2018’s Cleave saw Therapy? more amped up and politicised than ever before, as they aimed their furious anger directly at the kakistocracy. If that LP was a soundtrack to the impending apocalypse, then its follow-up, Hard Cold Fire, offers an arm around the shoulder as you watch the world burn. Yes, the Antrim-bred trio are still raging against the machine, but this time, they’ve also laced their material with a palpable feeling of positivity, reminding us that if the kids are united… well, you know the rest.

Comprising of 10 tracks, Therapy?’s 16th record is bursting with barbed riffs, dark wit and devilishly good choruses. A cathartic listen, much of the material is tailor-made for working out your frustrations in the pit, and those in the thrall of ‘03’s High Anxiety will worship this one. Singer/guitarist Andy Cairns, in particular, puts in a vintage performance. His vocals are full of power and passion, especially on the fiendishly catchy ‘They Shoot The Terrible Master’ and the feral ‘Ugly.’

An incendiary opus from start to finish, Hard Cold Fire is one of the records of the year.

8/10

Out now