A Call To The Void
A Call To The Void brings Hot Milk's pop melodies and heavier rock into one busy, colourful debut. Han Mee and Jim Shaw share the vocals, moving between clear singing, sharper shouts and occasional spoken rhythms. Guitars, synths and forceful drums give the songs a large sound, but the main aim is easy to understand: make the chorus land, then keep the energy moving.
Horror Show is a strong introduction to that approach. Its fast percussion and gritty guitars give the verses plenty of pressure, while the chorus opens out into a direct hook. Bloodstream goes further towards synth-pop, using cleaner instrumental space and blended vocal lines to make its melody stand out. The band can change the surface of a song without losing their basic sense of urgency.
The heavier passages are convincing too. Over Your Dead Body gives the rougher singing more room and puts a thick bass sound beneath it. Party On My Deathbed combines a strong pop hook with more aggressive backing, although its rap-like vocal passage feels less natural than the rest of the song. The two singers work well together when the arrangement gives each voice a clear part to play.
Breathing Underwater takes a slower route, building around a more open, emotional melody. Its large finish risks pushing that feeling too hard, but the vocal partnership gives it a solid centre. Forget Me Not offers another useful change at the end, allowing more atmosphere and synth texture into a wider closing statement. It suggests a direction that could give future songs more room to develop.
The album is less adventurous than its many sounds first suggest. Migraine hints at a heavier track without taking the idea far enough, and some of the most polished moments depend on familiar ways of making a chorus feel big. The production can also crowd the details when everything rises at once.
Still, A Call To The Void has a clear identity and several effective songs. Hot Milk understand how to keep a pop melody intact inside louder, darker music, and the shared singing gives that balance personality. The debut is strongest when its energy feels direct rather than carefully inflated, but there is enough here to make its compact running time worthwhile.
