Pulled Apart By Horses: Tough Love – review

Leeds quartet Pulled Apart By Horses's self-titled debut was one of 2010's more enjoyable albums: exuberant hardcore punk adorned with a surreal touch (song titles don't come much better than "I Punched a Lion in the Throat"). The follow-up is even more potent, the kernels of pure pop at the heart of their blend of Jesus Lizard awkwardness and At the Drive-In dynamics more to the fore this time around. "Wildfire, Smoke & Doom" and "Degeneration Game" are carried along by a ferocious momentum, while "Give Me a Reason" is built on a juddering, Fugazi-like riff. It's effortlessly thrilling, but perhaps not for the faint of heart.