Tracks 1st May 2026, ft. Chanel Beads, Opus Kink and The New Eves, ashnymph and more.

By Hard of Hearing on May 1, 2026

Essential new singles also including Nina Winder-Lind, Frank Lloyd Wleft, Martial Arts and cyclist.

Words: Hazel Blacher, Lloyd Bolton, Brad Sked, Elvis Thirlwell, Marty Hill

Chanel Beads – ‘Song for the Messenger’

Closer to the surface but still situated in that glassy, sonically detached in between, weaving light and dark into soft, ethereal hues of emotion, Chanel Beads’ new single ‘Song for the Messenger’ marks an exciting new chapter for the cult NYC artist. Fans of their last album ‘Your Day Will Come’ will be thrilled to learn that their freshly announced new one – due for release on the 26th June via Jagjaguwar – is, well, the same. Just joking – it shares the same name, but musically Chanel Beads (the moniker of Shane Levers) is said to be taking his hypnagogic indie sound in an entirely new direction, focused on integrating more musicians with original parts into the music. Elaborating on the meaning behind ‘Song for the Messenger’, Chanel Beads explains: “This song is laughing at me. Like looking over your shoulder and walking off a cliff. The video is about no fear.” It’s an exciting week for aloof, metropolitan cool kids with tasteful facial piercings and a barrel of emotions to purge. (Hazel Blacher)

Opus Kink (ft. The New Eves) – ‘The Head Tree‘

The latest single from Opus Kink’s long-long-awaited debut album is a frankly jaw-dropping cut. Produced in collaboration with The New Eves, it is that rare perfect combination of two acts’ distinct sounds which somehow amounts to the best of both, rather than some overladen attempt to cover too many bases. At the song’s core is the story of Alice Molland, the last woman in England to be tried and hanged as a witch, a subject which perfectly sets up the gothic overlap between the two acts. Tight alternating verses relate the story with the postmodern hook that the site of Molland’s burial is now the site of an Aldi car park. The sense of a haunted late capitalist present, signified by the sorcery of cut-price groceries, is magnified by the incantatory meter of the lyrics. Throughout, enveloping synth provides a humming bass drive over which high-life horns blow in what feels like a culmination of what Opus Kink have been driving at since their very earliest releases. As they settle into a juddering groove to close the song, they create just enough room for a furiously impassioned monologue from Nina Winder-Lind which references the medieval Welsh poem ‘Cad Goddeau’. The overall effect is a song packed with detail but carefully poised such that the power of every element is maximised. Powerful stuff. (Lloyd Bolton)

ashnymph – ‘47’

It doesn’t feel like too long ago that London via West Yorkshire riser ashnymph – the brainchild of Keg’s Will Wiffen – surfaced with their psychedelic-indie banger debut ‘Saltspreader’. Fast forward to this week and the exciting newcomer has unleashed his debut EP ‘Childhood’ via Blitzcat Records, also sharing ‘43’, an absolute juggernaut of a single. Coalescing elements of psychedelia with gnarly UK bass, alongside glitchy experimental electronica, ‘43’ makes for an absolute heady behemoth. It’s one that would be well placed both at heady late-night raves or sleazy indie club nights. A cathartic beast, ‘43’ is a testament to the hype that has been building around W iffen in recent months. ashnmpyh will be taking their epic live show to a number of cities very soon, including a stop off in Brighton at The Alternative Escape on the 15th May. (Brad Sked)

Nina Winder-Lind – ‘This Is Our Life’

Also a member of perhaps the greatest band on the planet – aka The New Eves – Nina Winder-Lind has ventured back into the solo world with brand new single ‘This is Our Life’, released this week via Transgressive. The new track was created with a helping hand from a Brighton supergroup of sorts – Ella Oona Russell (also of The New Eves), Tomo Sapir, Finlay Burrows and Edward Deeney. Their first solo record in three years sees Nina Winder-Lind wonderfully blend Bob Dylan and Velvet Underground-esque folk with the jangled-ecstasy of Kevin Morby’s country-rock pop, making for a joyous serenade against these cloudless, sunny spring days. On the single, Winder-Lind explains: “I wrote This is Our Life about someone very close to me and then realised it could actually be about quite a few people in my life. It recognises the mental and sometimes physical struggle of being a creative person but it also celebrates the forces that keep us going. When we play it with the band I feel so happy. We dance. We enter joyous abandon. We declare pride and wild love.” Alongside their new single, attendees of Wiltshire wonder End of the Road Festival can experience the live show for themselves this September. (Brad Sked)

Frank Lloyd Wleft – ‘Postcards from L.A’

Coasting down the wide-open road, townscapes shrinking across the painterly pink sunset as a deep soul yearning swells, Frank Lloyd Wleft’s crooning eight-minute Americana epic ‘Postcards from L.A’ broods in the widening schism between home and distant, far away lands. A stalwart of the artier circles of London’s grassroots scene, Wleft has this week announced his upcoming debut album, ‘The Actual Kids in Actual America’ – due for release via Strong Island Recordings on 3rd July – exploring both the doe-eyed romance and deeply flawed political complexities of the USA through the lens of its rich musical traditions. On the new single, Wleft explains: “This is the big three-chord epic, the homesick heartache of the open road stretched out in all its deliciousness. As the drums come in, you can sense the asphalt expanse open out before you, the horizon wobbling in the heat.” In keeping with his longstanding infatuation with the red, white and blue, Wleft has also announced a 4th July headline show to celebrate the album’s release at London’s Paper Dress Vintage. (Hazel Blacher)

Martial Arts – ‘Before The Fire’

A jangling, tender-hearted indie-rock ballad – sparked as ever by the band’s quintessential bravado and bite – pain and empowerment collude on the latest single from Manchester quintet Martial Arts. As anguished as it is uplifting, ‘Before The Fire’ doles out a lyrical treatise about how hard it is to basically afford anything in the ever-increasing cost of living age we find ourselves in. With the powerhouse production of Craig Silvey (Wunderhorse, Opus Kink) and Danny Bennett Spragg (Sam Fender, English Teacher), the track is fragrant with the air of a band that have been simmering nicely, maturing and/or fermenting, ready hit their stride and/or taste delicious. ‘Before The Fire’ serves as the latest teaser from their upcoming debut EP ‘From The Burnoff’, due for release on 5th June via 5db. (Elvis Thirlwell)

cyclist – ‘the wreck’

Leeds can reasonably claim to have the most exciting grassroots music scene in the country at present, and the debut single from cyclist does nothing but strengthen that claim. In the first installment of Ben Parry’s new recording project, warm melodic charm protrudes through scuzzy guitars and lo-fi production to land somewhere between oddball bedroom pop and garage rock. Recorded on a Tascam Portastudio, ‘the wreck’ is compellingly unpretentious and direct, never in danger of tripping over itself. The mighty Esco Romanesco Records (Neve Cariad, Vehicle, Elwell) add another string to their bow with one of the most compelling first releases you’ll hear all year. (Marty Hill)