With her debut single for the label, “Consistent Dedication,” she boldly declared: “I want people to think, ‘Wow, what else does she have?’” adding, “The song is short and sweet… well, sweet in a hard-as-hell way.” The track’s production was handled by none other than Dan Carey, the founder of Speedy Wunderground, whose work with bands like Wet Leg, Fontaines D.C., and Squid has shaped the UK’s post-punk and guitar scene.
Over the next two years, Heartworms continued to release a series of singles and the EP A Comforting Notion before unveiling her long-awaited debut album, Glutton for Punishment, in February. The album has been met with critical acclaim, including a standout review from The Quietus, who marveled: “Who is this shy Jojo Orme? The same woman we saw last year jumping on stage like a long-lost child of Michael Jackson and Siouxsie Sioux?” But shyness is just one side of Heartworms. The album explores themes of personal and societal history, reflecting on how people change under the pressures of life’s daily battles. Jojo concludes that if you’ve faced too many of these, it can be hard to avoid becoming the very thing her album’s title suggests. And that’s how this gothic cardinal sees it.