HOME COUNTIES announce new album 'Humdrum' - out 24th Oct on Submarine Cat
HOME COUNTIES announce new album 'Humdrum' - out 24th October on Submarine Cat Records
Explosive new single and album title track out today
Stream New Single 'Humdrum' HERE
New album produced by Al Doyle (of Hot Chip, LCD Soundsystem)
UK headline tour November/December, culminating at Scala, London
LISTEN new single 'Humdrum':
YouTube | Smartlink
PRE-ORDER 'Humdrum' album:
https://subc.at/HumdrumAlbum
(8th July) – Home Counties today announce their highly-anticipated second album 'Humdrum' - out 24th October on Submarine Cat Records. Produced by Al Doyle (of Hot Chip, LCD Soundsystem), new album 'Humdrum' is the follow up to the London six-piece's 2024 debut album 'Exactly As It Seems'.
To mark the announcement, Home Counties are today sharing the album's title track and new single 'Humdrum'. A sardonic unravelling of social misfires, ‘Humdrum’ captures the anxiety of saying the wrong thing and stewing over it later ("It’s also about feeling bitter towards people who are just better at chatting shit," singer Will Harrison notes).
Originally almost scrapped, the track shape-shifted through krautrock and bedroom pop before landing on its final form - a jittery, synth-heavy, hook-laced highlight that reckons with self-sabotage and success-envy in equal measure.
Will Harrison continued to say:
"‘Humdrum’ is about feeling held back by saying the wrong thing in different situations, be it at work or in a social setting. It recalls cringing as your replay conversations in your head after they’ve happened and the frustration of coming up with better things to say in retrospect. It’s also about being jealous of people who talk shit, say nothing, and still seem to come out on top. It’s saying I want to be jammy as well, (‘I want dumb luck!’).
"This latent bitterness at people succeeding unjustly is a theme that arose in our debut too, which we’ve jokingly referenced in the Humdrum lyrics. Although it’s a seemingly unshakable feeling, the song also tried to take stock and reflect, realising you’re not even that sad about it and need to chill out (or ‘shut the fuck up!’)."
Where Home Counties' widely acclaimed debut 'Exactly As It Seems' leaned into bright edges and a kind of knowing eccentricity, 'Humdrum' marks a colder, leaner turn. Sharper in both tone and intent, the songs feel more honed and explosive - a natural progression for a band who’ve steadily earned a reputation as one of the UK’s most compelling live acts.
At its core, 'Humdrum' is an album about communication. Across its 10 tracks, it captures the unease of saying too much or not enough, the quiet resentment of being out-charmed, and the spiral of overthinking. Told through the dual voices and perspectives of lead vocalists Will Harrison and Lois Kelly, 'Humdrum' trades in wiry grooves, synths that lurch between menace and euphoria, and razor-sharp pop instincts - wrapping knotty ideas into songs that feel both meticulously constructed and joyfully unhinged.
On working with Al Doyle, the band went on to say:
"We spent two weeks in Al's studio just off Brick Lane and had such a good time. We made full use of his incredible collection of vintage analogue synths. Al has a great instinct for pulling things back when needed to better serve the songs, and his input on arrangements really helped the tracks build in a more dynamic way.
"For this new album, we gave ourselves time to experiment and to refine sounds in a way we had never done on previous releases. It also led to a more collaborative approach in the studio, with us performing collectively on the same synthesiser to capture more human performances from electronic instruments."
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2024 saw the release of Home Counties' critically acclaimed debut album 'Exactly As It Seems' (Submarine Cat Records), a sync on the EA Sports FC 24 soundtrack, and sold-out headline shows across the UK, including 3 in London at the 100 Club, Oslo Hackney and Omeara.
Home Counties' new album 'Humdrum' is out 24th October on Submarine Cat Records - available for pre-order here. New single 'Humdrum' is out now. Tickets for Home Counties' winter headline tour, culminating in London's Scala on 2nd December, are on sale here.
