song kicks in, it does sound like the classic Mägo de Oz sound that any fan would recognize. In addition to the flute and violin, there's a bagpipe playing the melody as the guitars and drums kick the song into gear. Everything seems to be going great but once the verse comes in, is all downhill from here. Zeta trying to sing low and "tough" doesn't work. His voice is not hard enough to pull that off. Plus, there's a call and response between Zeta and La Diva Satánica (I tried to find a name but apparently that's what she goes with) and she sings screamo. I don't think this is inherently bad. Adding some black metal elements to Mägo de Oz is not the weirdest thing Mägo has tried (that has to go to the Reggae sections in some of there songs), and it actually sounds pretty good. The phrasing is a little weird (that might have more to do with the fact that it's sung in Spanish, however I don't have time to go down this rabbithole of music and linguistics), but I think that overall it's alright. However, the problem with the screamo is that it emphasizes how soft and delicate Zeta's voice is. If they wanted this to work, Zeta had to sing something more melodic and soft to better contrast La Diva Satánica's voice. This would play to both singers' strengths instead of showcasing their downfalls. The rest of the song, musically, is ok. It's a standard Mägo de Oz song. If you're a fan of their music ("Hechizos, Pócimas, y Brujería" and "Gaia II: La Voz Dormida" specifically), you might enjoy it. However, Mägo de Oz are known for their poetic, profound, philosophical, and political lyrics. Lyrics of Love, Life, and Freedom.

Mägo de Oz are known for their poetic, profound, philosophical, and political lyrics... If "La Cantinga de las Brujas" was the first song you ever heard of Mägo de Oz, I guarantee you would call me a filthy liar setting you up for a scam. By god these lyrics are terrible! I personally don't think Mägo de Oz were particularly good at making Concept albums. The best one that tells a coherent story from start to finish has been "Jesús de Chamberí". "La Leyenda de la Mancha" comes as a close second but it's honestly just a retelling of Don Quixote, so it serves as more as a soundtrack than as a story. The Gaia trilogy supposedly has a story per album, but the songs better explore a theme than a story.
And their worst offender is "Finisterra" which is (from what I have found) basically a Ripoff of The Matrix which has absolutely nothing to do with anything in the songs. It seems that "Ira Dei" is shaping up to be their next attempt at storytelling but judging from this song, it's going to be a train wreck.  "La Cantiga de las Brujas" gives the impression that it is about something but it's really about nothing. My point is that even if their efforts of telling a story in their albums haven't been great, I love all of these albums because not only are the songs great, but they also explored the general themes of the stories they wanted to tell. Not to mentioned that they explored said themes in poetic, creative, and intelligent ways. "La Cantiga de las Brujas" doesn't. I know this album is about the Apocalypse because of the promo trailers and the title of the album ("God's Wrath"), but this song, as a first single, doesn't tell me anything about who the Anti-Christ is, the Apocalypse, the story, anything. It's a song about how cool and provocative witches are. The poetic imagery is either super corny, dumb, or nonexistent, and some of the lines are straight up awful. Not to mention that I find it hard to believe that the same band that wrote such provocative and thought-provoking lines like "In the name of Freedom, Faith in Oneself, and Peace, burn down the flags and say 'no' to religion. And may your god be a song written from the heart, and may your country be wherever your feet take you", "The only church that enlightens is the one that burns", and "For handfuls of progress I lost my freedom" are the same people who wrote this:

"To be a witch you don't need a costume,
Look at your Ex and you'll be convinced

If life one day gives you a stick
Make a broom out of it."

You may think that this sounds stupid because of the translation. Trust me, it sounds just as stupid as in Spanish. Seriously, what were they thinking? There's also this weird thing in the second half of the chorus where they use School metaphors. They actually say stuff like "This is Lucifer's School" and if you become a witch you must "Enroll". I'm not making this up, that's the actual language they use: not "join us" or "give in" but "Enroll". It begs me to ask what is the tuition.

It really is like watching the fall of the Roman Empire because their biggest claim about "Ira Dei" was that they were returning to their "Gaia II" sound. This is one of their best albums, with some of the best lyrics. What's important to keep in mind is that Mägo de Oz made drastic changes to their sound and image. Before "Gaia II", they were gypsies, troubadours, pirates, even. "Gaia II" was their darkest album. It was a risk but they decided to change their sound and image from Celtic Folk to Gothic. They were demons, singing about  witches, death, Satan, melancholy, darkness. I think that risk paid off. "Gaia II: La Voz Dormida" was a reinvention of the band, as well as an expansion of their sound. I get why they would want to go back to this era. Right now, Mägo de Oz has been in a difficult place. Ever since Jose left, they have been fighting against the shackles of his legacy and try to move on with someone new. They tried to move forward with 2 albums that as far as I can tell, didn't free them from their restraints. So, in a time where they want to move on, a reinvention might be just what they need. However, based on "La Cantiga de las Brujas", what should've been a triumphant return is going to a painful downfall.