Emo duo, Hell Hotel, have independently released their latest single ‘sweetness.’, an emotional exploration of frustration and numbness in the wake of a relationship’s collapse ‘Did it hurt so much that it didn’t hurt at all?’. This single is more upbeat and heavier than their previous discography, taking inspiration from bands like My Chemical Romance, Holding Absence and Static Dress.
Photo credit: Josephine Best
This Brighton Duo has already been making waves in the UK’s alternative scene, supporting bands like Kid Brunswick, Dream State and The Hara. I am certain that this energetic track will take them even further as they continue to capture the classic emo sound whilst also pushing genre boundaries and creating timeless new emo anthems.
Photo credit: Josephine Best
The track kicks off with crashing drums before Tom Maxfield comes in with punchy guitar riffs. A sonically rich and contrasting soundscape is created with the back and forth between both Demi Jay’s more flowy vocals and Tom’s screams as well as the alternating guitar riffs before coming together for a layered scream towards the end that ties it all together.
Photo credit: Josephine Best
This song is accompanied by a complimentary music video which has particularly poignant imagery conveying the protagonist’s numbness due to the severity of the pain. The video keeps the same back and forth theme, switching between scenes to further convey the emotional push and pull of a breakup. The blood drops falling into the bathtub and increasing in quantity over time show how small things can add up leading to a big fallout in the end. While the rose staying white even while surrounded by blood serves as a reminder that even sometimes good things just aren’t meant to be, ‘You’re sweet but bitter when we collide’.