One of the UK’s most exciting new bands release their debut album, and it’s rather good indeed
I’ve been writing reviews for a few years and it’s hard sometimes, writing something which feels fresh and enthusiastic. I always try and find the positives in whatever record I’m reviewing, but sometimes it’s not easy, but enough of my woes, the reason I bring this up is because every so often something comes along and gives me a massive jolt of renewed energy, like Frankenstein’s monster sitting bolt upright after having 1.21 gigawatts of lightning blasted into him.
That something is the debut album from Northern England’s finest purveyors of heavy music Hidden Mothers. Now, before we go any further, I have interviewed the band previously at Arctangent (which you should totally check out as well by the way, and all the other brilliant interviews on this site) and the whole band are wonderful human beings, but I have not let this get in the way of my review which is entirely my own opinion.
With my inane waffle out of the way, let’s dig in. The album positively scorches out of the blocks with the song “Defanged”, exploding out of the speakers with piss and vinegar. Angry roars embellish the frantic Post-Hardcore music which although wonderfully heavy, is beautifully counteracted by rich melodies. Through myriad twists and turns this song encapsulates everything which is great about both this band and this album. During the breakdown nearing the halfway point of the song we get the first taste of this bands not so secret weapon, the giddy brilliance of the interplay between the raging bellows of Liam Knowles and the anguished heart wrenching clean stylings of guitarist Luke Scrivens.
Some bands would realise they had struck gold in a mine of copper with Lukes’s voice and push it to the front, but the band are cleverer than that, utilising it to maximum effect so that when it comes in, it hits with an emotional sledgehammer and is all the more impactful for it.
I’ve been sitting with this album for quite a while now and one of the most pleasing things about it is that fact that I’m always picking up new things I missed on previous listens, the musical depths hidden amongst all this seemingly simplistic aggressive styling is staggering and richly rewards repeat listens. The achingly gorgeous “Grandfather” is a stripped back song, delicate guitar work embellishing the soulful haunted vocals, which in turn leads into the all-consuming, dark as night “Violet Sun” before “Haze” caps the album off with a moody, whiskey drenched swansong which finishes off the album exactly as you would want and wish.
It seems like this band have been around the underground scene for years, and have grown into consummate performers, hammering away on their album in the background, making sure every facet of it is polished and chipped to perfection before letting it loose on us, the unsuspecting masses. If you like heavy music, if you like emotional music, hell, even if you like music with a great singer, you need to give this album a chance, it’s majestic and will almost certainly (even though it’s so late in the year) be right near the top of my album of the year list, simply brilliant.
