Blessed with the same dedication to writing quirky anthems on their own terms as The 1975, the brittle icy synth flourishes of Chvrches and a new era indie pop IT girl in singer Natti Shiner, Fickle Friends have established themselves as the essential new British indie-pop band of 2018. They’ve played over 350 live shows together, been playlisted regularly on Radio 1 with an incredible string of singles including Brooklyn, Glue and Hello Hello, headlined a sold-out London Forum – and all before announcing their debut album. Until now…You Are Someone Else is an irresistible debut record, effortlessly capturing both the joy and uncertainty of growing up a 2017 millennial. Songs addressing social awkwardness, self-doubt, anxiety and the qualms of growing into young adulthood all through a prism of perfect timeless pop.
Current single Hard To Be Myself is an undeniably brilliant pop anthem for a pre-loading generation of wasted youth that flips lyrically from gloriously hedonistic abandon to naked self-analysis, while tracks such as Wake Me Up addresses angsty obsession and the art of over-thinking. The album as a whole pivots around relationships and their tireless effects on the young mind, exploring the highs and lows of dating, falling in love and of course, breaking up.
Fickle Friends are ultimately a great band with killer tunes who have worked hard at their trade and built a devoted fanbase the old fashioned way – playing as many shows as they could for as little cost, booking their own shows and writing songs on the road. Now, after huge festival shows at Reading and Leeds and a sold out Forum in London, things are slightly easier, but the dedication to writing undeniable songs and playing great gigs remains the same and they look set to dominate festival bills next year and play their debut album to the masses.
On writing their debut album, Natti says, ‘this album mostly talks about the feeling that you don’t fit in your own life, forever craving something else. I felt like I was stuck in a perpetual nightmare of bad relationships and worry for so long and this collection of songs kinda pulled me out of that. We wrote and produced the bulk of everything between Jack’s bedroom, the tour van and LA so it’s been mostly DIY with an array of producers allowing us to get that extra 20%. We always wanted to make a record that made people dance and think at the same time. If any of these songs help anyone feel cool, or strong or even just less alone then we’ll have achieved what we wanted.’
1. Wake Me Up
2. Glue
3. Swim
4. Bite
5. Hard To Be Myself
6. Lovesick
7. Say No More
8. Heartbroken
9. In My Head (ditty)
10. Rotation
11. Hello Hello
12. Paris
13. Brooklyn
14. Midnight
15. She
16. Useless
Listen to Fickle Friends on Spotify HERE
Fickle Friends have also announced a massive UK regional tour next year., tickets can be bought HERE.
See full dates below.
26/02 Globe, Cardiff
27/02 Academy 2, Leicester
28/02 Sugarmill, Stoke
01/03 Central, Wrexham
03/03 Brickyard, Carlisle
04/03 Lemon Tree, Aberdeen
06/03 Fibbers, York
07/03 Welly, Hull
08/03 Met Lounge, Peterborough
10/03 Chinnery’s, Southend
11/03 Epic Studios, Norwich
12/03 Academy 2, Oxford
14/03 Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth
16/03 Platform, Lincoln
18/03 Komedia, Bath
19/03 Concorde 2, Brighton
21/03 Academy 2, Liverpool
22/03 Belle, Edinburgh