We were complaining at the end of last year when it came to finalizing our end of the year list but 2025 apparently had nothing on 2026 with the sheer amount of AOTY contenders THIS EARLY IN THE YEAR! It’s mid-March when we started this review and the top spot on our year end list already has some fierce competition and that contest just got fiercer with the impending arrival of Poison Ruïn’s Hymns from the Hills which we were already gaga over thanks to the first two singles “Eidolon” and the title track.
We were also gaga over the first two singles from Poison Ruïn’s last full-length Härvest so we thought we knew what we were getting into. But we were so wrong! Leaps and bounds away from Härvest (In a great way of course!), Hymns from the Hills is epic timeless Post-Punk perfection from start to finish with Mac Kennedy sounding like a combination of Joe Strummer, Mike Ness, Lee Ving and even Eddie Money (Trust us).
“Lily Of the Valley” is like Eddie Money fronting Murder City Devils (Our second MCD reference in the past few weeks for those keeping score) and the most gorgeous way to start off the new record followed by the title track which is iconic and just glorious Post-Punk with an emphasis on the “Punk” mixed with this Rockabilly sensibility that brings to mind both The Blasters and Fear at times. The first preview of the new rekkid came in the form of “Eidolon” back in February and in the Hymns… context it sounds even more feral with Kennedy’s barks at the forefront and a solid back and forth between bassist Will McAndrew and drummer Allen Chapman as Nao Demand’s scorching guitar lines shred in between all the carefully constructed aural chaos.
“Howls From the Citadel” is a nice, quiet distraction following the opening onslaught of songs before “Pilgrimage” begins with a bang and a serious wall of sound broken up by Kennedy’s howls and tubular bells pushing the song into the epic realm. Latest release “Guts (Lay Your Self Aside)” is just classic sounding fun Punk (Funk? No, that doesn’t work… perhaps “Phunk” then??) while “Turn To Dust” is a riotous affair highlighting Chapman’s stellar stick work.
“Puzzle Box” is another that rips but in a very dense way as is the case with “Serpent’s Curse” which follows with a low end heavy. “Sleeping Giant” begins the road towards the end of Hymns… with a slow burn instrumental track that lays the foundation for a crushing one-two punch to finish off the record properly. That all starts with “Crescent Sun” and slamming percussion colliding with ethereal synth sounds before Kennedy’s echoed vox take hold for an anxiety-riddled romp that leads nicely into the raucous opening of “The Standoff” before that closing track settles into a proper Poison Ruïn send off with this driving anthem.
Hymns from the Hills is out on April 3rd through Relapse Records with pre-order and pre-save options available now by heading here or to the stream below. For more from Poison Ruïn, including where to catch them on tour like when they head to Medford’s Deep Cuts on April 12th with Peace Talks, Uniformed Service and Wanted (Advance tix here), hit the socials by clicking here.