Hot Milk : "A Call to the Void"

 This is the debut full-length from the British pop act  that had a ton of momentum already built from the release of the singles leading up to this album. The opening track "Horror Show" is more interesting than "Bloodstream" that follows it. I would say while they are more rock than Chvrches with the aggressive punchy nature of what they do, they are not better musicians than Chvrches as they tend to lean into pretty simple Tik Tok pop punk. With songs like "Party on My Death" blending a few different styles the Paramore style of pop influenced by punk seems to be the core of who they are. 

"Alice Cooper's Pool House" finds them pulling out Alice's name in this song that claims they died in Alice Cooper's pool house, when they know very little about him, since Alice has been sober since before either one of these kids were born, so he does not have Hollywood parties, nor does he even live in LA, so they just needed a rock star name that worked with the cadence of the lyrics. Though they did get Alice Cooper to do a skit at the end of the song. "Zoned Out" is a little less interesting as it feels like they are just locking into more of a formula. "Over Your Dead Boy" is more effectively written and has hooks that are worth listening to. The vocals are more screamed in the climax, and there are some dramatic orchestral punches, that add meat to the song. 

"Migraine" finds it more Juggaloo laced hip hop tendencies , at least doing what Linkin Park did in a more catchy manner. I think the fact they are being honest with their pop aspirations here us what sells me on it. "Breathing Underwater" owes more to the pop side of their sonic equation. The anthemic chorus would make for a great CW soundtrack. I can hear a more distinct Panic at the Disco influence on the way the vocal melodies are approached here. "Amphetamine" reminds me of a less organic version of Issues, despite how the band swings for the fences on the chorus. I think more feeling and thought was invested in the vocals on the verses where, the chorus works more of formula, but it balances out.

 "Forget Me Not" works more of the electronic pop side of what they do and in turn sounds like they rolled off the assembly line of the corporate music machine. It is for this reason I will give their album an 8.5. Meaning they are still great at what they do even if it includes them stepping stylistically into sounds that are akin to homogenized  pop. The reason they are scoring so high is because they did this effectively and show they can hang with those kinds of artists, to which can be credited with making impressive hooks.