Review: Hot Lobby

Hot Lobby return with their latest single Iago, out December 2nd — and once again they prove that nobody on the scene blends genres with as much swagger, colour and sheer audacity as they do. Their self-described fusion of Grunge-Soul and Disco-Metal shouldn’t work on paper… yet somehow they turn chaos into craft, madness into melody, and contradiction into something genuinely beautiful.

The track opens with intricate, playful drumming and a summery, shimmering guitar line that instantly transports your mind somewhere warm. Then the soulful vocal glides in — rich, expressive and utterly magnetic — pulling the scattered pieces together into something whole. Before you can settle into the groove, the song slides into a blissed-out R&B-styled section, mellow and intimate, showcasing Hot Lobby’s incredible ability to shift tone without losing coherence.

There are layers everywhere — vocal harmonies weaving like instruments, textural guitar inflections, clever rhythmic accents — and even after several listens, the song still feels fresh. This is not a track you “get” in one go; it’s one that keeps revealing little secrets the more you sit with it.

Then comes the curveball: an almost rap-like reprieve, delivered with urgency and emotional weight. It injects a rawness into the track, transforming it from a smooth, summery vibe into something far more immediate and heartfelt. Suddenly, the song isn’t just grooving — it’s saying something. The mood rises, dips, swerves and blooms before gracefully fading back into silence, leaving you no choice but to hit repeat.

Hot Lobby aren’t just genre-blenders — they’re world-builders, crafting emotional landscapes out of sounds that shouldn’t fit but do, beautifully.

With “Iago,” Hot Lobby don’t just lobby for attention — they absolutely steal it.