Album art by: Nico Stinghe

Red Mass has just released A Hopeless Noise, with little announcement or fanfare, surprising given the band’s decade long history is in many ways intertwined with this collection of songs. A Hopeless Noise follows up debut long-player Kilrush Drive, released just last year and continues to present one of the most creative and driving rock n’ roll entities on offer. With 2019’s Kilrush Drive, Roy Vucino and Hannah Lewis delivered a dark, art-punk artifact, submerged in angst and shadows. A Hopeless Noise is a brighter proposition than it’s predecessor but is no less savage and creative in its delivery. The album blossomed from Vucino’s initial declaration of creation through collaboration resulting in an album that sounds like it was born of fire. Many guests are featured throughout and are seamlessly absorbed into the sonic thread of the band, including King Khan, Mike Watt, MacDemarco, Evan Dando, Rick Froberg, Hugo Mudie, John Kastner, Jered Gummere and Drug Train. In one respect the release of A Hopeless Noise ends a chapter for Red Mass, cleaning the slate so to speak, given that the majority of these songs have lived in various incarnations during Red Mass’ live set for a while now has honed them into diamonds with the help of co-producers Sebastien Perry Dave Kunstatter Dave Earl & Rafael Katigbak.

The addition of so many collaborators presents a familiar fan with fresh cuts, Killer On The Loose goes back as far as I can remember and the addition of Rick Froberg on vocals delivers a definitive version of a classic song. As with any truly great album, every track on A Hopeless Noise could stand on its own, each imprinted with its own sonic identity. Fall From Grace bounces and shreds it’s way through a tale of riches to rags with mischievous swagger, Life Is A Cabaret’s scrappy punk bubbles over the brim, into the red, ready to collapse while tumbling forward. Where Are My Drugs? is a frantic burst of withdrawal, guitars scratching their way through the furniture. The one, two, three combinations of Young Lovers, Howl and So Cruel serves a lesson in sequencing while raising hairs on end and cracking the walls with some of the most satisfying and relentless guitar work from Vucino that is guaranteed to melt minds. Diamond Girl distinguishes itself from the pack adding acoustic guitar, horns, strings and a sixties ye ye vibe, with Roy and Hannah’s combined vocals the song would easily fit into the duo’s other project Birds Of Paradise and reveals itself as it stands out of the pack with flare. The album closes with the subterranean disco of Sharp, laying a neon and chrome foundation for Hannah’s exceptional vocal performance equalled only by Vucino’s savage metal interlude.

A Hopeless Noise is remarkable in its quality and in its execution, the secret lying within Roy and Hannah’s undeniable chemistry, the stellar musicianship and songwriting on board and the ability to surround themselves with immensely talented friends. For any fan of rock n’ roll this album is a celebration, A Hopeless Noise raises the bar for rock n’ roll in 2020, and if I were a betting man I’d put it all down on red.

A hopeless Noise can be found digitally here.

The vinyl will be out in Europe in February via Numavi Records and in America in march via Mothland.