Moreish Idols, in session at Radio X for John Kennedy on March 7 of this year.
Moreish Idols is made up of co-frontmen and guitarists Jude Lilley and Tom Wilson Kellet, bassist Caspar Swindells, saxophonist Dylan Humphreys, and drummer Solomon Lamey. Each brings something unique to the fold, offering thrill while never overshadowing the others. Their harmony is one of the group’s greatest triumphs, and together, they work as a unit to conjure their distinctive sound.
Moreish Idols have carved out a unique position for themselves in the burgeoning London scene. Whereas their debut material showcased a restless, jerky, jagged and rhythmically centered sound that bore the influence of energetic post-punk, their second EP showcased an entirely different side to the band. This evolution saw the group stitch together a looser constellation of ideas, combining swooning tremolo guitars, prickly melodic riddles, erudite saxophone improvs, and flexible rhythms, sounding like Watery, Domestic-era Pavement one second and the bucolic Canterbury Scene the next, but always, always like Moreish Idols most of all.
To celebrate the new album, All In The Game Moreish Idols will head out on a headline UK tour in March 2025. The shows follow a run of packed-out live dates including Speedy Wunderground’s 50th single launch show, an appearance at Left Of The Dial, and a set at Beyond The Music, at which NME praised them for their “rushing, sweeping arrangements” and their “pulsing, unrelenting post-punk”.
For the most part though, “All In The Game”’s existentialist questions revolve around more personal material. The fragmented story in “Railway”, sung from the perspective of a character determined seek her own path, was inspired by Lilley’s sister leaving home when he was young. The title-track deals with a period in which Kellett’s father was having health issues: “how long does the wire stretch out?” he sings alongside Lilley, over a yearning, repeating arrangement of saxophone and guitar arpeggios. “Slouch” deals with Lilley’s diagnosis with Ankylosing Spondylitis: a form of arthritis that affects his spine and pelvis. “The song’s celebrating how much the NHS sorted me out in some regards,” says Lilley, who is now able to manage his symptoms with medication. “It was a reflection on never having problems with my health, and how – when you are finally rolled that dice – it’s just about adjusting to it and turning it into a bit of a superpower.” For Lilley, the album is largely about “laughing in the face of despair – trying to find entertainment and solace in quite dark things that have happened to us, or just happen to everybody.”
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