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Hellfire is the third studio album from British experimental rock band black midi. Following the release of their critically-acclaimed debut Schlagenheim and personal favorite sequel Cavalcade, the group needed to prove that their challenging, avant-prog aesthetics and sonics were sustainable and continually inventive statements that could keep evolving and growing alongside their skilled members. Recorded in just under a two-week period, Hellfire exceeds expectations by raising the group’s bar for storytelling, technical instrumentation, and thematic genius. This project proves just what’s possible when a youthful, enthusiastic, and sometimes demented trio of young talent abandons all outside expectations in the pursuit of a blazing, hellish, and cathartic piece of art, which is exactly what they’ve given us to gnaw on with their latest release.

The opening title track exemplifies lead vocalist Geordie Greep’s intense, unsettling deliveries over an urgent, manic instrumental. Brief in runtime but straight to the point, “Hellfire” captures the essence and energy that the group is exuding throughout this whole album, which, in many ways, is the logical conclusion of the intensity of Cavalcade that came before it. “Sugar/Tzu” tackles a difficult jazz fusion genre, oftentimes a roller coaster with melodic and calming lows that contrast with its spellbinding and disorienting highs. Seemingly nonsensical lyricism reveals an intricately woven and poetic narrative upon further inspection that I won’t discuss in-depth in this review - instead, I recommend trying to make sense of it all yourself. “Eat Men Eat” is next, and with its otherworldly dystopic narrative and slow-build anguish, justifies the album’s title. An intentionally uncomfortable listen, this semi-demonic track bellows and gnashes its way to the following “Welcome To Hell”, my favorite track on the album.

The heartbreaking, discomforting narrative of a soldier’s experiences with PTSD and navigating the atrocities of war is truly unforgettable. From the highlights of camaraderie and indulgence found in neon light, fornication, and excess to the depths of verbal abuse, guilt, and eventual discharge, the intensity and gravity of this track’s rock-inspired instrumentation is one of the most compelling yet deranged tracks I have ever heard. A reprieve from the potency of the previous track, “Still” is a more straightforward and accessible track that contemplates the fact that sometimes others are better off without you. Inherently depressing in content, this track’s sonics are as rhythmic, familiar, and comfortable as we find on Hellfire. The 26-second “Half Time” is next, an intermission style interlude that serves as a breather for the winded listener about to take another round of beating with “The Race Is About To Begin”.

Continuing the narrative found earlier in “Welcome To Hell”, we follow the discharged soldier as he free falls into the bottomless pit of gambling addiction. Greep’s vocal performance is nothing short of incredible here, reflecting the descent into madness of someone completely overtaken by the chase of another decent payout that will never come. The soldier metaphorically pursues that high for thirty years on this track, and instead of coming to his senses, eventually yet again justifies his shortcomings, despite giving up everything in the process. “Idiots are infinite / And thinking men are numbered / Don’t kid yourself / This isn’t news” are some of my favorite lyrics of the year so far.

“Dangerous Liaisons” offers us an encounter with the devil himself, as the song’s narrator is misled into committing a terrible act and eventually eternally damned even despite his eventual guilt and reform. This track is thematically captivating, but its instrumentation feels unexpectedly whelming in the shadows of the colossal songs around it in the tracklist. “The Defence” is a brilliantly written exposé and critique of the hypocrisy in organized religion, as the track’s Christian pimp narrator doesn’t realize that it isn’t his girls who are going to Hell, but instead, he is. This track, along with many others here, prove Hellfire the most intelligently written of all of black midi’s work so far. The album’s closing track “27 Questions”, channeling a similar intensity to the projects opening songs, wraps up this epic journey in a self-aware and concise manner, as Greep breaks the fourth wall through his character to address the audience directly with rhetorical questions and unfalsifiable assertions. The wide-ranging subject matter of these closing lines suggests that this is simply the beginning of the scope that the young black midi will go on to tackle, and for that, we should all be grateful.

Some creators naturally exist on a different level than others could dream of ever achieving. black midi’s radiant, lore-driven, technically masterful artistry is still in its early stages, but projects like Hellfire demonstrate that they are present here and now to deliver some of the best rock music in decades. Touring alongside Black Country, New Road in the fall, after the release of their perfect Ants From Up There earlier this year, black midi knows that keeping good company is the key to the upward, transcendent spiral that separates their music from the noise, and I hope that the mostly happy-go-lucky group can tap into whatever hellish muse they’ve discovered for years to come.

Favorite tracks: “Hellfire”, “Sugar/Tzu”, “Eat Men Eat”, “Welcome To Hell”, “Still”, “The Race Is About To Begin”, “The Defence”, “27 Questions”

SCORE: 9/10