4 out of 5

Label: Nefarious Industries

Produced by: Alex Allinson

Another outing from Miracle Blood finds them refining their sound even further, stripping it of excesses and narrowing down to primary influences: the humor / post-punk stomp of early Alternative Tentacles types; the performative dramatics of Mike Patton’s Ipecac ilk; and some prime 90s grungers. From this stew of loudness, MB had already been making their own sound and identity, with Hello Hell now fully under their control. With that, it seems that the lyrics have taken a step forward as well, advancing generic snark vibes into more incisive takes on social constructs, finding oddball ways into the subject matter. Some stray rhymes and repetition happen, but it makes the case for listening in, and ties the words much more securely to the music’s snarling mood.

Tonally, we’re permanently set on loud, but the group variesbetween paced shouters and fast-paced punkers, with Andrew Wong adding emphasis with his throaty hardcore shouts as needed.

One skill of such noisy acts, though, is how to get noisier: how do find range when the needle is pretty permanently at the top? Hello Hell is still somewhat missing that, as tracks hit their fever pitch level and remain there, but the singalong choruses and riffage are so catchy and solid, and the recording gives the bass, guitars and drums such consistent but palatable punch that you’re fine sticking with the recording from front-to-back before you realize we’ve stayed at approximately the same intensity throughout.

Miracle Blood have impressed the whole way through their journey. If this is a peak, it’s already impressive, but their progress offers an exciting amount of promise for how they can continue to eke out an even more refined version of their badass sound.