I’ve realised over the last few years that Therapy? are my favourite band of all time, pound for pound. In part that’s because of the longevity, for me, of the four truly exceptional records that they put out in the 90s, but it’s also because they have consistently produced high quality and varied output for such a long time since their heyday. It’s been ages since they’ve been quite this good, though. Album #16 is their best work since album #10, Never Apologise Never Explain, which came second on this List all the way back in 2004. The pandemic meant that Hard Cold Fire has arrived after the longest wait ever for a new Therapy? record – 5 years – and they’ve used the time well. Hard Cold Fire is a lean, focused album, which is the most unified ‘piece of work’ the band have crafted in well over a decade. The riffs are direct, and the choruses are simple and catchy. Therapy? have certainly been much more experimental than this but rarely as tight and instant. Lyrically as fantastic as ever, opener ‘They Shoot the Terrible Master’ is a class struggle statement of intent, while ‘Two Wounded Animals’ is a slowed-down lament to the loss of human dignity amidst our collapsing healthcare system. Andy Cairns builds on the passion that he (re)found on 2018’s Cleave but uses it here to greater effect. Hard Cold Fire fizzes with purpose. While it is still a long way behind their masterpieces, no other band could put out something even close to being this good for their sixteenth record.