20 rising U.K. bands that about to take over the scene

Asking Alexandria, Neck Deep, the 1975—the U.K. has produced some of the best and most beloved alternative bands of recent times. The British scene is thriving right now; from indie to metal, via pop punk, emo, grunge, hardcore and more, there’s a whole wave of fresh, exciting U.K. bands to be hyped about. Here are 20 of the most awesome new acts from across the pond that you need to check out:

The Amazons

Headquarters: Reading, Berkshire
Check out: “In My Mind,” “Nightdriving,” “Junk Food Forever”
Combining Foo Fighters-style riffing, You Me At Six-esque Brit-rock and a lashing of indie sensibility, the Amazons are one of U.K. indie rock’s brightest hopes. The four-piece have developed a blistering live reputation in recent years, something that helped the band get booked for a shedload of festivals this summer. Plus, they’ve all got great hair: just look at frontman Matt Thompson throwing those luscious locks around in the “In My Mind” video. Majestic.

Bellevue Days

Headquarters: Croydon, London
Check out: “Ripped Jeans,” “Pepper Tea,” “Let’s All Be Friends”
Ever wondered what Brand New would sound like if they went “indie”? London upstarts Bellevue Days are just that. Their last EP was called Sad Boy, which probably tells you everything you need to know about this band’s sound. Part emo, part indie rock, part grunge —the band refer to their sound as “sludge-pop”—Bellevue Days look set for a big 2017, with a new record rumored to be on the horizon.

Black Foxxes

Headquarters: Exeter, Devon
Check out: “I’m Not Well,” “Husk,” “Whatever Lets You Cope”
Another band whose sound has nods to Jesse Lacey and co. are the much-hyped emo-rock trio Black Foxxes. Debut LP I’m Not Well arrived last year to critical acclaim, and in vocalist Mark Holley Black Foxxes possess one of the finest talents to emerge from the U.K. underground in years. If you like your music with a heavy dose of catharsis, this is a band worth checking out.

Black Honey

Headquarters: Brighton, East Sussex
Check out: “Hello Today,” “Corrine,” “Madonna”
Like the idea of Lana Del Rey or Lorde fronting a rock band? Then you’ll love Black Honey. All indie chic and sultry swagger, the South Coast band—fronted by the effervescent Izzy B. Phillips—are a seriously cool proposition. They’re a musical melting pot of influences, too: indie, pop, Americana and alt-rock all come together with some retro ’90s stylings to create a sound that’s both familiar and fresh.

Black Peaks

Headquarters: Brighton, East Sussex
Check out: “Saviour,” “Glass Built Castles,” “Statues Of Shame”
Yes, they’re another band with “black” in their name, and yes, they’re another band from Brighton, but that’s where the resemblance between prog-metallers Black Peaks and those who’ve come before them in this list ends. This is heavy stuff, yet it’s underpinned by the kind of groove you find with the likes of Deftones, Mastodon and the Dillinger Escape Plan. Those may sound like bold comparisons, but Black Peaks are an intrepid, imaginative proposition, and they could well end up being the heavy band of the U.K. in years to come.

Blood Youth

Headquarters: Harrogate, North Yorkshire
Check out: “Reason To Stay,” “Closure,” “Failure”
Fun fact: Both Fil Thorpe-Evans and Sam Bowden of pop-punk heavyweights Neck Deep used to be a part of previous incarnations of this melodic hardcore trio. Formed from the ashes of the band Climates, Blood Youth have been steadily building a reputation as one of the U.K. metalcore scene’s shining lights. Their debut full-length, Beyond Repair, is due to drop imminently, and if you like your heavy music with a healthy dose of melody, these boys are definitely worth a listen.

