Hot Milk in Conversation with FAULT Magazine
Hot Milk
Hot Milk won’t help you with an early bedtime. The adrenaline-fuelled Mancunian band founded by Han Mee and Jim Shaw are familiar to fans of contemporary rock music for their festival appearances, international tours, and an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! – and that’s all before they release their debut album, A Call to the Void, on 25th August this year.
We spoke to Jim and Han about defying genres, lessons from the recording studio, and why their roots won’t let them get too big for their boots, while streaming their latest single, ‘Bloodstream‘ (out now).
FAULT: You’re about to release your debut album, A Call to the Void. Given that you’ve been gigging since 2018 and releasing music since 2019, we’ve got to ask: what took you so long?!
Hot Milk (Jim): Haha, I feel like it became a bit of a running joke that we were only gonna release EPs forever…!
Honestly, we just wanted to get the album right. Our sound has changed so much from the start of Hot Milk to now. Giving ourselves 3 EPs to explore and experiment has really allowed us to finesse what we want to sound like. We learnt pretty quickly that writing songs while keeping in mind how we were going to play them live really helped shape our approach in the studio. From my personal perspective, I’ve also gained so much knowledge from producing the 3 EPs: it’s equipped me to undertake a larger body of music without fear of fucking it up!
Your new single, ‘Bloodstream’, is marked by themes of compulsiveness – both in terms of how you wrote it and its subject matter. Is that connection intentional, accidental, or have I just made it up?
Han: I guess that was a happy accident and I never really thought of it like that. It did feel like a compulsive act writing this song: it felt necessary and sometimes you don’t even need to think about things – they just happen. It’s very much what I’ve been letting the universe do to me lately: pull me around like a bit of rag doll and let things happen to me rather than being in control. I like that ‘Bloodstream’ was written the way it was inspired, so thank you for that observation.
Name some of your key inspirations, musical and/or otherwise?
Jim: I love harmony and soundscapes – always have. Film scores, choral, acapella and orchestral pieces, bands like Sigur Ròs/Jònsi and Bon Iver have always fascinated me. The fact that you can drive so much emotion through the relationship of notes is so powerful and something I wanted to include in our music. I think that will become more apparent with some of the tracks we’ve included on A Call To The Void and our live show at the end of the year!
We’re also massively influenced by a lot of electronic music: Jon Hopkins, Sub Focus, and Prodigy to name a few. Of course we adore rock and guitar music – it’s in our blood – but I love how dark and heavy you can make music using synths and samples.
You’ve claimed that ‘genre is a lie’, but the majority of your work fits pretty neatly into the overlapping Venn circles of emo/punk-rock/pop-rock. Why is it so important to you to reject those labels – even if they help people discover your music?
Jim: We grew up in a time where everything had a stereotype or label and it ended up creating more hate and division than good. Thankfully, we’re living in a time now where everything is more fluid and people don’t need to pigeonhole or have a clear definitive answer on what something is to understand or appreciate it.
I think that rejecting labels really opens doors to experimentation – especially in music, where so many interesting and exciting collaborations and fusions are taking place. It’s so important to break down the walls and expectations to create uncharted art.
One label you’re happy to embrace is being a Manchester band. You’re from the city, you cut your teeth in its music scene, and you founded the band there. Do you feel any pressure or pride in representing a city with such a rich cultural and artistic heritage?
Han: I mean, if you know Manchester, you know anything goes. Us and our mates will humble the hell out of you and take the piss if you’re getting too big for your boots. Obviously we feel incredibly proud to fly the Manchester flag: we’ve been through a lot as people in this city and the city itself has gone through a lot.
I think the bombing was a very pivotal point in our identity in terms of attaching ourselves to Manchester. We felt protective and the unity we all experienced in the aftermath made us all so vehemently Mancunian, to the point where me and my mates all got the worker bee made permanent on our skin. So I think even if we weren’t in Hot Milk, we would be representing this city wherever we went.
As for the music that came before, I kind of care and don’t care at the same time. I love what they did – I respect the hell out of it – but Hot Milk is Hot Milk. We’re our own people with our own story doing the music we wanna do. These streets inspire graft and that’s just what we’re gonna do. Give back to Manny what it gave to us, each other, and the playground we spend our lives on.
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
Jim: I think it’s the continued opportunities that arise to go and play shows in incredible places and meet amazing people. Where Han and I come from it very rarely happens so it’s a fucking big deal and we don’t take it for granted. Going to South America this year and playing arguably the biggest shows we’ve ever done was insane. We had a great group of people out there with us and had the best time. Playing Jimmy Kimmel was obviously another huge highlight…!
Who would you most like to collaborate with and why?
Han: Someone who brings something different and unexpected to the table. Post Malone or Lil Nas X would be sick.
If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
Jim: Before starting the band I was an LD (lighting director). I was doing lighting for other bands, working in clubs and venues etc. I loved that it was equally creative in terms of designing shows from a visual perspective. There’s nothing better than watching your favourite band with an absolutely killer production. It just takes the show to another level by placing you in a completely different reality. I’m still involved with production design for artists now so I’d definitely be more heavily involved with that. Or up a mountain snowboarding.
What is your FAULT?
Jim: Everything is Hannah’s fault.
