A band which seemed to exist early on simply to confound listeners' expectations has, on Hellfire, out tomorrow, morphed into a group adept at blending art rock and clatter. The Rough Trade release is easily the best black midi record to date, and one of this summer's most invigorating ones too.
Geordie Greep, a ferocious frontman, has modulated his vocals to a remarkable degree, such that some of the tunes on Hellfire are almost soothing. Well, at least parts of them are. The prog runs of "Welcome to Hell" conjure up King Crimson, or worse, Steve Vai, but they're part of a larger attack. God knows, black midi would never stay in one lane too long, so the pieces that are like this are brief, or loud enough to be cool and not annoying. Elsewhere, the rhythmic riot of "Eat Men Eat" has a faint "I Zimbra"-ish vibe to it, though Greep's vocals are languid, and superbly nuanced here. The jazz breakdowns of "Dangerous Liasons" provide new shades to the act's paintbox, while the lovely and unsettling "Still" just might be my favorite black midi song so far.
Lyrically, black midi seem to be Fall acolytes, and that's fine, but slipping in to their approach is the kind of thing that Pere Ubu did in the Eighties, after their earlier flashes of punk fire. This group has finally found a way to shuffle up a dozen tempos, a few styles, and a madman's set of rants to something that seems both high-brow and kinetic. In allowing the vocals to be almost sooting this time out, they've made their best record so far, and reminded listeners that Geordie Greep has a range unlike very few other vocalists in 2022.
Hellfire is out tomorrow.
[Photo: Atiba Jefferson]