IN many cases, a substantial degree of ‘hype’ surrounding a band can act as a double-edged sword. The initially unwavering support of musos and critics can often be a source of woe for a group that are yet to find their feet despite showing early signs of promise; leading to the praise that was lavished on them so willingly being to their detriment in the long run.

In the case of Wolf Alice; who’ve been incredibly coy and nonplussed in the face of a groundswell of anticipation, the amount of proclamations of love that been lobbied at them would undoubtedly have naysayers claiming hyperbole.

Yes, while it may seem farfetched and pre-emptive to have an act who’ve just released their debut full length already touted as a band that have the required attributes to become a future festival headliner; the proof is in the pudding.

Enigmatic and reverb soaked chords herald the arrival of My Love Is Cool as ‘Turn To Dust’ bursts into life. Harbouring a sense of ethereality and otherworldliness, it contains flashes of the solemn brilliance that Portishead displayed on their much loved debut Dummy.

The mesmeric rhythmic heart that is integral to ‘Bros’ is a clear indication of why it’s becoming such an enduring favourite among fans. Teamed with a soaring chorus and wonderfully dreamy guitar, the aesthetic that they manage to cultivate with this poignant statement of a track is accented by an air of familiarity; an overarching sense that every note has already been clung to by droves of fans for years.

Entrenched in all of the finest aspects of alt-rock, the swelling riff of ‘Your Love’s Whore’ is equal parts indebted to My Bloody Valentine as it is Pearl Jam. Propelled by an absolutely invigorating groove that lurches onward throughout, it stands defiantly as one of the record’s finest jams. Introspective and analytical in its lyricism, ‘Your Love’s Whore’ is thoroughly uplifting as frontwoman Ellie Roswell powerfully declares that: “we’ll still be lovers, and we won’t fear the end.”

The sheer ferocity of ‘You’re A Germ’ that manifests within its central guitar part, howl-along chorus and overall sense of passive aggression stands at odds with the sultry vocals that are present in the verses.

Combine the tense and emotive sound of The National with the equally affected yet anthemic style of Arcade Fire circa The Suburbs and you’ve began to come close to the understated energy that underpins ‘Lisbon’. Coming alive within the chorus, a seering explosion of punk based discontent bubbles righteously to the surface.

Punctuated by atmospheric synth that is fraught with not only menace but seemingly genuine danger, the backmasked and hushed statements that soon veer into focus on ‘Silk’ demonstrate their desire to constantly prod at the boundaries of their sound to see what rewards can be reaped. While ‘Silk’ continues to stick out like a sore thumb upon repeat listens, it does so with absolute glee due to the fact that its subversive nature only adds to the many merits of the record.

As touched on previously, the rhythmic backbone of the band most certainly stands as one of their strongest attributes, and is particularly prevalent on ‘Freazy.’  The entirely transfixing percussion and deep bassline enable Roswell to unleash swathes of lyrics in a laidback fashion and yet still remain entirely engaging.

Recalling a lighter take on the intense, sludgy riffs of Kyuss infused with the songwriting tropes of any number of great UK based guitar bands, ‘Giant Peach’ is the kind of track that completely validates why many people are so incredibly enamoured with this outfit. With Roswell adopting a lilt that emits the kind of gravitas that turned Courtney Love and Justine Frischman into iconic figureheads of their respective groups, its colossal climax is one of the most uncompromisingly heavy yet simultaneously catchy codas this side of Led Zeppelin IV.

The clear dichotomy that is created by the final strains of ‘Giant Peach’ and the finespun ‘Swallowtail’ vindicates their status as a band who’ve got the wherewithal to reach stratospheric heights. These tracks could’ve been produced by two completely different groups and no one would’ve batted an eyelid. Led by Joe Amey’s lead vocals as opposed to Roswell, ‘Swallowtail’ feels not only like an appropriate follow up to the bombast of the former, but cohesive.

The muggy and brooding electro of ‘Soapy Water’ features slight tinges of industrial and ambient music, before the unrepentant rock ‘n’ roll rears its glorious head once again on ‘Fluffy’; a track which sees them put themselves forward as one of the hard hitting groups to have flirted with the mainstream in years.

Serene in its instrumentation and inundated with wondrous vocal melodies,  final track ‘Wonderwhy’ acts as a relatively gentile way to round off the album. Grinding to a halt and initiating a lengthy period of relative silence, this incredibly varied and outwardly ambitious LP is officially brought to its logical conclusion by tearing away the many layers and leaving nothing more than Roswell’s breathtaking voice and acoustic guitar that is every bit as effective as its electric counterpart.

Unbridled joy, palpable tension, moving sentimentality; these are a few of the redeeming qualities and deep seated emotions that Wolf Alice have so adeptly communicated to the masses on My Love Is Cool.

Prepare to be bowled over and perhaps even consumed by this triumph of a record.