The Album

Album cover designed by Joel H.

The Bandon Banshees released this album, Wizard Rock Cake (Online Edition), on Harry’s birthday in 2010. This was a rerelease of their first album, which had come out in 2007. It has seven songs ranging from twelve seconds to over five minutes, so let’s get into it!

The Tracks

First up is Waiting For You (Voldemort). This song is about Harry going to meet Voldemort as part of his destiny. The percussion pushes the song forward and reminds me of Harry’s beating heart as he moves toward what he thinks is his end. I love the electric guitar solo toward the end of the song.

Goblet of Rock is a hilarious song about Harry and Ron’s relationship after Harry’s name came out of the Goblet of Fire. Their friendship may have been on thin ice, but by the end of the song, all is forgiven and it’s time to party. I loved the instrumentals in this one; they almost have a church organ type sound going on. Just before three minutes and thirty seconds, we get a reprise of the whole song.

At only sixteen seconds long, This Song is a Horcrux is surprisingly not the shortest song on the album! It is quieter than the other songs on the album, so make sure to turn your volume up.

Magical Me is a wonderfully performed song from Lockhart’s point of view. This is exactly what I would imagine Gilderoy would sound like if he sang a song about himself. The vocals and instrumentals come together to create this incredible song.

Here’s our shortest song on the album, coming in at twelve seconds – If I Had a Dollar. It’s such a good song for being so short, and it made me laugh out loud.

We get into a bit of a darker tone for Mudbloods & Murmurs. Harry grapples with his feelings on finding out he knows how to speak Parseltongue during his second year at Hogwarts.

Wizard Rock Cake pays homage to Hagrid’s incredible baking skills. It’s a fun little ditty that only lasts just under a minute, but if you keep listening until the three minute mark, you will hear a beautiful instrumental riff that keeps going until the end of the track.

In Summary

I love how The Bandon Banshees can take so many different themes and combine them into one cohesive album. The lyrics are amazing and hilarious, the instrumentals are fantastic, and the vocals do every song justice. I thoroughly enjoyed this album and I hope you do too!