Black Country, New Road

For the English major road, see Black Country New Road.

Black Country, New Road
The band performing on a stage
Black Country, New Road performing in 2020. From left to right: Wood, Ellery, Wayne, Evans, Hyde, and Mark. Not pictured: Kershaw
Background information
OriginCambridgeshire, England
Genres
Years active2018–present
Labels
Spinoffs
  • Black Midi, New Road
  • Guildhall Military Orchestra
  • Good With Parents
  • Tyler Cryde
Spinoff of
Members
  • Tyler Hyde
  • Lewis Evans
  • Georgia Ellery
  • May Kershaw
  • Charlie Wayne
  • Luke Mark
Past members
  • Isaac Wood
Websiteblackcountrynewroad.com

Black Country, New Road are an English rock band formed in Cambridge in 2018. The original founders of the band consisted of Tyler Hyde (vocals, bass), Lewis Evans (vocals, flute, saxophone), Georgia Ellery (violin, backing vocals), May Kershaw (vocals, keys), Charlie Wayne (drums, backing vocals) and Isaac Wood (guitar, lead vocals); they added their then-seventh member, guitarist Luke Mark, in 2019.

The band gained initial attention through singles "Athens, France" and "Sunglasses" in 2019, which combined features of experimental rock,[1] post-punk[2][3] and post-rock,[4] drawing comparisons to bands such as Slint and contemporaries Black Midi.[5] Their debut album For the First Time, released in 2021, received widespread critical acclaim, was nominated for the Mercury Prize and reached No. 4 on the UK Albums Chart. Four days before the release of their 2022 second album Ants from Up There, Wood left the band, citing mental health struggles.[6] The album received further critical acclaim and commercial success, debuting at No. 3 on the UK Albums Chart[7] and being featured on several year-end album lists.

Following the departure of Wood, the band immediately began work on new material, with Hyde, Evans and Kershaw sharing lead vocal duties. After touring throughout 2022, the band released the concert film Live at Bush Hall, in February 2023 (followed by an album in March of that year), featuring several new compositions and songs that had been written since Wood's departure.

  1. ^ Cartledge, Luke (4 February 2021). "Black Country, New Road – 'For The First Time' review: an utterly mesmerising debut". NME. Archived from the original on 4 February 2021. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Black Country, New Road's "Science Fair" is explosive post-punk for end times". The FADER. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Perpetua, Matthew (6 May 2021). "The Post-Brexit New Wave". NPR. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  5. ^ "Black Country, New Road: For the first time". Spectrum Culture. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  6. ^ "Isaac Wood Of Black Country, New Road Leaves Band Due To Mental Health Reasons, Tour Canceled -". mxdwn Music. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  7. ^ "Ants From Up There full Official Chart History". Official Charts. 17 February 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2023.