Holy Fuck... What? That’s their name!

Holy Fuck are a chaotic band. Every song they play seemingly warrants an additional instrument, and every new musical nuance is brought about by haggard old equipment on the verge of falling apart. One moment in the set sees a band member amplifying film being wrenched off a reel to add to the epic din.

It could, and perhaps should, all fall to pieces; splinter off in all directions and break down into a formless mess. However, it is the presence of the powerful bass and drums of Matt McQuaid and Matt Schulz that holds the music together, providing the perfect foil for the two noisemakers that make up the rest of the band. Every wayward sound is anchored by their locked-in grooves, and the results are thrilling to witness.

Traditionally an improvisational group, Holy Fuck have taken a turn towards more conventional songwriting on their new album, Latin, which places a greater emphasis on the development of melodies throughout the tracks than the group’s more pummelling earlier albums. Interestingly, it is the new tracks that suffer the most in a live context – the final synth wash that plays out the last third of Latin America gets almost entirely lost in the mix, and a shortened P.I.G.S. loses some of its slow-burning power. Looser numbers, such as The Pulse, allow the band to let rip and show what made Holy Fuck such an exciting live prospect in the first place. These earlier songs, lacking the constraints of song structure, allow the chaos inherent in the band’s set-up to become the band’s strength, as they let the rhythm dictate the song’s form while noises, melodies and everything in between are piled on in relentless abundance.