UK Indie Rockers Home Counties Announce New Signing With Latest Single & Video “Bethnal Green”
Following an extensive tour schedule and their 2022 EP In A Middle English Town, UK indie post-punk act Home Counties are returning with their latest single and video “Bethnal Green”, released via their new singing with Submarine Cat Records.
Named for the area of London that they moved to last year (the six-piece now all live together in one collective band flat) new single “Bethnal Green” signals the release of the band’s debut album, due for release in early 2024.
Bringing forth a steady synth-laden sound, “Bethnal Green” keeps with their vintage influences while crafting catchy and modern rock hooks to embrace the dance-hungry grooves of ’80s synth-pop.
Songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Will Harrison recalls initially thinking he’d pushed the remit too far. “When I first showed it to the guys I was like, ‘Oh you won’t like this, it’s just some crap pop thing I’ve come up with’,” he chuckles. “But then immediately everyone was into it. It felt good that we could do this sort of song; it really opened up what was ‘acceptable’.”
Produced and recorded by the band’s guitarist Conor Kearney, “Bethnal Green” was the first song to be written after the band’s move to London two years ago, and officially introduces new member Lois Kelly to the fold, whose vibrant lead vocals add an enticing new dimension to Home Counties’ already unique sonic identity.
Speaking more on its creation and lyrical meaning, the band said:
“We were all immediately drawn to the song. The most collaboratively written Home Counties song to date, it’s also the first to include Lois on lead vocals. Hearing Lois’ voice on the track really expanded our idea of what Home Counties could and should be. Lyrically based on the improvised words spontaneously sung by our drummer Dan over the original demo upon first hearing it, the song is about the experience of being an active participant in the gentrification of an area, and the conflicting feelings of guilt that come with trying to justify your presence there. In this way, the song was also important in opening a more self-reflective and introspective style of lyricism which has informed much of our upcoming debut album.”
Home Counties continue to be a band to watch, with their future potential growing with each release.
Check out the accompanying music video below:
