On a bitterly cold Wednesday night in Camden, Manchester hard rockers Hot Milk turned London’s Roundhouse into a sweat-soaked pressure cooker of chaos, catharsis, comedy and pure community. Fronted by the unstoppable duo of Han Mee and Jim Shaw, with Tom Paton powering the low end and Harry Deller driving the heartbeat from behind the kit, the four-piece delivered a blistering 20-song set that reaffirmed why their cult following has become one of the most fiercely devoted in modern British rock.
Hot Milk @ Roundhouse
The venue sank into total darkness as shrill alarms and emergency sirens blared across the PA. Figures appeared in the shadows before bursting into the opening riff of Hell Is On Its Way, Mee charging across the Roundhouse stage with feral energy from the very first beat. The crowd barely had time to catch their breath before she screamed, “Alright Roundhouse! I wanna see some fun in this room tonight!” and the band fired into Swallow This, Shaw’s co-lead vocals weaving seamlessly with Mee’s snarling delivery to give the track its unmistakable Hot Milk character.
During a brief instrumental break, Mee demanded: “Alright you lot, I want you to split in two like my fanny. In two like a wall of love!” The Roundhouse answered instantly, parting down the middle before slamming joyously back together as the song’s cascading crescendo detonated. This was only the first of many pits of the night – the crowd clearly ready to meet the band’s manic energy beat for beat.
The atmosphere grew darker as Mee’s pre-recorded spoken-word intro to I JUST WANNA KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I’M DEAD drifted through the venue, the frontwoman re-emerging with a Gibson Flying-V as the track surged to life. Its massive emo-rock chorus soared above the Roundhouse’s circular walls, the crowd screaming every word back at the stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, gays and grans, put your fuckin’ ‘ands in the air!” Mee hollered as an acoustic guitar chimed beneath her. “We’re gonna do this, ‘cause it feels really good on my armpit!” she added, sparking laughter even as everyone obeyed and clapped along.
The balance of chaos and humour is part of Hot Milk’s magic. At one point, Mee scanned the crowd and shouted, “Alright, where’s Wally with the bobble hat on?” Spotting him, she announced, “You sir, you are the lord of the pit tonight… if that dies, we all die!” Moments later, synths and beats introduced Sunburn From Your Bible before Deller’s thunderous drumming and Shaw’s harmonies turned the track into a storm.
The short interlude Machine Elves gave a brief, shimmering pause before all hell broke loose again with 90 Seconds To Midnight. Shaw’s guttural screams of “Tick tock on the doomsday clock, we’re the VIPs of the aftershock” shook the old railway engine shed to its foundations, Deller hammering out a military-tight rhythm beneath him. As the last note rang out, Mee threw an arm toward her bandmate: “Mr. James Shaw, ladies and gentlemen!” Spotlights narrowed in as Shaw tore through the intro to Bad Influence, the Roundhouse erupting again as Mee shouted her greeting to the London crowd: “Now then London, what are we gonna do with you lot tonight then?”
Hot Milk @ Roundhouse
Despite the biting November cold outside, the venue felt molten as the audience surrendered completely to the band’s warm bubble of sound. Mee wasn’t about to let the momentum cool. Introducing Insubordinate Ingerland, she announced, “I wrote a song about the pricks that started to climb lampposts and put stupid fuckin’ flags on them because they’re angry about something they don’t understand.” She paused, sensing tensions rising, before adding with a grin, “Listen right, it’s a social commentary, calm your fuckin’ tits!” And then the floor opened into one of the biggest circle pits of the night.
Between songs, the band’s banter kept spirits high. “Beautiful people of London Town… look at your faces, aren’t you gorgeous. Literally not one ugly person here apart from him,” Mee joked, pointing at Shaw, who moments later was caught swigging from a wine bottle. “Why are you drinking out of the bottle of wine, you fucking div!” she scolded. Shaw shrugged: “I don’t have a receptacle.” Mee immediately volleyed back: “If you’re gonna share it, share it with Tom!” The band’s camaraderie radiated from the stage, making the entire night feel like a chaotic and affectionate gathering of misfits.
Introducing Candy Coated Lie$ (Nightmare Version), Mee grew reflective. “We released a song called Candy Coated Lies five years ago. Because I’m a bit weird I fell out of love with it… so we remade it. It has been re-made.” The crowd sang every word with reverence, grateful for this rebirth of a fan favourite.
The ferocity ramped up again with The American Machine, Mee shouting, “If you have come to spill some metaphorical blood tonight, now is your chance… show me what you’re fuckin’ made of Camden!” The room erupted into flailing limbs, crowd surfers, and gleeful chaos as the track exploded into its final movement.
This relentless pace continued through HORROR SHOW, BLOODSTREAM, and OVER YOUR DEAD BODY, each anchored by Deller’s machine-gun drumming and Paton’s seismic bass. After the delicate Sediments (Interlude) and a suffocating performance of Asphyxiate, the main set closed with the colossal Glass Spiders, a final barrage that left the Roundhouse trembling.
It wasn’t long before the four musicians returned to the stage, greeted by a roar. The encore opened with the fragile Sympathy Symphony, rounded out by Shaw unleashing some of his most powerful, guttural screams of the night, before Mee amped the crowd once more: “Alright, who’s ready to party ’til their deathbed tonight? I wanna see every single person that has toes in this room levitating, are you fuckin’ ready?” The venue obliged as PARTY ON MY DEATHBED ignited the floor. Finally, Chase The Dragon brought the night to a triumphant, breathless end.
Hot Milk didn’t just play the Roundhouse – they conquered it, transformed it, and filled it with something raw and communal that transcended the traditional boundaries of a gig. Their blend of fury, vulnerability, humour, and sheer emotional release made the performance feel less like a concert and more like a collective exorcism. On this cold November night, the band proved that they’re not just rising stars – they are a force firmly blazing across the rock landscape, and they’re nowhere near done yet.
Live review & photography of Hot Milk @ Roundhouse, London by Kalpesh Patel on 19th November 2025.
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