Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages
Narrator: William S. Burroughs
2014
Genre: Cult, Jazz, Soundtrack.
Benjamin Christensen’s cult 1922 film Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages comes to life this time in this audio version which is narrated by the late great William S. Burroughs.
This spoken word rendition of the cult Swedish witchcraft horror film Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages speaks for itself it’s a horror masterpiece much like the film itself.
Firstly we need to talk about just how important Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages was as a horror staple, the film came out in 1922 and inspired and continues to inspire generations of horror filmmakers today. I can’t stress just how important this film was. Sometimes you hear a track on the radio from the 1970’s that sounds as fresh today as it did at the time, Häxan has that fresh feel it could have been made last year using techniques to capture the eerie essence the film is a masterpiece on so many different levels, I mean it was made in 1922 and we have nude scream queens, grave robbers, full on torture and crazed nuns…It sounds like the best video nasty ever made and this was made in 1922.
This CD version of Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages has a jazz score by Daniel Humair performed by a quintet including Jean-Luc Ponty on violin and Daniel Humair on percussion and narration by William S. Burroughs the fusion between the sounds of jazz and Burroughs unique vocals on the narration makes a psychedelic induced nightmare which is both scary and captivating. This haunting version is a must for fans of the film and you get something very different in this audio version, it’s not one to listen to in the car, but best enjoyed lying back in a chair sipping whiskey on a cold winters night with the faint whiff on incense its pure perfection.
William S. Burroughs really brings the film to life here with his narration, the cult author of the classic Junky has a fantastic voice and mixing it with horror was such a great concept even Kurt Cobain used Burroughs spoken word on a track Burroughs is pure brilliance, I was left wanted more.
I loved this audio version so much, I was totally blown away by it and the cover of the CD is as haunting as the narration which features stills from the film.
Review by Tony Newton
Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages is available to buy on CD HERE and HERE