Hard-Fi make their welcome return with their first new material in ten years with the release of brand new single ‘Don’t Go Making Plans’ on Ignition Records. The track marks a taste of a forthcoming EP of brand new songs, as well as a big UK headline tour which kicks off here in Hastings this November.
With over a million UK album sales, 2 Number 1 albums (3 top 10s), and 5 Top 20 singles, Hard-Fi have been a phenomenon. Having made their debut with the Mercury Prize-shortlisted Stars Of CCTV in 2005, the four-piece proved progressive yet accessible, with tales of high street life, club-driven weekends and keeping your head above water on the breadline. The album yielded singles that included ‘Hard To Beat’, ‘Living For The Weekend’ and ‘Cash Machine’ – reached number 1, and has since been certified double platinum in the UK alone.
Second album Once Upon A Time In The West also topped the charts, and included lead single ‘Suburban Knights’, whilst third album Killer Sounds, was a Top 10 hit. The band also played one of the longest residencies at O2 Academy Brixton, a fully sold out feat they share with the likes of Bob Dylan, and The Clash, after performing at the landmark London venue for five nights straight in 2006.
Rolling around a sun-scorched groove and boisterous beats, ‘Don’t Go Making Plans’ is an immediate, soul-infused summer anthem, recorded at the band’s own Staines studio, produced by frontman Richard Archer and long-term contributor Wolsey White. It’s the end result of the first session together since 2011 album Killer Sounds and follows a series of sold-out tours and live shows over the last 18 months.
“Playing gigs together really rekindled the fire at the heart of the band, and as much as we enjoyed playing our older songs – and audiences loved hearing them, we all felt the urge to create something new.” Richard Archer
As with many of the band’s songs, there is a thought-provoking depth behind Hard-Fi’s pop sensibility. The song’s defiant themes were initially inspired by the UK Government’s attempts to criminalise many aspects of popular protest through the 2022 Public Order Act, while the issue has been thrown into even sharper focus over the last year as police and people have repeatedly clashed on streets around the globe.
The new single is taken from the forthcoming Don’t Go Making Plans EP released on November 1st, available on limited edition, numbered, transparent red 12”.
