Living A Lie

British combo the Amazons emerged in the latter half of the 2010s playing an arena-sized brand of indie rock that combined big, punchy guitar riffs and anthemic melodies. Early D.I.Y. success led to a major-label deal and a Top Ten chart showing for both their self-titled 2017 debut and its 2019 follow-up, Future Dust. Released in 2022, the group's third album, How Will I Know if Heaven Will Find Me, took a brighter and more relaxed tone that veered toward Americana. Following that album's success, the Amazons signed with Nettwerk and released the 2024 singles "Living a Lie" and "Pitch Black."

At the time of their 2014 formation, vocalist Matt Thomson, guitarist Chris Alderton, and bassist Elliot Briggs were already in a group together, but when they recruited Josef "Joe" Emmet -- who is also a bassist -- on drums, the Reading band was born. Building a grassroots following in their local scene, Thomson, then working at a supermarket, would slip demo CDs into shoppers' baskets. Their debut EP, 2015's Don't You Wanna, was produced by Catherine Marks, who'd previously worked with Wolf Alice and White Lies. It included the insistent rocker "Ultraviolet" and the crunching "Junk Food Forever." Even though they only had one EP under their belts, the Amazons were brought on a short European tour with the Kooks, which helped expose them to a wider audience.

After signing to the UMG-owned Fiction imprint, the band released their eponymous debut album in 2017. Behind heavily streamed singles like "In My Mind" and "Black Magic" the album hit number eight on the U.K. Albums chart. A 2018 live EP, Come the Fire, Come the Evening, served to satiate fans ahead of the Amazons' sophomore set, 2019's Future Dust. Another success, the album charted at number nine and yielded additional fan favorites like "Doubt It" and "Mother."

For their third LP, the band worked with producer Jim Abbiss (Arctic Monkeys). The resulting album, 2022's uplifting How Will I Know if Heaven Will Find Me, saw the Amazons expanding beyond their signature sound with jangle pop and Americana influences. It became their highest-charting album to date, reaching number five in the U.K. A sleeker, more dark-hued sound characterized their next two singles, "Living a Lie" and "Pitch Black." Released in late 2024, these songs served as the lead singles from the Amazons' upcoming fourth album, and were their first for the Nettwerk label. ~ Neil Z. Yeung