The Tubs + Mopar Stars

Upon arriving in the United States for The Tubs’ first tour of the country, frontman Owen Williams told The New Yorker, “We’re here to unite the country. We’re gonna come, like, three times. By that point, I think this place will start healing.” Then, joyously, they did just that, piling into a van and criss-crossing the States, bringing their literary, bleary-eyed, world-weary, night-of-your-life highwire act to the masses when it was needed most. Along the way, they signed to Merge Records, who will release The Tubs’ third full-length album, Hard Life, on September 11, 2026. The Tubs have never lacked for ambition — on Hard Life, theirs is to complicate the Tub-ullar experience. Having perfected their sound across two albums and hundreds of shows, the London-based Celtic jangle boyband — Williams (vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass), Dan Lucas (guitar), Taylor Stewart (drums), and Max Warren (bass) — push themselves even further into the shimmering heart of virtuosic indie rock. They’re joined by frequent collaborators Lan McArdle (vocals), George Nicholls (guitar), and Rachel Kenedy (keyboards), all of whom have orbited various Tubs and Gob Nation-adjacent efforts dating back to Joanna Gruesome, but the secret to Hard Life’s lushness is the addition of fiddle player Chris Haigh, an instructor and session musician who left an indelible mark on British pop on Steps’ “5, 6, 7, 8.” Mopar Stars is the hooky, guitar-forward indie rock project from Philly artist Nao Demand (Poison Ruïn), joined by guitarist Bill Magerr (Zorn), bassist and vocalist Nneka Anyaoku (S-21), and drummer Evan Campbell (Sheer Mag). Since first surfacing in 2023 with the Shoot the Moon tape, the band has quietly built a catalog that rides the line of familiar (think Bob Mould, Teenage Fanclub, Big Star) while still landing outside any one clear reference point. The band’s forthcoming album Official Researchers Of The NJ Devil is out July 31, 2026 via beloved Olympia label K Records (Sharp Pins, early Modest Mouse & Built to Spill). Recorded and mixed by Trish Quigley at Studio North and mastered by Amy Dragon, the 11-song LP leans further into the band’s loose, melodic instincts. Across the record, Mopar Stars move effortlessly between power pop, 90s alt rock, and classic guitar songwriting without settling too cleanly into any one of them.