London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 11, 2025

'30% hate us, 50% don't care': Black Country, New Road, Britain's most divisive new band

'30% hate us, 50% don't care': Black Country, New Road, Britain's most divisive new band

Their debut album is getting the best reviews of the year so far, even inspiring a craft IPA with its lyrics. But this inventive seven-piece are already looking forward to what’s next

“I was expecting sevens out of 10 at best,” says saxophonist Lewis Evans, discussing reviews of his band’s debut album. “Not everyone likes what you do. You discover that on Twitter when you’re played on 6Music: 20% really like it, 50% don’t give a shit and 30% absolutely hate it.”

Despite that demographic breakdown, Black Country, New Road find themselves in a whirlwind of hype. Fusing post-rock, klezmer, post-punk, jazz and art-pop, they have been declared “Britain’s best new band” by Mojo; the Quietus went one further and suggested the entire world, and Evans’s predicted 7/10s have been widely trumped. “It’s weird,” says bassist Tyler Hyde. “We’re just seven best mates making music. The attention is an honour but I don’t really connect with it.”


From Cambridgeshire, they formed in 2018 when barely in their 20s, and quickly whipped up a fervent following. Pre-lockdown saw sellout tours on the back of two 7in singles – Athens France and Sunglasses – both of which go for daft money on Discogs. They even have unofficial merch to keep an eye on: a sour IPA by the Cheltenham brewery DEYA called I Am Locked Away in a High-Tech, Wraparound, Translucent, Blue-Tinted Fortress, named after the lyrics from Sunglasses. “We were a bit peeved they didn’t let us know,” says Evans. “We didn’t even get any free cans.”

BC,NR formed when their previous band, Nervous Conditions, ended abruptly after their singer was accused of sexual assault (he apologised, and said the accusations “fill me with sadness and horror, as they don’t fit with my memory”). They reassembled without him, guitarist Isaac Wood stepping in as singer. “Things were intense and emotionally difficult,” he says. “We were struggling and fragile but the new group represented something very important.”

Hyde agrees: “I had no choice but to carry on making something with these people – I’m so emotionally and musically connected to them.”

Their debut album, For the First Time, is a succinct six tracks that capture an era they call phase one, as they already begin to move into new terrain; it’s tricky keeping them on track to speak about this album instead of the next one. “I’m excited it’s coming out but also happy to put a mark in the road,” says Wood.

Their idiosyncratic post-genre concoction is evocative of post-rock outfits such as Slint, Tortoise and Robocobra Quartet; in fact, the Slint comparisons have been so frequent that Wood worked them into his droll self-mocking lyrics, referring to BC,NR as “the world’s second-best Slint tribute act”.

Road less travelled … BC,NR.


“I don’t mind,” he says. “If you’re listening to us, you’ve probably heard Slint and I think it’s funny to take the piss out of yourself.” Elsewhere, on Track X, they take a pulse reminiscent of Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians and allow it to blossom into the album’s most sweetly melodic and poignant moment.

These disparate styles are turned into music that is exuberantly fresh and youthful, the product of what the band say is a seamless and democratic creative process. “We’re so close that we wouldn’t feel uncomfortable telling someone an idea is a bit shit,” says Evans. “Music for some songwriters is like their baby, but that’s never been our ethos. We change songs all the time and the ability to let go is really important in a seven-person band. You don’t want to be dictatorial. There are six other voices that are incredibly brilliant so what’s the point in ignoring them? It just makes the music worse. If it was up to me, our music would be shite.”

They are abundantly talented musicians – three of them classically trained – but given they formed unexpectedly, Wood’s learn-on-the-job role as lyricist and singer has been tumultuous. “I was scared performing,” he says of the early days. “Our original goal was simple: make music that translated on a shit sound system. There was no space for nuance because we needed it to impact in a small venue. Lyrics were rambling, flowing narratives with a line or two I’d shout for impact. It gave me room to whine about my problems but I was under the impression some things people wouldn’t be hearing.”

Wood’s lyrics – often delivered via caustic and self-deprecating spoken word, and dotted with references to pop-cultural figures from Kanye West to Black Midi – have been tweaked, with earlier versions seen as a failure; the two original singles have been reworked and re-recorded. “Either they change or we stop playing them,” says Wood, with Evans adding: “We’ve grown a lot. We feel like a new band.”

Given the band’s trajectory, do they have grand plans? “We joked about being like Arcade Fire,” says Wood. “Which was funny at the time but we’ve basically written a new album which sounds like that – straight-up indie. Now we’re joking about the Canterbury scene. So, God knows, maybe there’ll be a lute for album three.” Hopefully at least 20% will stick around to hear it.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
×