ANCHR Artist of the Week: Black Country, New Road

Editor’s note: Please note that the below was written prior to Black Country, New Road’s announcement on Monday, January 31st, 2022 that singer Isaac Wood will be stepping away from the group. In light of Isaac’s departure, the band will be canceling all upcoming tour dates, but they will continue to make music together. Keep an eye on the band’s Instagram for all updates, and send your well wishes to Isaac!

Photo by Ninja Tune

This week, ANCHR’s heading back across the pond for our Artist of the Week: Black Country, New Road. Formed in London in 2018, the experimental rock group consists of Isaac Wood, Tyler Hyde, Lewis Evans, Georgia Ellery, May Kershaw, Charlie Wayne, and Luke Mark— straying away from the traditional band line up. Black Country, New Road adds color and depth to their songs by having Evans on Saxophone and Ellery on violin.

The band’s debut record, aptly called For the first time, only consists of six tracks, but Black Country, New Road strays away from tradition again by having songs like “Athen’s France” that spans over six minutes and “Sunglasses” that lasts just shy of ten minutes. Throughout the record, listeners experience cinematic swells, frantic peaks and hypnotic valleys. In some cases, a singular track feels like it contains multiple chapters or different episodes of a TV season. With Black Country, New Road, you never know what they will pull out of their pocket next.

Keeping up with their spirt of experimentation and improvisation, Black Country, New Road has collaborated with another ANCHR favorite, Black Midi, to form the super group dubbed Black Midi, New Road.

If you like what you hear and can’t get enough of the group’s first album, Black Country, New Road recently released their new single “Snow Globes” off their upcoming sophomore record Ants From Up There— dropping this Friday, February 4th. Make sure you pre-order the record here.

ANCHR’s Artist of the Week: Wet Leg

Photo by Hollie Fernando

I first heard of Wet Leg very recently when I got an excited text from a friend telling me to listen to their single “Chaise Longue” (thanks, Bonnie). The song begins with a steady drumbeat and pulsing bassline that drives into cheeky and playful lyrics, including a callback to the iconic line in Mean Girls “is your muffin buttered?” With a mix of head-bobbing melodies and slightly absurd lyrics, Wet Leg has a quirky magnetism that easily (and quickly) attracts positive attention.

The aforementioned song only debuted earlier this year in June of 2021, so Wet Leg’s journey is still in the beginning stages. The band came together quite simply when musicians and songwriters Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers rode a Ferris wheel together in their home place of Isle of Wight and decided to start a band. The pair say that they are inspired by artists like The Ronettes, Jane Birkin, Ty Segall and Björk— and in the handful of their released songs, you can certainly pick up nods to those influences.

While it’s been a whirlwind for Wet Leg so far, the best is still yet to come with the recent announcement of their debut, self-titled album and a slew of upcoming tour dates, including their live premiere in the United States. You can pre-order the album ahead of it’s April 8th release date here, and see where they’ll be playing next here. If you’re in Chicago, make sure to join us at their Thalia Hall gig on March 4, 2022.

ANCHR's Artist of the Week: FUR

Photo By Julia Nala

This week we’re heading back across the pond to talk about Brighton’s own FUR, composed of William Murray, Harry Saunders, William 'Tav' Taverner, and Flynn Whelan.

Late last month, the group shared their first single of 2021 called “The Fine Line Of A Quiet Life,” a warm and uptempo track that’s perfect to add to your upcoming Summer playlists. The song stays true to FUR’s style with nods to a mix of influences— From NYC bands of the early aughts to 1960s rock n’ roll, the fuzzy distortion and staccato-style guitar strums on the single make it irresistible to bop your head and tap your foot along. Regarding the song’s theme, FUR describes “The Fine Line of a Quiet Life” as a tale about self-reflection and understanding. “It’s about detaching yourself from situations you’ve already been in and know the outcome of. Much like growing up, you learn not to do certain things and slowly but surely you learn that there’s a ‘fine line’ of what lifestyle becomes acceptable the older you get and also what you can hack as an adult (that maybe doesn’t feel too much like one). The feeling of regret and ‘how could I be so blind’ that everyone has felt in relationships that really only comes out once it’s done is something that also goes hand in hand with a mutual respect for a collapsed relationship, and that there’s no undoing of things you’ve done and it’s best to just move on and suck it up,” they say.

While FUR has released several singles since their onset— including the 2020 mixtape entitled Facing Home, featuring 7 of the band’s previously unreleased tracks— we have yet to receive a full length album from them. As the band recently signed to Norway’s 777 Music, we’re expecting news on a debut record from FUR at any moment now.

In addition to new music news, FUR has also announced several new tour dates for later this year in the UK and Europe, with more potentially on the way. Be sure to follow their Instagram for the latest updates, and check out the official video for “The Fine Line of a Quiet Life” below.