Album Review: Feel The Void by Hot Water Music (by Omar Ramlugon)

It’s not overstating things to say that the last couple of years have been pretty dreadful for almost everyone. A worldwide pandemic killed literally millions of people, while we were locked inside our houses and often not even able to bid farewell to our loved ones as they passed. Having only just started to move somewhere past that, a failing state decided to threaten us all with the threat of nuclear annihilation. It has felt like there’s simply nowhere to turn at times; Hot Water Music’s Chuck Ragan is no stranger to this, admitting in a recent interview ‘[...] man, it's been a really tough couple years. There's been multiple deaths in the family ... from losing family members to our dog, there was just a lot going on.’

Just from the title alone, it’s clear that Feel The Void was very much informed by these turbulent times in which we continue to find ourselves. The album spits and crackles with all the furious energy that you’d expect from these Gainesville stalwarts, but it’s tempered with a deep warmth and humanity from life experience that comes from the majority of the band being well into their 40s by this point. Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard have always been adept with their lyrics and vocals as they are with their guitars, never going for the obvious and instead adopting a wry, spare approach that always serves the music. Indeed, it’s a duo so well known in punk circles that the addition of The Flatliners’ Chris Cresswell may have raised a few eyebrows. Wollard even noted that Cresswell becoming their third guitarist/vocalist was uncharted territory for the band; ‘[...] I had no clue how to do it with three. I didn’t have a plan. I don’t think any of us did, other than plug in and figure it out.’

And figure it out they did. With Brian McTernan at the helm producing, Feel The Void is easily Hot Water Music’s best record for a long while. Whether it’s the shot in the arm from Cresswell, having McTernan back in the fold, or just finding strength in each other and channelling difficult days into their music, they sound revitalised. The album confidently moves through different moods and feelings we’ve all had these last few years, whether it’s the pulse-pounding rage and anxiety of ‘Killing Time’, the laughing in the face of pain exemplified by ‘Collect Your Things And Run’, which manages to make a brilliant hook out of the rhyme “Count to 4, 5, 6, I feel like shit”, or the heart-breaking, grief stricken ‘Habitual’.

The mix is marvellously uncluttered, even with three guitarists, allowing them all to find their place while Jason Black and George Rebelo’s killer rhythm section is as fantastically in the pocket as ever. Vocally, everyone is sounding on top of their game, with Ragan’s stentorian roar, Wollard’s smoky but slightly more tuneful rasp, and Cresswell’s more polished delivery shining, whether they’re backing each other up or leading the charge. The tag team approach taken on the title track is particularly thrilling. Cresswell does lead a song of his own – the killer ‘Turn The Dial’ – and it’s testament to his ability as a musician that he isn’t overshadowed by the four punk lifers around him. Elsewhere, the gnarly rush of ‘Scratch On’ is followed by the almost ballad-like ‘Ride On’, and the album closes itself out with the tuneful, defiant ‘Lock Up’, which features one of the best and most apropos chorus lyrics for these times; “Damn the world that rakes me over the coals/Every day I owe”.

This is a really special record. While there are plenty of cuts that will instantly win you over, there’s still more that don’t grab you at first flush but will slowly work their hooks into you with each listen. It’s Hot Water Music’s best record since The New What Next, easily surpassing Light It Up and pipping Exister to the post. It’s fraught with pain, uncertainty and frustration, but underpinning it all is a sense of the strength garnered from allowing yourself to be vulnerable, so as to confront your darkest impulses with the help of your loved ones, even if that pain comes from letting a loved one go. If that sounds like it would appeal to you, then don’t hesitate to pick this up. We could all do with some reassurance these days, and if Hot Water Music are still making records this good, that has to count for something.

Stream and download Feel The Void on Bandcamp here, as well the the other usual music outlets.

Like Hot Water Music on Facebook here.

This review was written by Omar Ramlugon.