Our favourite metal-noise-glam band Chrome Hoof are set to release their hotly anticipated new album in June this year. Crush Depth will be the first new record from the ten piece, since Pre-Emptive False Rapture in 2007.
Chrome Hoof was created by brothers Leo and Milo Smee, two mysterious characters who were born from the smoking ashes of the Essex acid-house scene, emerging with a uniquely psychedelic view of how machines and instruments could be fused together. The duo soon grew to encompass vocalists, violin players, bassoonists and the definition of them as an army is no grand overstatement – there are often ten members on stage, hooded, cloaked and shrouded in mystery. They recently performed at Celestial at London’s Barbican alongside psychedelic disco legend J.P. Massiera, who joined the band on stage and Magma, a band that has perhaps had the biggest influence on Chrome Hoof.
Speaking exclusively to Electronic Beats, Milo Smee lets us into a few secrets about the new record: "Crush Depth is a lot more dense than the last album, there’s so much information in there and we ended up pushing the music out further in all directions…" Something which you can get a taste of by listening to ‘Crystalline’ (see Soundcloud player below). All fierce percussion, snarling synths and booming bass that breaks down to violins and guitar riffs to scare your grandparents. It’s the sound Chrome Hoof are firing on all cylinders, honing their technique to the bones of perfection and making music, quite frankly, like no one else.
Partly produced by James Ford of Simian Mobile Disco and containing contributions by J.P. Massiera, Cluster and Jimmy Robinson, Milo reveals that this has been their longest gestating album: "It took about a year from start to finish." There is a running concept throughout the album, that is mysteriously alluded to songs such as ‘Labyrinth’ and ‘Citadel Expires’. "Hopefully some version of that will be interpreted by the listener. We talked about being more accessible, again, and there are genuine attempts at that in the album."
Which is one of most appealing things for us at Electronic Beats about ‘The Hoof’: their refusal to compromise on the sound they want to create, or as Milo puts it: "We don’t worry about that too much – though, of course, we look forward to any extreme reactions."
You can listen to ‘Crystalline’ below:
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