Cold Years

Headquarters: Aberdeen, Scotland
Check out: “Death Chasers,” “Spit Blood,” “Maria – Piano Version”
Scotland’s Cold Years are a band who very much wear their heart on their sleeve; this is what Bruce Springsteen would’ve sounded like if he’d grown up in Caledonia. The music of Cold Years is heady, heartfelt and hopeful; rock rarely sounds as honest as it does on the band’s Death Chasers EP. It’s also worth mentioning that in the gruff tones of frontman Ross Gordon, Cold Years possess a vocalist that can stand up to the best in the business.

Creeper

Headquarters: Southampton, Hampshire
Check out: “Black Rain,” “Hiding With Boys,” “Misery”
Combining elements of goth, punk, glam and emo, Creeper are truly an extraordinary proposition. They also display the kind of feverish imagination and wildly ambitious love of concept records that the alternative scene hasn’t had since a little band called My Chemical Romance were ruling the music world. Creeper are incredible, and they’re going to be massive—it’s time to join the cult.

Employed To Serve

Headquarters: Woking, Surrey
Check out: “I Spend My Days (Wishing Them Away),” “Greyer Than You Remember,” “Watching Films To Forget I Exist”
Riffs. Lots of fucking riffs. Hardcore heroes Employed To Serve are shining a light on the heavy end of the U.K.’s burgeoning underground scene, and they’re giving no fucks along the way. Latest single “I Spend My Days (Wishing Them Away)” is a furious sledgehammer of a track that explodes from the speakers and doesn’t relent until you’ve been beaten into submission. Shout-out to vocalist Justine Jones, whose work with Holy Roar Records helps to promote some of the finest bands out there.

Greywind

Headquarters: Killarney, County Kerry
Check out: “Circle,” “Safe Haven,” “Car Spin”
Disclaimer: Pop-rock duo Greywind hail from the Republic Of Ireland, not the U.K., but the sheer level of hype they’re creating across the pond right now meant we just had to include them. If PVRIS are your jam, then the electro-tinged ditties that Steph and Paul O’Sullivan (yep, they’re brother and sister) create are something you can’t ignore. Their debut LP, Afterthoughts, dropped at the start of the year, and it’s a record that’s already marked them down as future stars.

Honeyblood

Headquarters: Glasgow, Scotland
Check out: “Babes Never Die,” “Sea Hearts,” “Ready For The Magic”
Also featuring just two members, and proving that good things often come in small packages, are indie-rockers Honeyblood. Displaying the kind of lo-fi, garage-rock stylings that are normally associated with California, not Caledonia, Stina Marie Claire Tweeddale and Cat Myers are one of the U.K.’s hottest alt bands. Come summertime and those window-down car journeys, this is the band to stick on the stereo.

Junior

Headquarters: Cardiff, South Wales
Check out: “Fall To Pieces,” “A House That’s Not Quite Home,” “That Pretty Dress”
You might remember them from our 10 best U.K. pop-punk bands feature, and Junior are back again for this list because, well, they’re just really great. Plenty of melody? Check. Lots of pop-punk bounce? You betcha! A fondness for concept records? “Hold-up, that’s not very pop punk,” we hear you cry. Well, Junior aren’t your average pop-punk band: their last EP, JuniorLand, had a high concept which revolved around postwar American suburbia. Intrigued? Want to hear more? New music from the Welsh trio is expected soon!

The LaFontaines

Headquarters: Motherwell, Scotland
Check out: “Release The Hounds,” “Under The Storm,” “Castles”
It’s rap-rock, kind of, but not like you’ve heard before. Ever wanted to hear a Scotsman rap over a bit of alt-rock? Us neither, to be honest, but thanks to the LaFontaines, you now can! And the thing is, it actually sounds really good! 2015’s debut album, Class, was equal parts vitriolic and victorious, and latest tune “Release The Hounds” continues the band’s lyrical social commentary. There’s no one else out there quite like them, and that makes the LaFontaines worthy of your time.

