Altered Hours seem to do no wrong. The Dublin natives have been blowing up stereos for a few years now, making their way to the forefront of the Irish noise rock scene with each new release. With their most recent EP, they staked a serious claim for 1st place.
In 2016 Altered Hours released their debut In Heat Not Sorry and while that is an exceptional effort, the 4-track On My Tongue is a major leap in my opinion. They’ve stepped up their game and maintained it for 14 minutes, whereas In Heat Not Sorry had its stand out moments every couple of songs.
Released over a year ago, On My Tongue retains much of what made In Heat Not Sorry a well received debut. They tilt a little more into the noise side of rock but lean even further into musical maturity. With this EP, the anticipation for their sophomore record grows. Opening with the gloriously distorted “On My Tongue”, the following track “Open Wide” sounds like it could have been lifted from a Pixies record; beautifully crafted in a way that sounds like it might tip over into insanity at any moment. I get lost sometimes listening to the EP’s closing track, “Hey No Way”. I’m a sucker for stripped back alternative tracks and here, Altered Hours pin their creativity on a ripping, distorted guitar riff that belongs on every radio programme airing belters after 9 o’clock in the evening.
The expectation that Altered Hours will create something special with their upcoming record grows with On My Tongue. Of course a few, or all, tracks here could end up on that record and I’d be a happy man if they did. Until then, I guess it’s just a waiting game.
G.M
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