11/09/2026
Look, there’s some absolute gems out this week but the great lost Beatles album ain’t beating The Tubs to my hallowed RECORD OF THE WEEK spot. A Tubsman gonna Tubsman. ‘Hard Life’ is the third album from the Celtic Jangle Boyband (tm) and possibly their best album yet because whilst they’ve been known for their jangles and this Marr guitar on previous records, on this new one they’re absolutely rocking with a newly enhanced pomp. The celtic levels remain, in fact, they’ve been amped up with fiddles and a big Irish folk pub while it’s pumping energy. This is the band doing pop music, making dance music but very much the kind built for old pubs with nods to Northern Soul stompers, dancing on the table piano bangers and even some balladry with tight harmonies for those arm round yer pal moments. Lyrically as self-deprecating and self-referential as ever, a trope you expect to hear more in hip hop than in indie where bands rarely build their own lore. This shop is built on bands like The Tubs, acts that aren’t for everyone but you can’t not be obsessed with them if you are. Vive Le Tubs.