Catfish and the Bottlemen

Rock in its grittiest and grandest form is a necessary means to redemption in the hands of Catfish and the Bottlemen. The Welsh band have relentlessly toured the world and released some of the most candid, dynamic, guitar-driven indie rock of the 2010s. Named after Australian busker Catfish the Bottleman, who inspired frontman Van McCann as a child, the band first gathered steam as runners-up at the 2009 North Wales Battle of the Bands. By their 2014 debut album, The Balcony, they had found their groove: the set came jam-packed with infectious singles dominated by huge, muscular guitar hooks and McCann’s lovelorn and life-affirming lyrics. It earned them the prestigious BBC Introducing Award and pushed them straight into arenas. Their sound would inevitably expand to match those venues, with the propulsive stadium rock of 2016’s The Ride and 2019’s The Balance.