Hot Hail! battles with the increasingly fraught political landscape on their compelling and uplifting new album Hope In Hell
A distinctive rising artist who’s sound does a great job of treading the line between more nostalgic, retro synth-pop and darkwave aesthetics and a more expansive and daring modern appeal, Hot Hail! is Seattle artist that is consistently pushing the boundaries and confines of their sound, and their new album Hope In Hell is a great showcase of their distinctive appeal and how the style has progressed since the release of last years ALL THE BLOOD YOU WANTED.
The album opens with ‘Commitment’, a track that immediately provides a sparkling showcase of the new, Depeche Mode-esque direction of the sound, complete with glittering synths and anthemic passages that offer a colourful contrast to the more moody tone of the vocals, it makes for a really interesting juxtaposition and one that sets the tone for an album that does a masterful job of offsetting the light with the dark.
The artist’s more horror-tinged sensibilities come to the fore on ‘Flesh’, a track that has a creative feel to it throughout and does a really great job of creating an uneasy atmospheric chill throughout. The way that the track juggles its catchiness with these more sinister aspects continues to make for an engrossing listening experience, and this track’s chorus has more than enough about it and its catchy, memorable appeal to stick with you for long after your listen.
The neon-tinged ‘Silver Silver’ goes into full electronica territory thanks to its hooky and immersive synths that prevent it from getting sucked into the more murky and more brooding depth of the vocals and lyrics, and this makes for an interesting battle as the track progresses and its duality gets increasingly pronounced.
The intense religious imagery of ‘Article of Faith’ makes for a compelling and absorbing track that delves into themes like indoctrination and wilful ignorance in a way that feels hard-hitting and powerful, whereas the title track ‘Hope In Hell’ is a really rousing track that delves into the political state of the world and the ways that people just want to be able to coexist and achieve a better future in the face of some of the most divided times in recent history.
‘Needle’ draws out its intensity through a spacious and deliberately paced approach that builds towards an emotional lyrical outpouring that feels authentic and raw, melding infectious synth-pop hooks that echo the work of bands like New Order with a hard-hitting and deeply personal lyrics that leave a really potent impression on you as a listener.
The aptly titled ‘Joy’ is a track that offers the album what is probably its most optimistic and upbeat moments, unfolding like a stylish single from The Cure, and peppered with hopeful and rousing moments that are complimented by a nuanced and fun soundscape that is packed full of charm throughout, managing to find the positives in times that feel more uncertain than ever and holding onto them at any cost.
Following on from the danceable catharsis of ‘Enough to Run’, the album closes out with ‘Something Good’, a track that surmises a lot of the themes on the album, build around the idea of trying to take the badness in the world and around you and find a way to make them into something better and more hopeful for the future. This is a theme that provides the core of Hope In Hell, the belief that regardless of how bad things are and how they look that there can be a light at the end of the tunnel if we push back and fight towards it, and the range of moods and tones on the track and the differing ways that the light pushes against the dark makes for a compelling listening experience, reaffirming the artist’s message that compassion and unity can be our best form of resistance.
