Warmduscher - Too Cold To Hold (2024) (Hi-Res)

The bulk of the critical acclaim that surrounds U.K. post-punk band Warmduscher unsurprisingly has to do with their particularly wild and memorable live show. Bottling that unhinged energy on record has felt like an untenable task but their fifth album, Too Cold to Hold, gets us closer. A psychedelic monologue by writer Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting, Filth) precedes the first song, "Fashion Week," a Mark E. Smith-style vocal-forward track propelled by punk-funk drum fills and vibes. It's sort of Magazine meets Roy Ayers, continuing at a frenzied pace until dramatically swinging into a noise-laden third act where the Warmduscher display their DEVO-weirdness.

After "Pure at the Heart" reaches for indie-single mediocrity, "Top Shelf" gets things back on track with a propulsive bass and drums combo punctuated by a dissonant noise break, a double-speed take on Grauzone's classic "Eisbar." "Body Shock" is a funk influenced track that takes inspiration from R&B vocals courtesy of Lianne La Havas, a circular bongo fill, and a certain Fela Kuti-meets-The Fall vibe. From there, more impressive drumming and driving bass lines are used to propel the band's punk-funk into realms occupied by ESG, DEVO, and James Chance. Warmduscher, which shares many members on record and on stage with the similarly mayhemic Fat White Family, throws the kitchen sink at Too Cold to Hold, unafraid to experiment with genre and noise to backfill Benjamin Romans-Hopcraft's (a.k.a. Mr. Salt Fingers Lovecraft) front-and-center vocals. While Too Cold to Hold may not fully match Warmduscher's live prowess, it does showcase the band's versatility, power and most importantly, overall sense of fun. That's a hell of a lot better than most recordings anyway. © Fred Pessaro

Tracklist
1 An Introduction By Irvine Welsh
2 Fashion Week
3 Pure At The Heart
4 Top Shelf
5 Body Shock
6 Cleopatras
7 Immaculate Deception
8 Out Of Body
9 Staying Alive
10 Too Cold To Hold
11 Weeds In Your Garden