Alien Witch pivots to psych on wild new album ‘Bloodstained Supernova’

After an unbelievably breathless torrent of releases in the early 2020s which included a 2021 run that averaged nearly a full album per month, prolific Orlando act Alien Witch eased off the pedal while main brain Dee Crittenden focused on other projects. But Alien Witch has shown recent signs of new life with several albums released in the past year. On brand-new album Bloodstained Supernova, however, Alien Witch has reemerged with not just robust new material but new sound and perspective.

Although Alien Witch’s shapeshifting music has spanned lots of ground, it’s all been single-mindedly dark. So bleak is the Alien Witch mystique that a pivot toward something like Britpop would seem like a stunning sea change. But don’t get too carried away. Anyone who sees the title Bloodstained Supernova and rushes to Oasis conclusions might be in for a surprise.

Without a doubt, though, Crittenden has been absorbing some classic British stuff. While that turn is unexpected for Alien Witch, it’s not foreign territory for Crittenden. Doxy, one of Crittenden’s other bands, has often sported a heavy influence from the Brian Jonestown Massacre, whose own inspirations are very British. Now, on Bloodstained Supernova, Alien Witch sounds like they’re drinking from the same English well.

Indeed, these 13 new songs are modern conjurings of 1960s British psychedelia. While the heavy, narcotic atmosphere here is something you’d expect from Alien Witch, this album isn’t their usual death march. Instead, it’s a trip painted in acid colors far beyond the shades of black that’ve thus far defined their aesthetic. In Alien Witch’s eternally nocturnal realm, it’s a dawning that’s not just stylistic but personal.

“I basically feel better than I have since 2019,” says Crittenden, who’s been working on shedding emotional and chemical toxicity. “The most productive and creative, physically healthy and mentally the strongest I’ve ever felt. Sort of a new lease on life, or maybe I was running out of my nine lives and it was time to get it together. I truly believe this album is a reflection of that.”

Bloodstained Supernova is, in Crittenden’s own words, the “beginning of a new, brighter era.” More than that, though, it’s a twist that’s not just convincing but some of the most fully crafted material from Crittenden ever. The album now streams everywhere and sits atop TLU’s Spotify playlist.

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This article appears in Jan 8-14, 2025.