ninehertz

weepcar return, a year on from their eye-opening so you keep your eyes closed at the end EP, first with a collection of early demos and days later, this – Hopeless Romantic // Nihilism, three tracks of righteous anger embedded within a rough post-hardcore setting.

The music is a whirlwind of noise-rock, screamo, hardcore and who knows what else. The beat of the opening Smoking Cigarettes in Church Parking Lots keeps things from falling into a messy splodge of disparate noises, before it then settles – and somehow this chaos feels warming all of a sudden, just as it ends. The delivery throughout is built into every song, every instrument, barraging tracks along.

This aptly supports the lyrical themes, which are fascinating and take centre stage. Take the aforementioned track, brimming with lines that cut through (the final line a perfect example: “for a second I swear I remembered how to feel something”). Hark! Angels Sing ends the release, maintaining the Christian title theme, featuring such a personal note around homophobia within the church.

And then there’s the incredible Messiah, which appears to be a desperate cry of exasperation of environmental destruction but told through a story of young love and religious constraints, in a manner which is incredible to behold, a fully fleshed allegory told in under two and a half minutes.

The whole EP is over in less than seven. It is a thrill musically for every second. But following the lyrics makes it feel much longer, a deeply personal novel that you’re drawn into which is bold, brave and beautiful.