Chvrches are back in the spotlight. Since the Glasgow-based indie-pop veterans released their last album in 2021, a notably triumphant return to form under the title Screen Violence, Lauren Mayberry stepped out on her own, touring and issuing the solo debut Vicious Creature in 2024. More recently, Martin Doherty from the band unveiled his own new project, the Leaving. In the interim, Chvrches themselves have sprinkled in fresh tracks and a handful of covers, including renditions of Postal Service and Robert Palmer for Hulu’s Tell Me Lies this year. They haven’t vanished, but they’ve spent a long spell in an between-albums phase.
It seems they’re stepping back into album mode now. After introducing the new track “Con Man” during live performances in March, today the group has unveiled “Roses,” which appears to be the first salvo in what looks like a broader rollout. In some ways, “Roses” remains distinctly Chvrches—anything carrying Mayberry’s voice tends to carry the band’s signature, but it also signals a noteworthy evolution for the trio. With a guitar-forward approach that leans away from synths, the track evokes the Cure, whose Robert Smith has been a friend and collaborator with Chvrches long before he found renewed relevance in the public eye thanks to Olivia Rodrigo. The chant-like, dystopian chorus also brings to mind Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall,” a comparison I didn’t expect to make about this band.
A word from Mayberry:
This is the longest break we had ever taken between albums and when we got together to write new music, we wanted to really push ourselves and not be retreading ground we’d walked before. I really think we achieved that. It feels like the most coherent vision we’ve had as a band. We’re excited to be back…
I’m not sure whether this new era is more or less cohesive than the identity they presented on their debut, but I’m certainly intrigued to hear more. In the meantime, you can listen to “Roses” below.
