Black Country, New Road – Besties Review

Fresh material from Black Country, New Road is always a treat. Their latest song, Besties, marks the band’s first original studio material since Ants from Up There and fires the starting pistol which has us sprint along to Forever Howlong. A long ride since then, with the band opening for Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds a few months back and, just when things could not get better, teasing new material. Besties, then, is a familiar piece for those who are dedicated listeners of their live material. Playing the track in their opening slot at arenas across the UK, the tease of new sounds was there for the taking, and its studio version manages to capture and maintain the vibrancy, the overwhelming thrill of their unique style. Those instrumentals may be familiar to those attending live shows last year, but it does not wipe away the surprise and allure of Besties.  

Besties is a song, above all, of unity. Finding a sense of consistency in their creative process opens up the band to thankful thrills and instrumental elation. Black Country, New Road has not had an easy road to where they find themselves now, and their roaring progress from their debut to now is delightful to hear. Besties makes for an exceptional lead single, a track hitting out at the fears of viral popularity, those artists who find themselves as a TikTok darling one day, and a dated trend the next. But Besties and the wider collective of Black Country, New Road, despite their music featuring on the brain rot app from time to time, are no Big Justice or Sean Stephens. They are a fascinating unit using the strengths of their egalitarian creative process as a source of inspiration. Georgia Ellery provides the main focus and vocal lead here, a monumental change of pace with plenty of aspirations and fears tucked into the song.  

Live at Bush Hall has not been forgotten, how could it be? Besties has some obvious links to show opener Up Song, the praise of camaraderie in the face of these tumultuous times is wonderful, and well-developed through the spots of brass and percussion heard here. Besties sounds rather regal in its opening but give way to a flood of well-layered sound, all the pointers of what makes the band so magnificent in the build towards their third album. A change in perspective is crucial for Besties, and presumably for the wider Forever Howlong project. Growth in the vocal department is in steady hands with Ellery, with faint outlines of her work in Jockstrap heard throughout Besties. A tremendously charming song irrespective, and most of it builds on the very natural live progression the band has made over the last two years.  

Friendship beats all else. As soppy a message it may be in the wrong hands, Black Country, New Road feels like an instrumental powerhouse, the classier tones of a six-person unit hard at work. This is where the real joy comes from. Their friendship is important to the lyrical choices, the doubts and decisions eased over by those closest to us. From there those Ellery-led motions guide the instrumentals into place and, almost expectedly so, the band brings out another brilliant piece. Soft flickers of chamber pop can be heard in spots but the stripped-back instrumental spot in parts, with focus given to the hopes of a future not of fame but of friendship, are as sincere as they are charming.