Live Review: Hot Milk - Academy 2, Manchester 10/09/2021
Hot by name and hot by nature, Hot Milk taught their hometown a lesson in loving, learning and leaving the past behind to 1000 adoring fans.
Coming home to play a sold out show at Academy 2 in Manchester, the power-pop group brought along a few friends to warm the crowd up for their performance. The first act was red-hot redhead Cody Frost, fresh from the summer release of her debut EP IT'S NOT REAL, she was giving everyone what they didn't know they needed with her powerful voice and the talented accompaniment of her band. To say she warmed everyone up is an understatement, as the dancing and cheering and chanting got the whole room going - especially those who were also cheering in support of Frost's hometown of Burnley. It was a beautiful welcome for Cody Frost, and there's no doubt she walked off that stage with a few hundred more fans.
Following not long after is the loud, crude, unapologetic rock outfit Doll Skin. Showing themselves to be full-on characters on stage and backstage, they set the tone for their playful performance by singing and dancing along to the music playing while the stage's layout was being set for them. Dramatic poses, screaming the lyrics to one another, and faux-romantic jiving were the best way to lead into their section of the night.
An exciting act, charismatic and crazy in the right doses to bring the hype, they made their impression with being a socially conscious rock band in the most fun and entertaining way. The best moments for this includes frontperson Sydney Dolezal getting the entire crowd chanting "shut up, eat shit" as they introduced everyone to the band's latest single of the same name, which was a cleansing for everyone who needed to vent anger or distaste at anything in their lives at that time; and Dolezal's encouragement to the audience and their band to perform the empowering hit 'Puncha Nazi' as their finishing track, ending the set with the exclamation, "The only good Nazi is a dead one!"
It was after these two fantastic openers did the air become strong, electric, and everyone was ready for a show they truly would never be ready for. Bring on the act of the evening: Hot Milk!
Opening the show with 'I JUST WANNA KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I'M DEAD', the title track from the band's latest EP, they were not easing into the night and neither were the fans. The venue was jumping, the words were being sung all over the place, and silence was a thing of the past. This was what everyone was waiting for during those gruelling months-turned-years at home. This was the welcome back to live music the fans needed, and the welcome back the band needed. Vocalists Han Mee and Jim Shaw were in utter disbelief of the support being shown during the set, and it brought on this sense of family. Togetherness and necessity. Not unlike a reunion of old friends or long lost relatives. Everyone in that room loved each other, knew each other, and no one would ever feel alone ever again.
The dedication of the Hot Milk fans became unquestionable when they were still singing the lyrics to two brand new songs back to the band. 'Woozy' and 'The Good Life' were only released that very same day with their EP, but they were listened to and lyrics were learnt with no issue. The bond was real, and for debuting these tracks live on the day of their release, the band brought them to life in the way they did in the studio on I JUST WANNA KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I'M DEAD. If musicians can work the exact same magic in the studio and on the stage, then they are something special in the industry; and that's exactly what Hot Milk are.
Mee got everyone up and singing along during the performance of one of their biggest hits yet, 'Candy Coated Lie$', one that undeniably every person in the audience knew word for word, beat by beat, but the song that united everyone was the ever so emo and even more so emotional 'I Think I Hate Myself'. Songs about feeling alone and hating oneself and everything they do is incredibly commonplace, especially in alternative scenes around the UK and beyond, but there is always a spark some have that make them different. Authentic. Relatable beyond sounds and words. And this is exactly what Hot Milk managed to make with the track. This was one of the best songs of the entire set; not just because of the performance on surface level, but also because of the energy and the positivity it spread throughout the venue from heart to heart, soul to soul, friend to friend and such.
Hot Milk's tour is only beginning, as they have a handful of shows left on the tour but if the hometown show is anything to go by, ticket holders have a fantastic night ahead of them! Full of love anthems, hate anthems, self-loathing and self-care anthems, the moods are in full swing and if you weren't a mega-fan when you got in there, you will be when you leave.
No one is ready for the heat, so take a breath and expect the unexpected.
Words by Jo Cosgrove
Photography by Hayley Fearnley