86TVs - 86TVs

The Maccabees’ last shows at London’s Alexandra Palace in 2017 marked the end of an era, but also the beginning of a new one, with both Orlando Weeks’ solo efforts, and the emergence of 86TVs. Formed by ex-Maccabees Felix and Hugo White, their younger brother Will, and former Noisettes and Stereophonics member Jamie Morrison, 86TVs’ eponymous debut album demonstrates talent, self-assuredness, and remarkable prowess. Each track is stronger than the last: opener ‘Modern Life’ is a summer singalong belter, ‘Tambourine’ is a future festival staple in the making, and single ‘Worn Out Buildings’ meshes grandiose buildups with anthemic choruses to make a song that sounds as though it’s come straight from the soundtrack for a coming-of-age film. 

With the band declaring no frontman, and instead choosing to let their voices come together to form one, each song celebrates the group’s collective experience, whether that be the White brothers’ confrontation with grief after losing their mother to MS as children or addressing their younger selves (‘Worn Out Buildings’). This coming together of voices works just as well during the album’s uninhibited highs as it does during its moments of introspection. While ‘Someone Else’s Dream’ is a joyous, carefree number that beckons roaring singalongs, ‘Dreaming’ is a ballad where their collective voices reinforce the heartbreak of its lyrics. Likewise, the cinematic ‘Spinning World’ merges the band’s velvety chorus of voices and Will’s contemplative songwriting with a soaring string arrangement, plucky guitars, and the tweeting of birds resulting in a gut-punch of an outro. 86TVs are clearly cut from the same cloth as The Maccabees, but a newfound succinctness and dynamism make for a forward-facing project.