LIVE DATES
JULY
27 - Truck Festival, Oxford
AUGUST
01 - Waldstock Festival, Steinhausen
03 - Y Not Festival, Pikehall
SEPTEMBER
13 - Schippersweekend, Belgium
OCTOBER
04 - Night Currents, Portsmouth
11 - Shiny New Model, Cambridge
17 - Wild Paths, Norwich
NOVEMBER
22 - Rough Trade, Bristol
23 - Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
24 - Green Door Store, Brighton
27 - Bodega, Nottingham
28 - Flying Duck, Glasgow
29 - Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds
30 - YES Pink Room, Manchester
DECEMBER
01 - Hallamshire Hotel, Sheffield
02 - Scala, London
'Humdrum' album artwork & track listing
1. Take You Back
2. Humdrum
3. Spain
4. New Best Thing
5. When In Rome
6. Meet Me In The Flatroof
7. Ravelling
8. Cheeseball
9. Roundabout
10. Like That
More about Home Counties
Across their releases to date, Home Counties have firmly established themselves as one of the UK's most vital alternative bands.
Drawing from a broad-ranging pocket of influences: early 2000s pop, the “dopamine overload” of Confidence Man’s live shows, to LCD Soundsystem, The Slits, and the nuanced art-rock of ‘Remain In Light’/’Speaking In Tongues’-era Talking Heads, on their 2024's critically acclaimed debut album ‘Exactly As It Seems’, Home Counties unanimously leaned into a fun, exploratory way of thinking.
Home Counties have played host to notable sold out headline shows at London venues including Oslo Hackney, the 100 Club, Omeara and The Lexington, as well as embarking on nationwide headline tours, and support tours with Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, FEET, Courting and bdrmm, adding to further appearances alongside shame, Sports Team, Pip Blom and more.
Home Counties have received widespread radio support from Elton John (Apple 1) Jack Saunders, Sian Eleri, Huw Stephens (BBC Radio 1), Steve Lamacq, Amy Lame, Tom Robinson, Radcliffe & Maconie (BBC 6 Music) along with key press tips from The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, NME, Loud And Quiet, So Young Magazine, The Line Of Best Fit, DIY Magazine, CLASH Magazine, Rough Trade, Gigwise, The i, Dork Magazine, The Skinny, Wonderland Magazine, 1883 Magazine, Whynow and more.
Home Counties are: Will Harrison (vocals/guitar/keys), Lois Kelly (vocals/keys), Conor Kearney (guitar/vocals), Dan Hearn (drums), Barn Peiser Pepin (synth/percussion/guitar/vocals) and Bill Griffin (bass/vocals).
Praise for Home Counties' debut album 'Exactly As It Seems'
“Exactly As It Seems is a beautifully peculiar, joy-inducing triumph” - ★★★★★
The Skinny
"A feast of dancefloor-imbued bangers, 'Exactly As It Seems' is bursting with a character and attitude...a joyous, grin-inducing call to arms” - ★★★★
Dork
"Bouncy maximalist soundscapes...Home Counties have firmly asserted themselves as some of today’s brightest musical minds." - 8/10
The Line of Best Fit
"A strong and audacious debut" - ★★★★
DIY Magazine
“A debut album that is brimming with energy and personality from start to finish” - 8/10
Overblown
“An impressive and fun thrill-ride” - 7/10
CLASH Magazine
"Home Counties are set to be the hottest new indie dance act"
Rough Trade
"A band ready to redefine modern indie music”
Whynow
More Praise for Home Counties
"Fabulous stuff"
Elton John
"A post-punk mirror maze of electronics"
Jack Saunders - BBC Radio 1
"Home Counties almost sound like a cross between Everything Everything, Talking Heads and Yard Act – electronic beats coupled with witty, socially-minded lyrics."
The Telegraph
“Whirring splendidly like the manic mastery of a Devo Sonic-Screwdriver"
So Young Magazine
"Effortlessly cool...an energetic release which traverses indie, dance, and punk"
1883 Magazine
“Ramshackle guitars dance around a series of weird and wonderful noises"
DIY Magazine
"The Elton John-backed six-piece pair black-as-night lyrics with a sprightly bossa nova rhythm, the contrast twisting the knife"
Sunday Times Culture
“Danceable post-punk, agitated guitars, prominent baselines and political lyricism”
Gigwise
"Home Counties perfectly capture a ‘dissatisfied and nihilistic youth"
The Rodeo
"Pair dark irony with synth-infused punk... Home Counties are a band with something to say"
Dork Magazine
"Home Counties are one of the most exciting new bands in the UK scene right now"
Clash Magazine
"Home Counties squirm, writhe and wiggle their way through undulating soundscapes that take in the quirkier aspects of indie, electronica, pop and post-punk"
Northern Transmissions
Follow, Home Counties
Instagram: @homecountiesband
X/Twitter: @home_counties_
Facebook: /homecountiesmusic
