Album review: Filth Is Eternal – Impossible World

There hasn’t been any lack of fuel for Filth Is Eternal’s fire over the past couple of years. Between creeping gentrification, soulless technological takeovers and the increasing pressure-cooker vibe in their homeland, Lis Di Angelo and bandmates have had plenty to stew on. So the most remarkable thing about their excellent fourth album Impossible World is how they harness their vitriol into a set of songs which continue the bold melodic evolution that properly took hold on 2023’s Find Out.

Kicking in the door with enormously grungy swagger, opening track Stay Melted strikingly lays out the stall, all eardrum-clobbering impact and irresistible hooks. Long Way goes deeper and darker, soul searching but unsure what there is to find. ‘My body’s moving / With the astral vine / The outer limit / Has me outside my mind.’ Hellfire is almost hypnotic in its faintly shoegazey opening half, before exploding into life with a killer guitar solo, then Acetylene cranks things to another level with white-hot-ice-cool dazzle.

It’s been an intriguing journey up to this point. Originally known as Fucked And Bound, and spewing the kind of acerbic basement punk destined to burn out before dreaming of fading away, Filth Is Eternal were outsiders. Now they’re highly respected scene leaders capable of roping in Baroness’ Gina Gleason to electrify halfway highlight desire, and Blood Brothers vocalist/fellow Seattleite Johnny Whitney to add some cataclysmic punch to Total War.

Balancing punch, grit and unapologetic listenability is everything, now. The old ‘D-beat Distillers’ label might feel reductive, but on the evidence of songs like Outbreak, So Below (featuring Fall Out Boy’s Joe Trohman!) and Slipstream, Lis deserves to be held up alongside the mighty Brody Dalle as both razor-sharp songwriter and irresistible vocalist, with Filth Is Eternal keeping pace every step of the way.

Bloody minded brutalists would surely have liked a little more unadulterated firepower, but as the smouldering Skorpio sees things home, it’s hard to deny that sometimes there’s even more heat in the slow burn.

Verdict: 4/5

For fans of: The Distillers, Gouge Away, The Blood Brothers

Impossible World is released on March 17 via MNRK Heavy