Review Summary: i never wondered, i never bothered, i never cared what i wanted to be about - 220 Years
It's hard to describe what Hot Water Music actually sound like, the only way newcomers to the band can put their finger on the bands truly mindblowing sound is by buying a CD or Record from their local independant record shop out of curiosity. As i did with buying the BYO Split the band had record with Leatherface in 1999, i knew after my first listen of Caught Up i would be hooked from then on.
For the newcomers i would reccomend either one of these four albums (or if your rich get all four, you wont be dissapointed) Either as stated above the Leatherface/Hot Water Music split, Forever And Counting, Never Ender or lastly the absolutley stunning Fuel For The Hate Game.
Firstly, Fuel For The Hate Game is a very hard CD to find. The only method i could think of the top of my head about where to easily buy it from is the No Idea Records site or another internet market place (i actually found it in the giant Virgin in london after a long days search :O).
The album opens with the track '220 Years' which is an awsome four and a half minutes of utter orgasmic pleasure, As soon as you hear the first chorus accompanied by an octave riff you cannot but help feel the hairs on your back stand on end when Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard sing the lyrics with a harsh and emotion filled roar, making you realise not only instruments create an amazing song, but the voices can lift the song up even more making it an absolute classic amongst fans.
The next few tracks in the list would have to be some of the best 4 or 5 tracks Hot Water Music have ever created, 'Turnstile' is a powerful song with lyrics that rely on the listener to create meaning (hold on tight to your fears, cause that's your hatred and that's your love as well ) and is a live favourite amongst fans. Following this is the song Blackjaw which has an amazing and influential breakdown section.
the other tracks that stand out the most include 'Freightliner' (another favourite amongst fans i believe) 'Facing And Backing' and 'Drunken third' (one of my favourites). Though this album may tail off slightly in the middle due to the song 'Rock Singer ' (not one of my favourites) this album ends on a brilliant climax and will make you beg for more.
Overall this Album and the band behind the music show you how real Influental music should be, Powerful vocals and guitar back up with a sharp sounding Bass and Drum section. This album knocks off any other Emo bands such as Jimmy Eat World and the Puketastic Brand New.
Get This and stop reading Kerrang!
4.5/5
