Christopher Dodd, the band's vocalist, shared his insights on the album's themes, stating, "Capital and its bourgeois foot soldiers hold nothing but contempt for working people and it’s in that contempt we can find solidarity with one another. Whatever story gets sold and packaged, contempt guides every move of the capitalist class. We see it every day - unspeakable destruction from war and government-sponsored genocide, exploitation of workers and the very gutting of the planet we live on. Only when we realise and utilise the utter contempt held for us can we reach a level of class consciousness that will provide an adequate challenge to capital."
The album's lead single '
Liberty' critiques the facade of liberalism and its role in facilitating western imperialist policies. Dodd elaborates, "Grotesque warmongering and profiteering sees the ruling classes continuously rework and reframe the ways in which they justify the barbarity of our world, most notably through their supposed notions of liberty that provide a framework for imperialism. As always, this comes at the expense of working people across the planet, who become nothing but fodder in the relentless meat grinder of the military industrial complex and its prevailing devastation."
'Contempt' was crafted at Chapel Studios with the help of producer Ben Greenberg. The album's artwork, designed by anti-war artist Peter Kennard, reflects the thematic gravity of the music, depicting the dire consequences of global conflicts and crises.
In addition to music, the album's zine includes critical essays such as 'Towards an Uncivil Solidarity' by Alasdair Dunn, which tackles the UK's homelessness crisis, and 'Mud, Metal and Moonlight', a piece on environmental activism against the badger cull.
MAY
9 Le Vecteur, Charleroi, BE
10 Stroomhuis, Eindhoven, NL
11 Hafengeburtstag, Hamburg, DE
12 Ungdomshuset, Copenhagen, DK
13 Vaterland, Oslo, NO
14 DDRK, Gothenburg, SE
15 Hus 7, Stockholm, SE
17 Sonic Rites Festival, Helsinki, FI
18 Close-Up Båten, Tallinn, EE
19 Lemmy Bar, Kaunas, LT
20 XI20, Vilnius, LT
21 ADA Puławska, Warsaw, PO
22 Obergeschoss Hell, Berlin, DE
23 Desi, Nurnberg, DE
24 Sniester Festival, The Hague, NL
25 Farrm, Hasselt, BE
JUNE
14 Basquieral Festival, Santa Maria de Lamas, PT
19 Green Door Store, Brighton, UK
20 The Angel, Nottingham, UK
21 Moth Club, London, UK
22 The Nightmare Continues, Plymouth, UK
23 Exchange, Bristol, UK
’s Before Doors sessions