Realized

Description

Have you ever had one of those days when you would gladly rip your own head off your shoulders? You might as well let Hot Load take care of it for you. Their latest album - 'Fate Unknown' (2025) - has seen the Los Angeles quintet break free from their wall of saturated sound rooted in hardcore to explore a wider range of influences; a dynamic that is confirmed with this new opus, as wild as it is brilliant. Certainly, you can still feel that they have exchanged solid handshakes with Discharge, downed a few stiff drinks with Motörhead, and ended up naked trying to understand the sword dance while juggling Molotov cocktails with Poison Idea. The immediate impact of their music evokes all of this. But they aim broader, towards wider punk sounds and beyond; the result is an adrenaline rush that makes your ears bleed, the kind of raw and abrasive thrill you’ve been waiting for all year. Whether you are captivated by the deliciously familiar "chugga-chugga" riffing guitars of 'Hot Night', by the incandescent D-beat onslaught of 'Salvo', or simply by the total rock'n'roll attack of the opening track *Petroleum Express* - which puts your nerves on edge - this record has a guaranteed effect. It will leave you in tatters, unable to articulate a coherent word, your brain mush flowing from your ears as you irresistibly give in to the urge to mosh and scream their addictive choruses. When the title track hits, with its fuzz-laden solos that will make you raise your fist in the midst of maximum chaos, you will wonder either where this band has been hiding all along or if you can sell all your belongings to follow them everywhere indefinitely. We will be there, of course: this album rocks from start to finish, so you might as well let it rip your skull from your spine (yes, we’re back to square one!). It’s a total success, an essential record. Will Fitzpatrick.