Milk Teeth

Headquarters: Stroud, Gloucestershire
Check out: “Brain Food,” “Brickwork,” “Swear Jar”
The Wonder Years, New Found Glory, Taking Back Sunday… the Hopeless Records roster is in fine shape right now, but one of the label’s most exciting bands has to be U.K. grunge four-piece Milk Teeth. Last year’s debut full-length, Vile Child, saw the band well and truly arrive as a force to be reckoned with in the alternative scene, and despite the departure of guitarist and vocalist Josh Bannister threatening to blow the Milk Teeth ship off course, Becky Blomfield and co. emerged from 2016 triumphant. Their upcoming U.K. tour with Creeper is going to be something very special indeed.

Muncie Girls

Headquarters: Exeter, Devon
Check out: “Respect,” “Gone With The Wind,” “Pet Sematary” (Ramones cover)
Indie-punk trio Muncie Girls channel a rebellion against social norms into their sprightly outsider anthems. The best example of this is “Respect,” a song which sees frontwoman Lande Hekt go on the attack against rape culture and “LAD” culture: “For the next few years you can laugh and joke about your next victim/But when you’re all grown-up and your daughter cries will you be sorry you did this?” It’s powerful stuff, performed by three people whose love for punk rock is undeniable. Speaking of punk, Muncie Girls’ cover of the Ramones classic “Pet Sematary” is a total banger.

Pale Waves

Headquarters: Manchester, Greater Manchester
Check out: “There’s A Honey” …that’s all they’ve got out right now, but it’s really fucking good, so we’ll let them off ruining our format
They’ve only got one song officially released at the moment, but what a song it is. Produced by Matty Healy of the 1975, Pale Waves’ “There’s A Honey” is the best indie-pop song we’ve heard in what feels like forever. If the next tunes to emerge from this band are anywhere near as good as this, we’re going to have something seriously special on our hands. Seriously, Matty thinks it’s great, and Matty is great; so, you know, you should listen to it.

Puppy

Headquarters: North London, London
Check out: “The Great Beyond,” “Entombed,” “Arabella”
Puppies are lovely, and so are Puppy. The London three-piece sound like what Weezer might if Rivers Cuomo had more of a fondness for big, hulking riffs. There’s a real tenderness to frontman Jock Norton’s vocals, but don’t let that fool you—there’s plenty of bite to this band’s music. They’re also joining Creeper and Milk Teeth for that U.K. tour we mentioned, so if we’re judging them on the kind of company they keep, they pass the test with flying colors.

Scarlet.

Headquarters: Liverpool, Merseyside
Check out: “Your Control,” “Alone,” “Anyway”
Scarlet.’s debut album, Effigy, was the best DIY indie-rock album of 2016, yet in the cruelest of circumstances, not many people seemed to take notice. And that’s a great shame, because Scarlet. are fucking brilliant. With an indie-rock sound that touches on shoegaze and even a tad on pop punk, the Liverpool rockers are the U.K. underground’s best-kept secret. Their album isn’t even on the major streaming services, so if you want to check out the band’s stuff, you’ll have to head over to their Bandcamp page. And you really should, because Effigy is a gem of a record.

VUKOVI

Headquarters: Ayrshire, Scotland
Check out: “La Di Da,” “Animal,” “Weirdo”
They’re all over the U.K. music press at the moment, and rightly so, because Scotland’s VUKOVI are changing what it means to be a pop-rock band. Yes, there are catchy choruses aplenty, but this band’s poppiness is blended with some serious riffing and intricate song structures. Shout-out frontwoman Janine Shilstone for her performance in the “La Di Da” video, too; you wouldn’t catch us acting so chill around a whopping big snake!

WSTR

Headquarters: Liverpool, Merseyside
Check out: “Footprints,” “Lonely Smiles,” “Eastbound & Down”
Phew, we made it to the 20th band! We’ve saved one of the best for last, too. Pop-punk princes WSTR were another band to feature in our recent article on U.K. pop punk, and they pop up again here because they’re just so darn catchy! Seriously, just try and keep the chorus of “Footprints” out of your head. It ain’t happening. If you love the likes of Neck Deep and State Champs, you can’t go wrong with these guys!